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Henry Vu
Jaya Dubey
Writing 39C
16 May 2014
Los Angeles: Lost in Air Pollution
According to Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), LAX is one of the largest airports in
the world, ranking at the sixth busiest airport worldwide. Due to the amount of air traffic it has,
Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has a large amount of air pollution around it. More
specifically, a recent study done in June of 2013 found that the amount of harmful ultrafine
particles in the air is up to 5 times larger in neighborhoods near LAX (Study: LAX). John
Upton, a journalist with background knowledge in ecology, wrote that the effects of harmful
substances in the air have been linked to problems ranging from the obvious, like lung and
cardiovascular problems, to seemingly unrelated issues like suicide. Over the years, the city
council of Los Angeles has been working to lower air pollution. However, there has not been
much done to lower the levels of ultrafine particles. Brian Summers, the airport reporter for the
Los Angeles News Group, wrote that it wasnt until January of 2014 that Los Angeles city
officials began to take steps to reduce the number of ultrafine particles emitted by jets at LAX
(Los Angeles City). Although actions like this are a step in the right direction, it may be too
late as Los Angeles is one of the top 5 cities in the United States with the most particle pollution.
There are multiple sources of carbon dioxide emissions. According to the Environmental
Protection Agency, a government agency whose purpose is to ultimately protect the
environment, the largest of these sources is the production of electricity which makes up 38% of
CO
2
emissions through the process of burning fossil fuels such as coal. Another 32% of carbon
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dioxide emissions comes from transportation which includes highways, airports, and railroads.
The 14% of carbon dioxide emissions that comes from industries is due to the processes that
require the burning of fossil fuels.
Out of the proposed solutions to air pollution, including H.R. 1943 which aims to reduce
short-lived climate pollutants, the best possible solution at the moment is S. 332 which is also
known as the Climate Protection Act of 2013. Presented by Senators Bernard Bernie Sanders
and Barbara Boxer on February 14 of 2013, the bill aims to ultimately reduce the amount of
carbon pollution in the air and support the use of clean energy. This will be done by imposing a
variant of the carbon tax which includes a carbon pollution fee on producers of carbon polluting
substances and a carbon equivalency fee on imported carbon pollution-intensive goods. More
specifically, this creates a tax of $20 per ton of carbon dioxide emitted, and the tax would rise by
5.6% every year. The money generated by the tax would then be used for three separate
purposes. 60% of the money will be rebated back to legal U.S. residents which makes the bill
more beneficial to the average voter. 25% of the money will go to lower the countrys deficit.
The last 15% of the money will go towards research on cleaner forms of energy and its
implementation. With a few adjustments, this bill would significantly reduce the amount of
carbon dioxide emissions, is cost-beneficial, and would be somewhat feasible.