Air Pollution in Mexico City

Air Pollution in Mexico City

Mexico City adds an estimated one million new residents each year, resulting in one million new aggravates to the city’s already abominable air quality (Collins, 119). Over the span of a generation, Mexico City’s air has gone from being one of the world’s cleanest to one of the world’s most polluted, as well as the most polluted in its country. The average visibility in the city is down from almost 100 km in the 1940s to only 1.5 km today, removing the once beautiful landscape of the surrounding snow-capped volcanoes (Yip, 1). More significantly, however, Mexico City’s air problems have resulted in a notable decrease in the health of its residents, particularly its children. There are a variety of reasons for the decline in air quality, including factory emissions, suspended particles, vehicles, as well as problematic geographic hindrances. Fortunately, Mexico City is doing a lot in response to the problem, including vehicle control, mass transit improvements, required industry emission reductions, and an investing in research and education programs. Regardless of these actions, however, Mexico City’s air is still significantly affecting the quality of life for its residents, and the city must continue to make changes in order for real progress to occur.

Vehicles are responsible for up to eighty percent of air pollution in Mexico. There are close to four million automobiles, buses, and trucks in the city, the average of which is ten years old, and thus in poor repair with ineffective emission controls. Emissions are increased by the excessive traffic compressed into narrow streets with few parking spaces, requiring low-speed cruising (Collins, 125). Even new engines oft...

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...ificant goals set for measured air quality improvements, so while their future is not yet clear, it is at least a little less smoggy.

Works Cited

Collins, Charles, and Steven Scott. "Air Pollution in the Valley of Mexico." Geographical

Review 83 (1993): 119-133.

Hibler, Michelle. "Taking Control of Air Pollution in Mexico City." International

Development Research Center. 12 Aug. 2003. .

Loomis, Dana, Margarita Castillejos, Diane Gold, William McDonnell, and Victor

Borja-Aburto. "Air Pollution in the Valley of Mexico." Epidemiology 10 (1999):

118-123.

"Mexico City Air Hurting Children." Health and Energy. 11 Mar. 1998.

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Yip, Maricela, and Pierre Maldl. "Air Pollution in Mexico City." 14 Dec. 2002.

University of Salzburg, Austria. .