Criteria Pollutants
Pollutant: Sulfur Dioxide
Enough exposure to sulfur dioxide will irritate eyes, noses, and lungs, eat away iron and steel, turn leaves of plants yellow, and make the air hazy.
Source:
Sulfer dioxide emits from smokestacks of power plants and factories wherever coal and fuel oil are burned. Enough exposure to sulfur dioxide will irritate eyes, noses, and lungs, eat away iron and steel, turn leaves of plants yellow, and make the air hazy.
Pollutant: Ozone
While a major component of smog, ozone alone is invisible. Enough exposure to ozone will damager plants and make it hard to breathe.
Source:
Ozone is caused by a combination of sunlight and chemicals, which come mainly from
automobile exhaust, industrial smokestacks, and power plants.
Pollutant: Particle Pollution
Small particles of dust in the air, which soil clothes, buildings, and the air. They also carry harmful chemicals into the lungs of people and animals.
Source:
Particle pollution comes from three different general sources: nature, industrial, and domestic. Nature sources include windblown dust, sea-salt spray, and forest fires. Industrial sources include open burning of land-clearing debris, stack-type sources. Domestic sources include wood-burning appliances, tailpipe emissions, and road dust.
Source: Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection1
Pollutant:
Carbon Monoxide
While Carbon Monoxide cannot be seen nor smelled, it is dangerous. Enough exposure to carbon monoxide will make people tired or dizzy or will give people headaches.
Source:
Present wherever fuels are burned without enough air, which is mainly from automobile exhaust.
Pollutant: Lead
Once lead is in the body it tends to remain there. Lead is most harmful to children and can cause severe health problems. Lead also hurts fish and other aquatic life.
Source:
Found in contaminated air, food, water, and old paints.
Lead found in the air is mainly due to smelters.
Pollutant:
Nitrogen Dioxide
If enough nitrogen dioxide gets into the air, it can cause a smelly brown haze that shuts out sunlight. Nitrogen dioxide also damages plants, metals, and lungs.
Source:
Caused by fuels burned by cars, electric power plants, and other large industries.
