The Grim Reaper
Your Emissions Today
No. 11 in a never-ending series. Autumn 1994
In England's Green and Pleasant Land
Let me ask you gentle readers some questions.
What do you do to escape the filth and degradation of the fair city of Bristol? Do you head for the hills and green fields of Devon, Somerset or Wales to breathe cleaner air and allow your wearied lungs to recuperate. Or do you make for Westonbirt Arboretum on a crisp autumn day when the explosion of colours are at their best?
Never one to miss an opportunity to spread doom and gloom and despondency the Grim Reaper is about to bring you depressing news. Whilst you sit on a Devon cliff, smug in the thought that you have escaped the smogs of Bristol, STOP!, THINK AGAIN!
This summer Government figures showed that ozone safety limits were exceeded on more than 100 days in Devon and this pattern is repeated across rural Britain. What's more, in periods of ozone alerts, levels were generally higher in the countryside than in large urban centres. This is because ozone disperses from its source to surrounding areas. It is also reduced in urban areas by being degraded by the effects of other pollutants, whereas in the countryside it accumulates until it is dispersed by the wind.
But at least, so you think, even if you can't breathe the air you can enjoy the glorious autumn colours. STOP! THINK AGAIN!
Research by the Government and the Forestry Commission has shown that even a single exposure to raised ozone levels damages trees and causes premature browning of the leaves. The Independent newspaper noted that, for the second year running, trees throughout Britain have been changing colour from mid-August. This early autumn syndrome is a clear symptom of ozone damage and 57% of trees are now estimated to be damaged by pollution.
Is there any reason, I wonder, why the same figure should not apply to human beings?
The Grim Reaper
