Ships Polluting Sea Air
posted in Latest News |Scientists are continuing their efforts towards saving Mother Nature; one such revelation being that ships are polluting the sea air. Sea air is considered to be healthy for humans as it is abundant in iodine and sodium, two vital factors that helps the body to function better. Infact, coastal climate is recommended for people suffering from chronic illnesses such as rheumatism and bronchitis.
The study claims that dirty smog pouring out of the funnels of the funnels of the ships are posing a great threat to the environment. Through a “chemical finger printing technique”, researchers identified “primary sulphate” in the ships’ release of smoke.
Scientists believe that ship emissions could have caused nearly 60000 deaths worldwide. Infact, scientists at the University of California (San Diego – UCSD) found that sodium emissions into the atmosphere were far more than realized earlier.
In their study, researchers conducted an analysis on the primary sulphate and other sources such as the vehicle exhaust emissions. About 44% of the sulphate polluting the coastal areas of California was traced down to be released from ships.
Scientists claimed that on some occasions, sulphate took up 50% of the atmospheric air as compared to other fine articles in the air. They further opine that ports such as the Los Angeles port, San Diego and Long Beach Port that have ships burning high sulphur fuel are all responsible for polluting the coastal areas of California.
Some international rules that are coming into effect since next year and 2015 are – that all cargo and cruise ships and also tankers will have to switch to more cleaner fuels and expensive fuels when they are 24 miles from the coast.
Professor Mark Thiemens, who led the study at UCSD, said that ships go unregulated and unchecked when it comes to polluting the atmosphere. When this study was conducted in San Diego, scientists found that the contribution of sulphur particles called primary sulphate to be quiet high in the atmospheric air.