Community Health & Air Pollution: Challenges to the sustainability of a community. A Case Study in the Southwestern US (Arizona & Nevada)
Livability of a community and its sustainability is predicated not only on the economic wellbeing but the health concerns of the community as well. Amongst the environmental concerns of a given community, the most insidious is air pollution. Typical sources of air pollution include industrial emissions and the pollution from the traffic corridors. In order to ascertain the air quality adequate monitoring of both is required.
This study looks into the air contaminants that are being monitored as a part of the regulatory requirement to what is actually being emitted. In the study area, contaminants monitored are typically the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) - criteria pollutants; however what is being emitted by the different entities are a lot more than just the NAAQS criteria pollutants.
At the present time what is being monitored is inadequate and incomplete, moreover the myriad of chemicals emitted unfettered has individual and synergistic community-wide health effects that is currently un-monitored and unknown.
This research paper is important in two fundamental ways, one, it places emphasis on the problem of community sustainability in the context of society of today. This case study is conducted in metro Phoenix area, which is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. This can provide a benchmark for cities, towns worldwide that are attempting to make their communities sustainable not only in the context of economics but also in societal well being.