{"id":102651,"date":"2023-04-13T13:07:40","date_gmt":"2023-04-13T18:07:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=102651"},"modified":"2023-04-13T13:07:40","modified_gmt":"2023-04-13T18:07:40","slug":"transportation-is-main-source-of-air-pollution-affecting-children-in-pilsen-health-experts-and-activists-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/transportation-is-main-source-of-air-pollution-affecting-children-in-pilsen-health-experts-and-activists-say\/","title":{"rendered":"Transportation is main source of air pollution affecting children in Pilsen, health experts and activists say"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Diana Giambona<\/strong>
\nMedill Reports<\/em><\/p>\n

Children play on the swings, go down the slides, spin on the small merry-go-rounds and play ball at Harrison Park in Pilsen. It seems like a perfect day for outdoor games, but the air they breathe has pollution levels among the highest in Chicago<\/a>, according to a 2020 air quality and health report from the city.<\/p>\n

The playground is surrounded by streets where cars, buses and lots of trucks regularly pass, emitting gases and polluting particles that \u00a0\u2014 although tiny and not visible to the naked eye \u2014 fly and reach the lungs of residents, especially affecting children.<\/p>\n

The Pilsen Neighbors Community Council<\/a> organized a virtual panel discussion in February focusing on air pollution with experts from different fields educating Latino parents on the impacts of air pollution and what to do.<\/p>\n

In Pilsen schools, \u201cin a classroom of 30 students, at least four have chronic asthma,\u201d said Gloria Barrera, member of the Illinois Association of School Nurses (IASN) and the Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments (ANHE). \u201cSymptoms are exacerbated by hazardous air pollutants caused by the buses that drive them to and from school.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some Pilsen residents expressed their dissatisfaction with the situation and worry about living in an industrial corridor that is one of the city\u2019s most polluted neighborhoods.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether you have children or not, it\u2019s a troubling issue for all of us who live here,\u201d said Edwin Alvarez, 45, who has been living in Pilsen for about 38 years.<\/p>\n

Consuelo Ortiz, 48, said she has considered moving out of Pilsen because of the pollution.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt affects everyone who lives here,\u201d Ortiz said. \u201cPregnant women, children and the elderly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concentration of air pollution varies in Chicago neighborhoods. A map of the city based on Chicago Department of Public Health data shows that South Side and West Side neighborhoods in industrial corridors have disproportionately poor air quality. These areas coincide with low-income, African American and Latino communities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see that in many communities of color and low-income communities, there are disproportionately more industrial boilers, chemical plants and refineries,\u201d said Mimi Guiracocha, manager of health promotions at the American Lung Association in Illinois, at the virtual meeting. \u201cPeople of color are 3.6 times more likely than white people to live in a county (in the U.S.) with failing environmental ratings.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pilsen is in an industrial corridor and most properties are next to or within 400 feet of truck routes, according to the city of Chicago<\/a>. These factors contribute to air pollution in the neighborhood.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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Source: Air quality and health 2020 report \u2013 City of Chicago | Illinois Childhood Asthma Surveillance Report, 2011-2014 \u2013 Illinois Department of Public Health<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The map showing the neighborhoods with the worst air quality closely matches the map showing emergency department (ED) visits for asthma. Areas with the worst air quality are linked to places with the highest rates for ED visits for children. The maps demonstrate how air pollution and asthma are correlated.<\/p>\n

Experts point out one of the main sources of air pollution in Chicago is transportation. Industrial corridors and highways generate heavy truck traffic and diesel fuel emissions. This is not an issue that affects this city; it is a widespread problem throughout the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe U.S. transportation sector is the leading contributor to air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to climate change,\u201d Barrera said.<\/p>\n

Air pollution affects the health of all people, especially children, the elderly and people with pre-existing health conditions.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne in 12 children in the U.S. currently has asthma, a life-threatening respiratory condition, which can range from mild to severe,\u201d Barrera said.<\/p>\n

\"A
Parents go with their children to play at Harrison Park, located next to West 18th Street. (Diana Giambona\/ MEDILL)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI know a child (in Iowa) who has never gone outside to play in the winter because he has asthma and when the dry, cold air is combined with fine-particulate pollution, the child ends up in the hospital,\u201d said Karin Stein, an Iowa field coordinator of Moms Clean Air Force and EcoMadres, \u2014 organizations that works to protect health from air pollution and climate change \u2014 who attended the virtual panel.<\/p>\n

Air pollution also contributes to climate change, which causes weather conditions that affect people\u2019s respiratory systems.<\/p>\n

Guiracocha explained in her speech that due to climate change pollen seasons are longer and more intense, and that is detrimental to all those who suffer from asthma.<\/p>\n

\u201cOzone and particulate pollution are the two main air pollutants that can adversely affect our health,\u201d Guiracocha said.<\/p>\n

To illustrate the gas\u2019 impacts on people\u2019s health, she said ozone acts similarly in the lungs to what happens when a person gets sunburned in summer.<\/p>\n