The History of Air Pollution
Many people assume that the air quality issues we deal with today are a modern problem—that the air was fine before, say, the Industrial Revolution. While it’s certainly true that air pollution and its spread have been exacerbated by some of today’s technologies and practices, people have always had to deal with its effects in one way or another.
Air Pollution before 1900
Prior to the 18th century, many thinkers and researchers had already identified substances in the air as an issue that could be harmful to human health. In essence, they had theorized about what we would now call air pollution. During this time, a number of written works that discuss these ideas were produced. These works date as far back as 400 BCE and are some of the earliest indications of air pollution that we have found. Some of these include:
- 400 BCE: Hippocrates’ On Airs, waters and Places
- 1661: John Evelyn’s Fumifugium or The Inconvenience of the Aer and Smoak in London
- 1872 Robert Angus Smith’s Air and Rain: The Beginnings of a Chemical Climatology
Despite what you might assume, these theories did not go untested or ignored. Initial scientific research proved the existence of some of these substances in the air, marking a huge step in the progression of air quality science.
1600s: Several contemporary intellectuals, namely Kenelme Digby, Nehemiah Grew, John Hall, and the aforementioned John Evelyn, ascribed experienced health effects to specific chemicals in the air. They named acids, lead, antimony or mercury, and sulfur as the leading culprits.
1700s: In the next century, Guillaume François Rouelle proved the existence of SO2 in the air by absorbing the gas in strong alkalis. Similarly, Carl Wilhelm Scheele proved the existence of NH3 in the air via acid absorption.
Given the discoveries during this period, it isn’t surprising that some in government were understandably concerned. Some of the earliest government regulations or laws related to air quality that we know about originated in England. Their Smoke Abatement Act of 1273 attempted to curb the effects of localized smoke pollution by prohibiting the burning of soft coal. Coming much later in 1876, the UK Royal Commission on Noxious Vapors was created to investigate the growing problem of industrial air pollution.
However, widespread recognition of air pollution problems and genuine attempts at prevention or control didn't start until much later.
Air Pollution during 1900 - 2000
The 20th century can be identified by both sweeping advances in the identification, regulation, and control of air pollution and some of the most disastrous air pollution events in human history. Perhaps some were spurred by the others.
1952: The Great Smog of London lasted for nearly a week, resulting in what modern estimates say could be up to 10,000 deaths.
1956: The UK passed its first Clean Air Act to address pollution and smog created from coal burning. For many historians, this is seen as a direct response to the Great Smog of 1952.
1960s: In the 1960s, Swedish academic researcher Svante Odén presented the idea that acid rain, originating from sulfur emitting countries like the UK and Germany, was responsible for the loss of fish populations in Scandinaiva.
1970: The U.S. passed its first Clean Air Act with one of its primary goals being to set national air quality standards in every state.
1970s: Ground-level Ozone is identified as problem for human health and vegetation.
1991: The Canada-U.S. Air Quality Agreement is established to help address transboundary air pollution.
1993: The Harvard Six Cities study linked particulate matter to reduced life expectancy.
Air Pollution after 2000
As we look at time periods closer to the modern day, we can see that many air quality issues have been identified and researched. Some of these issues have been addressed appropriately, and others are still being worked on. But, much like air pollution itself, the adoption of solutions is not universal. We are still working to mitigate the negative effects of air pollution and address them all across the world.
2000s: Asia emerges as the largest source of SO2 and NOx emissions.
2010: A decline in SO2 and NOx results in evidence of recovery from the effects of acid deposition in North America and Europe.
2012: Beijing experiences what has now been labled its airpocalyspse, where particulate matter (PM) and SO2 reached similar levels to the Great Smog of London.
2018: It is revealed that China has reduced SO2 and NOx emissions, significantly reducing overall emissions in Asia.
2020: The COVID-19 pandemic dramatically reduced industrial and transport related emissions of SO2, NOx, VOCs, and PM.
For a complete and comprehensive history of air pollution, read Fowler et al's A chronolgy of global air quality.