Former British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli once said,
“A great city, whose image dwells in the memory of man, is
the type of some great idea. Rome represents conquest; Faith hovers
over the towers of Jerusalem; and Athens embodies the pre-eminent
quality of the antique world, Art.”
Now, if you were to choose some great idea that embodies the
spirit of Los Angeles, what would it be?
I happen to like Los Angeles, but the first things that came to
my mind weren’t exactly as awe-inspiring as conquest, faith
and Art with a capital A. Instead, I thought of traffic, pollution
and big leather bags that conceal small yapping dogs.
Okay, so the last thing is a bit of a cliche and unfairly tags
all of Los Angeles as superficial Paris Hilton wannabes. But the
first two, traffic and pollution, are bona fide markers of L.A.
life.
There’s no arguing that traffic here is bad. And
there’s no arguing that we live in a smog-dense cloud of
toxic pollutants; whenever I drive down to Los Angeles from
Northern California, I don’t feel like I’m home until
the highway signs become so dirty that they are barely legible.
After all, the greater L.A. area is surrounded by mountains, a
feature that traps pollution and lets it hover over this basin,
which is home to around 17 million people.
Cancer, heart disease, asthma, emphysema and even diabetes are
just some of the diseases that can result from air pollution.
According to the Coalition for Clean Air, the No. 1 reason why
children miss school in Southern California is asthma. Yes,
it’s gotten so bad that kids can’t even breathe.
In a study conducted in Los Angeles by American and Canadian
researchers, the effects of air pollution were found to be two to
three times more deadly than previously thought. According to
Michael Jerrett, the study’s lead investigator, for every
additional 10 micrograms per cubic meter of fine particles in the
air of a neighborhood, the risk of death increases by 11 to 17
percent.
Fine particles are discharged into the air through smoke,
vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions.
Guess which one of those sources accounts for more than half of
the pollutants in Californian air? Vehicle exhaust. So the next
time you’re sitting in traffic and you’re so frustrated
that you feel like you’re having a heart attack, maybe you
really are.
After all, let’s not forget that some people commit
suicide by turning on their cars in closed spaces such as garages,
causing them to fill with carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is a
poison. And the L.A. basin, flanked by mountains, is like a
windowless garage.
But things are starting to look up. The one good thing about
skyrocketing gas prices is that it’s prompted people to opt
for small fuel-efficient cars over giant gas-guzzling SUVs and
trucks, which are far less environment-friendly.
Last August was a record-breaking month for hybrid cars, with
23,307 units sold nationwide. In fact, even bicycle sales are at an
all-time high, reaching 19 million sold in the past year.
In Los Angeles, there is an urgent need to curtail vehicle
emissions. But at the same time, it’s harder here than it is
elsewhere to turn to walking, biking or public transportation. I
live near LAX and it takes me an hour and a half to ride the bus to
school; driving takes only half that time.
A good middle ground is the hybrid car. In 2005, the
Environmental Protection Agency rated the Toyota Prius a 9.5 on its
Air Pollution Scale, which ranges from one to 10 ““ 10 being
the cleanest. The Honda Civic Hybrid also received the same rating.
The Prius gets about 60 miles per gallon in the city and 51 on the
highway. The Civic Hybrid comes in at around 10 miles lower. Not
only will you save on gas, but perhaps over time, pollution will
cease to be one of Los Angeles’ claims to fame.
But for those of you who don’t care about Los Angeles and
don’t think of it as home, consider this ““ by the age
of 2 months, an infant will have already inhaled enough pollutants
to exceed the EPA lifetime threshold for cancer risk. If
that’s the case, imagine the risk you run by going to school
here for four years.
So even if you plan to move to Shangri-La after you graduate,
realize that your time in Los Angeles will take a toll on your
health. In a city that has an urgent air pollution problem, four
years demands environmentally wise decisions.
Los Angeles is known for traffic and pollution, but it’s
also known for setting trends. It’d be wonderful if the new
trend is switching over to hybrid vehicles. This trend would spread
to the rest of the country and improve health on a national scale.
Everyone would benefit. After all, if you are what you eat, then
you certainly are what you breathe.