^ Judith Chiang, Jennifer Diaz, Kaylin Mere, Dominique Rushing, Evens Thimotee ^
Public Rangers decided to go to AutoZone and place our public health sticker on a Catalytic Converter. We chose this because it is a unique part of a car that does more for the environment than people may know or realize. This device is not anything new and thanks to the Clean Air Act in 1970 that mandated 90% reduction in automobile exhaust. The act helped fuel this part into production in order to better reduce smog and chemicals in the air and also made it illegal to remove it from a vehicle. This converter is installed into cars in order to filter and produce clean emissions from the engine. In states such as California, one can’t actually have their vehicle registered until it passes an emissions test and this part helps do just that. Air is a common that we all share and this converter is a key component in reducing toxic pollutants that are released into the environment. Without this part of a vehicle more carbon monoxide would be released into the air, this pollutant is the main by-product of the car engine. Through filtration combustion occurs and oxidization then turns CO into carbon dioxide and water vapor which are less harmful to the air. The catalytic converter has contributed to a more clean and breathable atmosphere and thankfully has helped keep carbon monoxide levels down. As one can see public health is literally all around us and what we use every day can have an impact on everyone’s overall health.
This is a really great post! Your guys' idea is unique and very interesting. No one really thinks about the specific parts in their car even though they use them everyday and can have a major impact on health. The great thing about those catalytic converters is that not only do they protect our health, they protect the health of future generations by preserving the environment.
ReplyDeletePeople forget that we have made strides already in trying to reduce emissions into the atmosphere. Compared to before, we are not producing as much per car as we did in the past. I have asthma and having clean air is essential for me to live a healthy life and it is because of of these actions that makes it closer to a cleaner world.
ReplyDeleteWOW, great post! I was completely ignorant to the fact that there was even a law mandating such an accessory in all vehicles. This really goes to show how public health is a silent profession. The placing of you public health sticker is really unique and in a field most people would not even think involves public health. Im excited to be involved in field that casts such a broad net. Im also thankful that the public health profession has been looking out for things that would never have occurred to me and many others!
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ReplyDeleteI really like this post about the catalytic converter because many people would not have thought of that as a product of public health. When we all view cars as an enormous mechanism of air pollution, we forget about certain measures we have already taken such as the Clean Air Act in 1970 to prevent air pollution. The catalytic converter cleans most of an automobile's exhaust and thus greatly helps clean the air. Cars are something that many of us use on a daily basis and it is good to know that it may not cause as much of a threat to society as some may think because of preventative public health measures.
ReplyDelete-Ahanna Jose
This is really interesting! We always talk about seat belts and airbags but no one ever discusses Catalytic Converters, even though they protect the environment and subsequently us, are not the first thing people think of. I would like to think that this principle could be applied to other man made items to reduce environmental pollution on a large grid such as what has been done with cars. It is also pretty cool because the catalytic converter also leaves small deposits of platinum, the metal it is made of, behind on the sides of the road researchers can actually determine the number of cars that pass over highways, interstates, and high traffic roads. This would add information as to how many people drive to and from specific areas. I would like to see applied to putting in sound resistant walls for roads near neighborhoods. And in a more practical sense for Public Health it would help to determine the amount of pollution still being put out from cars and if it would be fiscally and environmentally responsible for state governments to consider public transportation to high volume areas.
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