There are two major groups of pollutants:
Greenhouse gases:
... Carbon dioxide (CO2),
... Methane (CH4),
... Nitrous oxide (N2O) and
... A number of fluorinated gaseous compounds (HFCs, PFCs, SF6)
... Other greenhouse gases, not included in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)
Air pollutants:
... Acidifying pollutants: sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx, a combination of nitrogen monoxide, NO and nitrogen dioxide, NO2) and ammonia (NH3),
... Photochemical smog precursors: again nitrogen oxides and non-methane volatile organic compounds (NMVOCs)
... Particulates and particulate precursors
... Toxic pollutants like heavy metals and persistent organic pollutants
... Carbon monoxide (CO)
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The air we breathe
Air pollution ... particulates and noxious gases in our cities from heating and cooling of buildings and the cars, buses and trucks we use for transportation ... all of which are bad for human health and especially those with weak respiratory systems.
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The killer smogs in the UK in the 1950s
The attitude to air quality changed in the UK in the 1950s after killer smogs enveloped the country and hundreds of people with weak respiratory systems died. The Parliament passed stiff laws to ban the burning of coal in open fires, something that had been traditional in the UK for a very long time, as well as imposing controls on industrial and commercial use of coal
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The yellow air in Los Angeles in the 1960s
The State of California imposed stringent vehicle emission control standards to address the problem ... and California remains one of the most strongent jurisdictions in the world with respect to automobile emission controls.
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Economic progress in China but massive degradation of the air quality
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Air quality in Jakarta, Indonesia is incredibly bad
Exhaust gases from cars, trucks and buses are a big source of pollution
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Air quality in Bangkok, Thailand is incredibly bad
Road transport vehicles are a big part of the problem
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Pollution originating with electirc power generation
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