Air pollution is becoming a big threat for our world. The bigger problem is that the damage we have caused is huge, and if we continue to harm our environment this problem will become irreparable. We humans are doing this to ourselves because all the harm that we are causing will just counter back to us. Air pollution causes health problems, causes global warming, and causes the sea levels to rise. So we must take action before it is too late, and try to do our best to protect our future.

Air pollution is a very harmful component in our environment. It is a mix of particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, ozone, and carbon monoxide. All of these harmful elements in the air are caused by car emissions, fossil fuels, and greenhouse gases. Car emissions that harm the environment are completely caused by cars that are old and not hybrid. Fossil fuels can be prevented by using solar power or hydropower because they do not release harmful substances anywhere and are completely environmentally safe. Then you can prevent greenhouse gases just by using less light, less water, and recycling on a daily basis.

The pollution in the air also has devastating effects on our health. Air pollution damages your lungs a lot and it can really harm you in the long term. Most people living in urban areas, and areas that harmful substances are emitted on a daily basis can get really harmed. A lot of exposure to polluted air can cause lung cancer, heart diseases, and can damage the brain as well. Most of the air pollutants are carcinogens and can be very dangerous if you are exposed to them on a daily basis. Another thing that the poisonous substances in the air can do to you; is that they can increase the chances of having asthma or any other respiratory diseases. “Exposure to indoor and outdoor air pollution is linked to the premature deaths of about 6.5 million people every year, according to new International Energy Agency cautionary report this week” (Mosbergen).This shows how dangerous air pollution is and how it can become more dangerous. We have to try and fix this problem as soon as possible or one day you will be affected by it too.

“Since 1880 average temperature in the world has grown by 0.85 degrees celsius” ("How Much Has The Global Temperature Risen Since 1880? | UCAR - University Corporation For Atmospheric Research"). Our world is getting warmer and warmer everyday and it is not a positive thing. Even though the temperature has grown slightly since 1880 it is going at a much faster rate. Scientists predict that in 100 years some areas in the Middle East and central Africa will be uninhabitable due to extreme temperature. The extreme temperatures will also cause the people living in those areas to move, because life in those extreme temperatures will be nearly impossible. Even though not much has /changed; it is about to, and we will not be able to do anything about it. If we do not set goals for the next hundred years, our climate will change very quickly and it is going to affect us and our ecosystem drastically. The climate change will also destroy our ecosystem because many animals can live only in certain temperatures, and once the world gets warmer many animals will die, because they will not be able to adapt to the extreme change. All of this will just affect us more because we are very based on our ecosystem, and a drastic change like this may ruin many of our resources that come from animals like dairy products, meat, and honey. This is something really dangerous for the world and it is only in our hands to prevent it.

By the next century major cities will be underwater and for only one reason: Air Pollution! Sea levels are rising considerably fast, because glaciers on the poles are melting. The pollutants in our air have destroyed the ozone layer over the years, consequently the temperature in the poles is rising. This is causing the melting of big glaciers and pieces of ice. All of these glaciers end up melting and end up in seas, but because glaciers are fairly big, they can cause the rise of sea levels. Scientists say that, “Sea levels have risen 8 inches since 1870… and will grow considerably more in the next 100 years”("As Seas Rise, NASA Zeros In: How Much? How Fast?").  If we do not take measures then many people’s lives could be in danger because everyone would have to evacuate from the cities that will be in danger of going underwater. Imagine the damage that could do to some people. The costs it would take to repair the damage would be just too much.

If we do not take action before it is too late, we might have done something that cannot be fixed, to ourselves. If everyone of us could help in the smallest way possible I think as human beings we can reach a goal and save our future, by not letting our cities underwater, by giving our children a healthy environment to live in, and by protecting our ecosystems. If we do not do anything to solve this problem and continue to be careless; than I think it might be too late to salvage our world.