Five things that people use, I tried to find them, they mess up our ozone and I have resigned
them...to the land of Mordor.
Where the shadows lie.
Lord of the Rings.
No?
That’s fine.
Hey everyone, welcome back to DNews, I’m Matt Lieberman.
By now, everyone knows that our ozone is depleting, and that things like cars and factories are
to blame.
Now we’ve made many solid advances on that front, from hybrid and electric cars, to the
increased use of solar energy, but have we thought of everything?
I feel like we’re forgetting something, or, for that matter, several things that contribute
to the continued depletion of our precious atmosphere.
Here are five products that need a serious eco-upgrade.
For example, over 50 million Americans use gas-powered lawn mowers on a weekly basis,
contributing 5% of the United States’ air pollution alone according to People Powered
Machines.
Mowers seem small, but running a lawnmower for one hour is the equivalent of running
11 cars for an hour simultaneously.
Not to mention that in re-fueling our lawn-munching mowers, we spill on average 17 million gallons
of fuel per year.
This fuel evaporates into the air and has the potential to form smog.
In closing, turn off the engine and find an electric alternative!
And while we’re on the subject of lawn care, can we talk about leaf blowers?
Besides causing noise pollution of the loudest degree, they also contribute to air pollution
in a big way.
This is due to the widely used two-stroke engine system.
In a 2011 study, car experts at Edmunds found that “a consumer-grade leafblower emitted
more pollutants than a 6,200 pound 2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor”.
In the test, they determined that a two-stroke leafblower spat out almost 299 times the amount
of hydrocarbons as a pick-up truck.
Can we crack a window, please?
Actually, don’t, the air conditioning’s on.
Actually, you know what?, shut it off and open that window.
Air conditioners are also a big culprit here, so much so that the EPA discussed their environmental
impact in their paper Good Up High, Bad Down Low.
The chlorofluorocarbons, or CFCs, that they emit cause a build-up of ozone in our lower
atmosphere.
Now we want ozone way up there, but down here, it translates to smog, smog, smog.
Another household pollutant emitter is personal generators, which are often used in non-emergency
conditions.
Generators emit nitrogen oxide, another creator of lower-atmospheric ozone.
Unless we can regulate their use, we’re going to have a whole mess of trouble on our
hands anytime people feel like going off the grid.
And finally, I want to talk about lighters.
You know, the bics that you flick?
Whether you smoke or are just a big time candle fan, you should know that lighters emit about
237 milligrams of carbon dioxide per minute.
To put that in perspective, if 1000 people did a minute-long lighter salute at their
favorite concert, they’d release 1.2 kilograms of carbon dioxide all at once.
Now your average power plant produces 12,200 kg of CO2 in that same time.
So imagine if that 1000 person salute happened at 100 different concerts at once.
We’re looking at a power plant’s worth of pollutants.
Let’s not and say we did, hmm?
Suggested questions: Anything I missed?
Are you gonna think twice before firing up these things?
Let us know in the comments below and [push to a related SourceFed video if there is one].
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