ABSTRACT
Water and air, the two essential fluids on which all life depends, have become global garbage cans.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau
Air pollution is defined as the presence in the atmosphere of particulates or gases that can cause some harmful effects to humans, animals, plants, and materials. Scientific data have revealed connections between polluting sources, degrees of exposure, and health risks (Lim et al., 2012). Premature death due to air pollution exposure (indoor and outdoor) currently claims an estimated 7 million human lives worldwide annually, accounting for 12% of the total global deaths per year (estimates from the World Health Organization [WHO], 2014). The estimate for ambient (outdoor) air pollution is 3.7 million in 2012 (WHO, 2015a). In the United States, 12,000-43,000 people died prematurely in 2000 from air quality issues, of which the majority source was passenger car related (3900-12,000 of the total) (Wadud and Waltz, 2011). The vast majority are cardiovascular-related: from strokes, ische mic heart disease, cancer; and also acute respiratory infections and chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD). Millions of lost work and school days are also the result of high air pollution levels (USEPA, 2015a).
