The impact of air pollution is tremendous on the health of individuals. Not only that, but it can also have a significant effect on the overall health system due to increased medical expenses for the public, insurance companies, and the government. According to a recent analysis, Chicago stands 3rd when it comes to deaths and health costs associated with diesel pollution. The biggest reason for this high number is the fact that the city is the hub of major freight services in the US.
Deaths And Health Costs Due To Diesel Pollution Is High In Chicago
Millions of diesel trucks pass through the city, and this can result in high levels of air pollution. According to estimates, it kills hundreds of people every year due to soot exposure from diesel engines. The highest casualties are in the metropolitan area of Chicago. Diesel soot is one of the biggest contributors to air pollution in metropolitan cities across the country. It is estimated that the health cost due to diesel soot is close to $4 billion every year in Chicago. New York and Los Angeles are the other top cities with more pollution than Chicago in the country.
Experts feel that people living close to interstate highways and freight centers are at high risk of developing health complications due to diesel soot exposure. The focus should be to move towards zero-carbon freight carriers in the long run to avoid the enormous risks of climate change and air pollution.
In this regard, Illinois is showing the way with its Clean Energy Jobs Act that plans to put about $100 million every year towards electric vehicles. The government is planning to promote the manufacturing of electric vehicles and batteries in a big way to achieve this goal. However, the focus is mainly given to small vehicles and others that are used locally as the state wants to derive maximum benefits from such electric vehicles.
The federal government is also taking an interest in promoting electric vehicles under the Biden regime. The new legislation plans to induce $170 million towards this goal to reduce diesel emissions shortly.
It is important to understand that air pollution cannot be analyzed just by looking into the atmosphere, and the pollutants are microscopic and visible only under a microscope. Due to this reason, most people do not recognize that they live in a risky neighborhood, and this is the case with most people living near freight centers across the country.
According to experts, our lungs have the natural ability to deal with bacteria and viruses as they have been found in the environment for ages. However, our lungs are still not able to deal with the diesel soot as it is relatively new for our lungs. In this way, our lungs are highly susceptible to getting damaged by breathing diesel soot regularly.
According to the latest estimates done by experts, the monetary impact of diesel pollution is close to $1 trillion per year as health damages are claimed across the country due to respiratory illness. Apart from that, it is also responsible for nearly 9000 deaths every year across the country, and it is also one of the big contributors to heart attacks.
It is interesting to note that the new guidelines for maintaining standards apply to new vehicles while old diesel vehicles can continue to operate. In this manner, certain neighborhoods that have a huge number of old vehicles suffer a lot from diesel soot pollution. It is the minority community that usually stays near such neighborhoods in most states. The pollution levels at freight hubs need to be monitored regularly, and strict guidelines should be passed to keep them under control.
