TORONTO – A warm winter followed by what’s expected to be a hotter than normal summer will likely increase both air and water pollution which will in turn pose potential health risks, experts warn.
“The urban air pollution will be the worst. There will be smog brought about by sunlight, emissions from people’s cars and the coal industry in the U.S.,” said Prof. Miriam Diamond, a pollution expert from the University of Toronto’s Centre of Environment.
“During the hot weather, winds originating from the Gulf of Mexico will blow smoggy air from the coal-fired plants in the Ohio Valley towards Ontario ,” said Diamond.
“Heat will also increase the threat of forest fires which are known to affect the quality of air.”
As people try to cool off in the summer they will be intensifying air pollution.
“When it is hot, there is a huge electricity load because people are cranking up their air conditioning and this means Canada has to purchase electricity from the dirty coal fire plants in U.S. Using more electricity means more emissions,” said Diamond.
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Hot weather can mean more than just bad air. Experts at a water quality conference in Cornwall,Ont., are worried that a hotter than usual summer will mean higher concentrations of algae in the Great Lakes.
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“Cynanotoxins commonly found in lakes and produced by the blue-green algae, a form of bacteria are up in concentration during a period of hot weather,” said Prof. Peter Hodson, from the School of Environmental Studies at Queens University.
“The cynobacteria reproduces blooms rapidly under certain conditions and these blooms contain poison that kills fish,” said Hodson. “When algae decays it looks terrible and it smells, and during this period it consumes the oxygen in the water and this makes the water quality poor.”
Medical personnel say certain conditions associated with air and water pollution are more common during extremely hot weather.
“”We definitely see more patients show up to our Emergency Disaster Services with cardio respiratory symptoms of chest pain or shortness of breath during periods of extreme heat or smog,” said Dr. Anil Chopra, the medical director of the University Health Network, Emergency Department in Toronto.
“Pollutants in the air include sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons and particulate matter such as toxins, metals, organic compounds, which can exacerbate lung and heart conditions,” said Chopra.
“Water pollutants can cause diarrhoeal illnesses and prolonged exposure to water contaminated with industrial wastes and heavy metals can lead to blood, skin, kidney and other diseases.”
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