U.S. Transportation & Pollution

Today we in the U.S. are driving much more than we were in years past, and our driving is having harmful consequences. Consider these facts.

• In 1994, nearly 60% of U.S. households owned two or more cars and 19% owned three or more.
• Since 1970, vehicle miles traveled have increased 149% while U.S. population increased 39%.
• The 2000 census revealed that 3 out of 4 workers drive to work alone, an increase from both 10 and 20 years ago. In addition, less than 5% use public transportation and less than 3% telecommute.
• Fuel economy for passenger vehicles peaked in 1988 and is at a 22 year low. This is due to the increase in vehicles from the "light trucks" category (SUVs, vans, and pickups).
• Federal law allows vehicles in the "light truck" category (e.g. SUVs) to emit 75% more smog forming emissions than cars.
• Tailpipe pollution from cars and trucks accounts for almost a third of outdoor air pollution in the United States, including approximately half of the pollution that creates smog.
• Production and distribution of gasoline causes half of toxic air pollutants released (e.g. benzene).
• In 1996 health care costs due to transportation pollution totaled $56 billion.

Human Health

Currently more than one in three Americans live in areas with unhealthy outdoor air, and in many areas it is getting worse, especially in poorer neighborhoods. Outdoor air pollution from vehicles can:

• cause acute respiratory problems;
• aggravate asthma;
• cause significant temporary decreases in lung capacity;
• cause inflammation of lung tissue;
• lead to hospital admissions and emergency room visits;
• impair the body's immune system defenses, making people more susceptible to respiratory illnesses, including bronchitis and pneumonia; and,
• increase a person's risk of cancer.

For the first time recent studies have linked outdoor air pollution to:

• birth defects, low birth weight, premature births, stillbirths and infant deaths;
• harming the blood vessels of healthy individuals;
• healthy, active children becoming 3-4 times more likely to develop asthma.

Asthma is reaching epidemic proportions:

• Asthma has increased 74% among children and teenagers ages 5-14 since 1980, and an astounding 160% for children 1-4.
• By 2020 asthma sufferers are projected to double to 29 million with one family in five forced to live with the disease.
• Currently seven percent of children suffer from asthma, which is the number one cause of school absences.
• African-American children are five times more likely to die from asthma than white children.

The Rest of Creation

Pollution from vehicles not only harms human beings, it impacts the rest of God's creation as well by:

• interfering with the ability of plants to produce and store food, so that growth, reproduction and overall plant health are compromised;
• making plants more susceptible to disease, pests, and environmental stresses;
• reducing agricultural yields for many economically important crops (e.g., soybeans, kidney beans, wheat, cotton);
• affecting the long-term health of whole forests or ecosystems;
• killing or damaging leaves so that they fall off the plants too soon or become spotted or brown (significantly decreasing the natural beauty of an area);
• contributing to fish kills and algae blooms in sensitive waterways, such as the Chesapeake Bay;
• contributing to the formation of acid rain, which also causes serious damage to the rest of God's creation.

The more we learn about the effects of outdoor air pollution on human health and the health of the rest of creation, the more we who are called to follow the Great Physician and love our neighbors as ourselves should be motivated to protect our loved ones and others from this threat. Using less gasoline, whether by driving less or by driving a more fuel efficient vehicle, reduces pollution that hurts others and the rest of God's creation.