The air we breathe gives us life. Breath is an autonomic function that we can not stop. All that is carried in the air around us, will enter our lungs, our blood stream and thus our whole being.

Political machinations in response to environmental concerns have manipulated us to consider only carbon emmissions when we think of pollution. But air pollutants are far more extensive than simply carbon emmissions.

Air pollution is defined as the introduction of chemicals, particulate matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort to humans or other living organisms, or damages the natural environment into the atmosphere. Pollutants can be in the form of solid particles, liquid droplets, or gases. Pollutants may be classified as either primary or secondary pollutants. A primary pollutant is one entering the atmosphere directly, factory and transport emmissions, or volcanic ash or other natural sources. Secondary pollutants form in the air when primary pollutants react or interact. An important example of a secondary pollutant is ground level ozone — one of the many secondary pollutants that make up photochemical smog. Some pollutants may be both primary and secondary, i.e. they originate as a primary, then undergo chemical reaction to become secondary.

The serious pollutants that affect air quality are:-

    * Sulfur oxides (SOx) - especially sulfur dioxide, a chemical compound with the formula SO2. SO2  is produced by volcanoes and in various industrial processes. Since coal and petroleum often contain sulfur compounds, their combustion generates sulfur dioxide. Further oxidation of SO2, usually in the presence of a catalyst such as NO2, forms H2SO4, and thus acid rain. This is one of the causes for concern over the environmental impact of the use of these fuels as power sources.

    * Nitrogen oxides (NOx) - especially nitrogen dioxide are emitted from high temperature combustion. Can be seen as the brown haze dome above or plume downwind of cities. Nitrogen dioxide is the chemical compound with the formula NO2. It is one of the several nitrogen oxides. This reddish-brown toxic gas has a characteristic sharp, biting odor. NO2 is one of the most prominent air pollutants.

    * Carbon monoxide - is a colourless, odourless, non-irritating but very poisonous gas. It is a product by incomplete combustion of fuel such as natural gas, coal or wood. Vehicular exhaust is a major source of carbon monoxide.

    * Carbon dioxide (CO2) - a greenhouse gas emitted from combustion but is also a gas vital to living organisms. It is a natural gas in the atmosphere.

    * Volatile organic compounds - VOCs are an important outdoor air pollutant. In this field they are often divided into the separate categories of methane (CH4) and non-methane (NMVOCs). Methane is an extremely efficient greenhouse gas which contributes to enhanced global warming. Other hydrocarbon VOCs are also significant greenhouse gases via their role in creating ozone and in prolonging the life of methane in the atmosphere, although the effect varies depending on local air quality. Within the NMVOCs, the aromatic compounds benzene, toluene and xylene are suspected carcinogens and may lead to leukemia through prolonged exposure. 1,3-butadiene is another dangerous compound which is often associated with industrial uses.

    * Particulate matter - Particulates, alternatively referred to as particulate matter (PM) or fine particles, are tiny particles of solid or liquid suspended in a gas. In contrast, aerosol refers to particles and the gas together. Sources of particulate matter can be man made or natural. Some particulates occur naturally, originating from volcanoes, dust storms, forest and grassland fires, living vegetation, and sea spray. Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels in vehicles, power plants and various industrial processes also generate significant amounts of aerosols. Averaged over the globe, anthropogenic aerosols—those made by human activities—currently account for about 10 percent of the total amount of aerosols in our atmosphere. Increased levels of fine particles in the air are linked to health hazards such as heart disease, altered lung function and lung cancer.

    * Persistent free radicals connected to airborne fine particles could cause cardiopulmonary disease.

    * Toxic metals, such as lead, cadmium and copper.

    * Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) - harmful to the ozone layer emitted from products currently banned from use.

    * Ammonia (NH3) - emitted from agricultural processes. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odor. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to foodstuffs and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or indirectly, is also a building block for the synthesis of many pharmaceuticals. Although in wide use, ammonia is both caustic and hazardous.

    * Odors — such as from garbage, sewage, and industrial processes.

    * Radioactive pollutants - produced by nuclear explosions, war explosives, and natural processes such as the radioactive decay of radon.

Secondary pollutants include:

    * Particulate matter formed from gaseous primary pollutants and compounds in photochemical smog. Smog is a kind of air pollution; the word "smog" is a portmanteau of smoke and fog. Classic smog results from large amounts of coal burning in an area caused by a mixture of smoke and sulfur dioxide. Modern smog does not usually come from coal but from vehicular and industrial emissions that are acted on in the atmosphere by sunlight to form secondary pollutants that also combine with the primary emissions to form photochemical smog.

    * Ground level ozone (O3) formed from NOx and VOCs. Ozone (O3) is a key constituent of the troposphere (it is also an important constituent of certain regions of the stratosphere commonly known as the Ozone layer). Photochemical and chemical reactions involving it drive many of the chemical processes that occur in the atmosphere by day and by night. At abnormally high concentrations brought about by human activities (largely the combustion of fossil fuel), it is a pollutant, and a constituent of smog.

    * Peroxyacetyl nitrate (PAN) - similarly formed from NOx and VOCs.

Other increasingly significanct air pollutants include:

    * A large number of minor hazardous air pollutants. Some of these are regulated in USA under the Clean Air Act and in Europe under the Air Framework Directive.

    * A variety of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which can attach to particulate matter.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are organic compounds that are resistant to environmental degradation through chemical, biological, and photolytic processes. Because of this, they have been observed to persist in the environment, to be capable of long-range transport, bioaccumulate in human and animal tissue, biomagnify in food chains, and to have potential significant impacts on human health and the environment.

While these chemicals are harmful as airborn pollutants, many also have serious effect and cause environmental harm to water quality and agriculture.

Eutrophication — excess nitrogen deposition — poses a threat to a wide range of ecosystems, endangering biodiversity through changes in plant communities. Excess nitrogen deposition above critical loads is currently widespread, due to the limited reductions in nitrogen deposition over the past ten years. For the period 2000–2020, the protection of ecosystems from eutrophication is expected to improve only slightly under current legislation, mainly because of the relatively small projected decline in ammonia emissions.

Ground-level ozone can damage forests, crops and vegetation where a critical level of ambient concentration is exceeded. Exposure of ecosystems and agricultural crops to excessive ozone concentrations results in visible foliar injury and a reduction in crop yields and seed production.

Air quality is defined as a measure of the condition of air relative to the requirements of one or more biotic species and or to any human need or purpose.

The Air Quality Index (AQI) (also known as the Air Pollution Index (API) or Pollutant Standard Index (PSI) is a number used by government agencies to characterize the quality of the air at a given location. As the AQI increases, an increasingly large percentage of the population is likely to experience increasingly severe adverse health effects.

A good guide to the Air Quality Index of many nations around the globe can be found at the Wikipedia Air Quality Index  page.

A disturbing shift of focus has occured in the last two years at a government and corporate level in response to the environmental concern. Carbon taxing and cap and trade strategies are not only irresponsible but also do not address the extend of atmospheric pollution caused by industry and transport. Alongside this, economic incentives are given to partial solutions with profit potential and a strong resurgence of nuclear technologies as solution strategy is taking place.

In the UK, it was the case that AEA Technology issued air quality forecasts for the UK on behalf of DEFRA (The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). AEA Technology plc itself was a privatised offshoot of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, but has recently been acquired by Babcock International. Babcock International Group Plc is completing acquisition of the VT Group to become the leading engineering support services company in the UK. The VT Group website stated "From the US Federal Government to state and local Governments, from US military forces stationed at home and abroad to local education authorities, and from the Metropolitan Police to the Royal Navy and British Airways, our clients trust VT Group to keep their mission critical services and assetts working."

In 2008, The UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs became The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) , created to take over some of the functions of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (energy) and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (climate change). But, The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), (which replaced the Department of Trade and Industry, DTI), was itself disbanded on 6 June 2009 on the creation of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. However, The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has no remit whatsoever to address the Air Quality Index, or energy. The new Department of Energy and Climate Change was created on 3 October 2008 to take over these responsibilities.

The Annual Energy Statement of the current UK Government, states:

"The mission of this Government is to support the transition to a secure, safe, low-carbon, affordable energy system in the UK, and mobilise commitment to ambitious action on climate change internationally.

The rationale for action is economic as well as environmental. Demand for fossil fuels is set to increase with the huge rise in population and wealth of emerging economies. In parallel, as recent events in the Gulf of Mexico have shown, the costs and risks of extracting fossil fuels from more remote locations are rising. With the UK’s own oil and gas resources declining, unless we act now, we will become more vulnerable to high and volatile oil and gas prices.
We have inherited an energy system and an energy market that has suffered from a lack of clear direction. There is clear consensus that large levels of private sector investment are needed to develop new low carbon infrastructure. The reliable provision of energy is critical to the country’s prosperity and is a primary duty of government. Yet the previous Government let the public down by failing to take the necessary decisions.

As the 2050 pathways analysis published alongside this statement sets out, moving to a secure, low-carbon energy system in a cost-effective way is extremely challenging, but achievable. It requires major investment in new technologies to renovate our buildings, electrification of much of our heating, industry and transport, and cleaner power generation. And it requires major changes in the way energy is used by individuals, by industry, and by the public sector. The promise of transformation is a huge economic opportunity as we grow out of recession.

The role of government in this transformation is clear. With severe constraints on public expenditure in the near-term, the state’s role is to act as a catalyst for private sector investment in new infrastructure and in energy efficiency, by developing a clear, transparent, long-term policy framework.
This statement sets out how we will do this, outlining the programme and timetable for decisions in four key areas:

I. Saving energy through the Green Deal and supporting vulnerable consumers


II. Delivering secure energy on the way to a low carbon energy future


III. Managing our energy legacy responsibly and cost-effectively


IV. Driving ambitious action on climate change at home and abroad "


The primary solution focus throughout the rest of the document is targeted at Bio-mass heat utilities, as was clearly identified as the arena of profit potential at the Scottish Environmental Technologies Network Conference in Edinburgh, 2008, and nuclear power, alongside token expressions towards marine. The Governments Low Carbon Transition website has a definitive attention with nuclear power, as indicated earlier and clearly within the agenda of Babcock International Group Plc. The Annual Energy Statement of the current UK Government also indicates that primary directives are being handed over to the EU. Nowhere is the extensive array of pollutants, detailed above, being addressed.

It is imperative, as demand is being pushed to the private sector, that new energy technologies be demanded by us, the people, and awareness be extended beyond the blinkered economic (and military industrial) focus of current movements.