6.2 The Air: Breath of Life

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6.2.14 What is that Smell?

The Air Quality Index (AQI) is a number used to measure how clean or polluted the air is in a specific area. It helps people understand if the air is safe to breathe or poses health risks.

It ranges from zero (clean) to 999 (hazardous). Standard air quality monitors are designed to measure pollution levels up to 999 and not higher, because high values are not possible to measure accurately.

Please introduce yourself.

I am Cheng from Yancheng. My parents gave me the name after the city. We live in China.
My name is Birgit, I am from Stavanger, Norway. It is a city with 200 thousand people.
I am from New York. Everybody knows about New York, though some people think that the city is the capital of the USA. The city is really big, but not the capital though. My name is Elijah, by the way.
I am Deepak from Delhi, India. Delhi’s population is larger than that of some entire countries.

What is the air quality index at your home right now and what does it mean? Is the air clean or polluted?

The Air Quality Index  is 255 now, which means very unhealthy, but honestly, we have even worse air quality quite often, especially during winter.
The air here is clean and fresh most of the time. We’re lucky because there aren’t many factories or heavy traffic nearby. I don’t really think about air pollution much, but it makes me sad to hear how bad it is in other places.
It’s usually not bad here, our AQI is only 138 now. Though it is still unhealthy, last week was much worse, the AQI was over 500. The air was terrible because of smoke from wildfires.

The air quality index at my home is 999. I bet it is even higher now, but not possible to measure. Absolutely the worst situation. We cannot go to school. Only people who really need to go outside do so.

Do you notice anything unusual in the air?

The air looks foggy, but it’s not fog—it’s smog. Sometimes it smells like burning coal.
Not really, the air feels clean and fresh here. It smells like trees and grass.
Yes, it still smells like burnt wood because of the wildfire smoke. The sky is orange, and you can’t see far.

Yes, the air smells smoky and dusty. I cannot even see the next house, just a yellowish haze everywhere. We don’t see the sun for weeks, let alone any clouds.

How does the air make you feel?

I feel tired, and my throat feels dry. It’s hard to breathe outside, sometimes even inside the house.
It feels good to breathe. I can run and play without any problems.
It’s hard to breathe, and my throat feels scratchy when the air is really bad. I’m sneezing more, too. 
I cough a lot and my chest feels tight, especially in the mornings. My eyes also sting.

What are the people in charge doing?

They limit the number of cars on the road and ask factories to stop working, but it doesn’t fix everything.
They protect the forests and make sure cars don’t pollute too much. We also have a lot of electric cars here.
They warn us to stay indoors and stop outdoor construction, but I think we need bigger solutions for climate change.
Sometimes they ban firecrackers and try to control burning crops, but it doesn’t seem to help much.

Why do you think the air gets polluted?

Too many factories, cars, and people burning coal to stay warm.
In other places, I think it’s because of factories, fires, and too many cars.
This time it’s because of wildfires, but pollution from cars and buildings also adds to it.
There are too many cars, factories, and people burning trash or crops.

Do you know anyone who gets sick because of bad air?

Half of my family has a bad cough every winter because of the pollution.
Not here, but I’ve read about people in big cities who do.
I think my grandpa’s breathing problems get worse when the air is bad.

Yeah, I have family members suffering from asthma, and it gets really bad during this time of year. What’s worse, I just read that 464 children die every single day in India due to air pollution. I am worried about my family.

What can you do to stay healthy?

I wear a mask and use an air filter at home. I try not to go outside. I also use inhalers when things really get bad and I cannot breathe.
I can appreciate the clean air here. People who live in polluted areas should plant more forests. Forests filter the air and give us oxygen.
I stay inside, use an air purifier, and wear a mask if I have to go out. We are waiting for the wind to blow the smoke away.
I wear a mask when I go out and stay indoors most of the time. We should do much more, because the air inside our house is not much better. But we don’t have money to buy air filters.