‘Small changes can make a big difference to air quality’
By Kristina Muir
Clean Air day has been running in the UK since 2017, and has led to an increase in the public understanding of the impacts of air pollution, along with targeted action on reducing it. Designating one day per year to focus on clean air does not mean we don’t strive for it the rest of the time, but it helps raise awareness of the issues.
So what do we mean by Clean Air? Yes, there were the days of smog in cities - unfiltered vehicle exhausts, factories, the burning of coal. When you could actually see and smell the air pollution and it clearly affected people’s breathing. Now the problem is more insidious. It has overtaken high blood pressure and smoking as a leading contributor to global disease. Anything that burns produces air pollution, and the pollutants that cause the most public health concern currently are particulate matter (especially small particulates, less than 2.5 microns in size, that are absorbed quickly from the lungs into the circulation), carbon monoxide, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and sulphur dioxide. Fine particulates are also produced by wear - approximately 75% of transport particulate emissions come from tyres and asphalt. They are most concentrated near the ground, hence children are exposed to more than adults, and weather conditions can make them stay there for longer.
Pupils driving home the clean air message at schools
World Health Organisation (WHO) data shows that 99 per cent of the world’s population breathe air that exceeds the WHO guidance limits, and contains high levels of pollutants. There are an estimated 7 million early deaths globally per year that are directly linked to air pollution. The rate has been shown to be 10 times that of deaths attributable to car crashes. It has been shown to increase rates of ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer, asthma, preterm birth, low birth weight and cognitive and neurological impairment including anxiety, depression and dementia.
As road transport contributes by about a third to air pollution levels, then we have some control as individuals on how much is emitted into the air we all breathe.
Firstly, we can consider how we travel. We should ask ourselves every time we need to make a journey - can I make this journey a less polluting way? Can I walk, wheel, cycle, or take public transport instead of travelling by car or aeroplane? And if you can walk, wheel or cycle where you need to go you’re in a win-win situation - you reduce car traffic, leave a car parking space to someone who doesn’t have that option, boost your own health and protect the health of those around you. What’s not to like? Short car journeys produce much more air pollution than longer journeys. If you would like to, but the infrastructure just isn’t good enough, then contact your decision makers - community council, councillors, MSPs.
Secondly, we never need to keep our vehicle engine idling! Engine idling for more than 30 seconds uses more fuel than restarting the car and is also worse for the engine (with build up of fuel residues). An hour of engine idling can use up to 2 litres of fuel - and those five minutes here and there soon add up! So you can also save money the quicker you switch off your engine, even at traffic lights. Modern engines don’t need much warming up time, even in cold weather. And keeping the engine idling for air conditioning/heating or listening to music whilst in the car actually still drains the battery.
What are NHS Highland doing? The Environment and Sustainability Board have the responsibility to reduce emissions in a number of different areas such as fleet, patient and staff journeys and energy systems. There are more electric fleet vehicles, outpatient appointments are often conducted online, staff are encouraged to work from home where possible, and there is work improving the access to better active travel infrastructure such as Cyclescheme, more secure bike storage facilities, and work infrastructure providers to improve safety for people walking, wheeling and cycling to our sites.
Let’s use this Clean Air Day as an opportunity to reflect on how we can all do our bit to improve the health of the nation. And let’s keep that going!
Kristina Muir is a a consultant anaesthetist at Raigmore Hospital.
