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What is the current level of air pollution in Cartersville?

Cartersville is a city in Bartow County in the U.S. state of Georgia. It can be found on the northwestern edge of the Atlanta metropolitan area. According to the census conducted in 2010, Cartersville had an estimated population of approximately 20,000 inhabitants.

At the end of June 2020, Cartersville was going through a period of “Moderate” air quality with a US AQI reading of 51. . This United States Air Quality Index number is an internationally used set of metrics supported by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and is used to compare the quality of air in different cities throughout the world using comparable standards. It is calculated by using the levels of the six most commonly found pollutants. If figures for all six are not available, then a figure is calculated using what data there is. In the case of Carterville, only PM2.5 was recorded at a level of 12.2 µg/m³ which pushed it slightly over the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) target figure of 10 µg/m³.

When air pollution is classified as “Moderate” the given advice is to close doors and windows to prevent the ingress of more dirty air into the rooms. Those who are sensitive to poor air quality should try to remain indoors as much as possible until the quality improves. The table published at the top of this page should help with that decision.

Does the level of air pollution in Cartersville stay the same throughout the year?

Air quality is very volatile and therefore is very changeable. It can be affected by many things such as wind speed and direction and the strength of sunlight as well as during different seasons of the year.

Looking back at the figures published by the Swiss air monitoring company IQAir for 2020, it can be seen that for four months of the year, Cartersville achieved the target figure of 10 µg/m³ or less, as recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO). For January, February, May and September the recorded figures were all over 9 µg/m³ but less than 10 µg/m³. “Good” air quality was experienced during the months of April, June and October with respective readings of 11.9 µg/m³, 10.6 µg/m³ and 11.7 µg/m³. For the remaining five months of the year, the air quality was classified as being “Moderate” with figures between 12.1 and 35.4 µg/m³. The first record to be kept regarding air quality was in 2019 when the annual average reading was 14 µg/m³. The following year saw an improvement when the figure fell to 11.6 µg/m³.

However, this may not be a truly accurate reading because of the restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many vehicles were no longer used as the drivers were furloughed and not required to commute to and from work on a daily basis. There were also many factories and other non-essential production units which were temporarily closed in an attempt to prevent the spread of the virus.

During the colder winter months, when temperatures drop, cold air tends to stay closer to the ground which forces warmer air to rise above it. Cold air is denser and moves slower than warm air. This density means that cold air traps the pollution but also doesn’t carry it away. Therefore the air pollution remains closer to the ground where people breathe it in.

It is far more common for people to leave cars idling during the winter than in the summer. This is done to defrost a car or to wait for the heater to begin working. Another reason for the increase in pollution in winter is the increased demand for energy for heating. Much more electricity, coal and gas are burned both domestically and industrially to meet the demand for warmer buildings. This often explains why indoor air quality can be worse than outdoors because so much more time is spent indoors during colder weather.

Warm air is often more moisture-laden. Cold air can’t hold as much moisture, and so the air is usually drier during winter. If you look at air pollution in summer vs winter, you see that cool, dry air holds more pollution. This causes more irritation and breathing difficulty than it would in summer when the air is more mobile.

What is the main source of the polluted air in Cartersville?

Georgia's electricity generation and consumption are among the highest in the United States, with natural gas being the primary electrical generation fuel, followed by coal. The leading area of energy consumption is the industrial sector because Georgia is a leader in the energy-intensive wood and paper products industry. There are some solar generators installed which rank Georgia as 15th in the country in terms of the amount of energy produced.

Coal-fired power plants are the leading cause of mercury pollution in the U.S., according to the EPA. They also discharge cancer-causing metals such as nickel, chromium, and arsenic as well as pollutants that exacerbate asthma and heart disease, which are also covered under the pollution rule.

Ground-level ozone is another major source of air pollution in Cartersville. Ozone is a harmful air pollutant, because of its effects on people and the environment, and it is the main ingredient in smog.

Tropospheric, or ground-level ozone, is not emitted directly into the air, but is created by chemical reactions between oxides of nitrogen (NOx) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). This happens when pollutants emitted by cars, power plants, industrial boilers, refineries, chemical plants and other sources chemically react in the presence of sunlight. Ozone can reach unhealthy levels on hot sunny days in urban environments, but can still reach high levels during colder months. Ozone can also be carried long distances by wind, so even rural areas can experience high ozone levels.

What can be done to improve air quality in Cartersville?

Air pollution is a major environmental risk to health. But by reducing air pollution levels, countries can reduce the problem of diseases from stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and both chronic and acute respiratory diseases, including asthma. The lower the levels of air pollution, the better the cardiovascular and respiratory health of the population will be, both long- and short-term.

There was a management system inaugurated in 2004 which was the first of its kind in the USA. They formed the Bartow County Environmental Management System Program which consists of partners from all walks of life such as government, industry, small business, schools and agriculture. Together, they intend to protect the quality of land, air and water.

Residents can become involved by becoming a Household Partner and agree to certain practices at home. These could include recycling, carpooling, changing to more energy-efficient appliances and reducing water usage.

Farmers can become involved by agreeing to certain practices such as reducing pesticides and preventing animal waste from filtering into water sources.

Coal-powered power plants are gradually being phased out. Plant Bowen near Cartersville is one of a few coal-fired plants Georgia Power still operates in the state. The ones that do still operate use scrubbers and strict mercury controls to minimize their pollutive emissions into the environment.

There are many examples of successful policies in transport, urban planning, power generation and industry that reduce air pollution.

Modern technologies that reduce emissions from industrial chimneys; improved management of urban and agricultural waste, including the capture of methane gas emitted from waste sites as an alternative to incineration (for use as biogas).

In the transportation sector changing to clean modes of power generation; prioritizing rapid urban transit, walking and cycling networks in cities as well as rail interurban freight and passenger travel; shifting to cleaner heavy-duty diesel vehicles and low-emission vehicles and fuels including fuels with reduced sulfur content.

In power generation the increased use of low-emission fuels and renewable combustion-free power sources (such as solar, wind or hydropower); co-generation of heat and power; and distributed energy generation (e.g. mini-grids and rooftop solar power generation).

What are the detrimental effects of Cartersville’s polluted air?

The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that in 2016, some 58 percent of outdoor air pollution-related premature deaths were due to ischaemic heart disease and strokes, while 18 percent of deaths were due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and acute lower respiratory infections respectively and 6 percent were due to lung cancer. This mortality is due to exposure to small particulate matter of 2.5 microns or less in diameter (PM2.5), which causes cardiovascular and respiratory disease, and cancers.

Particulate Matter, also known as PM2.5 and PM10 consists of a complex mixture of solid and liquid particles of organic and inorganic substances suspended in the air. While particles with a diameter of 10 microns or less, (≤ PM10) can penetrate and lodge deep inside the lungs, the even more health-damaging particles are those with a diameter of 2.5 microns or less, (≤ PM2.5). PM2.5 can penetrate the lung barrier and enter the blood system. The larger PM10 pollutants should become trapped by the body’s natural defenses but inevitably, some will always get through.

Mercury compounds released from coal-fired power stations are extremely toxic to humans. These compounds can cause permanent damage to the brain and kidneys, as well as to fetuses.

A startling statistic is that more people die from air pollution-related illnesses than from car accidents around the world. Many of these deaths are related to indoor air pollution, but outdoor air pollution plays a role as well.

What impact do the industries of Cartersville have on the environment?

Industries in Georgia, including paper manufacturing, agriculture, and electrical power generation, produce and manage thousands of tons of industrial toxins every year.

There are 26 paper mills in operation throughout Georgia and together they generate approximately $20 billion in annual revenue. The negative aspect though is the amount of pollution they generate. One of the worst pollutants created is dioxin which is created through the molecular bleaching of the paper during production. Although different chemicals are being introduced which produce no dioxin. Other forms of industrial toxins produced by paper mills include nitrous oxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and volatile organic chemicals. These are not purposely discharged but inadvertently leak from ill-fitting pipework and faulty valves. Very often they can be detected by the smell in the vicinity of a paper mill.

By-products are an inevitable result of mass production in many major industrial processes, but toxins can be reduced with protective actions.

Another way to reduce the number of toxins released is through the paper recycling process. Recycling paper causes far less air and water pollution than does the manufacture of new paper and thus can help reduce the negative health impacts of the paper industry.

Georgia is the nation's leading producer of chickens, peanuts, pecan nuts and watermelons. Producing these commodities on such a large scale requires the state's farmers to use highly industrialized processes. The poultry industry produces a huge amount of litter (waste) as a by-product. Chicken litter contains large amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium, which can be carried to surface waters in runoff pollution. This can be very difficult to trace back to the source and is therefore very difficult to regulate.

Growing crops on an industrial scale use huge amounts of fertilizers and chemicals to increase the yield as well as pesticides to control the invasive insects. All of these chemicals though are carefully controlled by the government.

Coal is not mined in Georgia but is imported from the Appalachian Mountains and other states.

In 2009 twelve coal-fired power stations in the state produced approximately 64 percent of Georgia's electricity and contributed more than $2 billion to the state's economy. However several of these plants have since closed.

The burning of coal releases toxic substances, including carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and mercury compounds. Coal-fired power stations generate the most sulfur dioxide pollution, as compared to other methods of power production.

The Bowen plant which is located in Cartersville, produces the most tons of sulfur dioxide in the nation, and Georgia.

The Scherer plant emits the most carbon dioxide in the United States. The release of sulfur dioxides and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere can irritate human respiratory systems.