how areas were affected
Smog can be anywhere, it forms in any climate where a large city is, with the industries release large amounts of air pollution consisting of gases or smoke. When it's warmer and sunny, that's when smog is the worst, since the upper air is warm enough to prevent vertical circulation. You're more likely to find it in geological basins surrounded by mountains or hills, and it tends to stay for extended periods of time in densely populated urban areas or cities, and the levels will get dangerously high from all of the emissions coming from cars.
Areas Affected
London, United Kingdom: In 1306 Edward I began to briefly ban coal fires, due to the soot particles hanging in the air all the time. Writer John Evelyn's "Fumifugium" said that instead of burning mineral coal fragrant wood should be used, since it could help reduce the coughing. During the 19th and 20th centuries severe episodes of smog occurred, mainly in the winters, which were soon nick-named "pea-soupers". Then, the Great Smog of 1952 hit London and darkened its streets, killing approximately 4,000 people within four days. During the following weeks and months 8,000 more people died from the smog effects, but it was stated that they died from a flu epidemic.
Four years after the Great Smog of 1952 the Clean Air Act started, and started to enforce smokeless zones within the capital. Soft coal would no longer be burned, instead there would be coke, a fuel with little impurities, and it didn't produce smoke. Switching to a smokeless fuel reduced the levels of soot particles floating in the air, so the intense London smog was left behind. However, pollution still exists today in London, due to the traffic pollution.
Four years after the Great Smog of 1952 the Clean Air Act started, and started to enforce smokeless zones within the capital. Soft coal would no longer be burned, instead there would be coke, a fuel with little impurities, and it didn't produce smoke. Switching to a smokeless fuel reduced the levels of soot particles floating in the air, so the intense London smog was left behind. However, pollution still exists today in London, due to the traffic pollution.
Mexico City, Mexico: Mexico City, located in a highland "bowl", where all the cold air sinks into the urban areas. Industrial and vehicle pollution gets trapped underneath, making it one of the most infamously smog-plagued city in Latin America. In one generation it went from being the place with the cleanest air in the world to one with the worst pollution. Some of the pollutants are nitrogen dioxide, which was doubled and sometimes tripled the international standards.
Santiago, Chile: Santiago is similar to Mexico City, with the fact that it's the most infamously smog-plagued city in South America. Located in the Santiago Valley, between the Andes and the Chilean Coast Range, it's high latitude at 31 degrees South and not to mention dry weather most of the year, it makes a perfect place for smog to stay.
Santiago, Chile: Santiago is similar to Mexico City, with the fact that it's the most infamously smog-plagued city in South America. Located in the Santiago Valley, between the Andes and the Chilean Coast Range, it's high latitude at 31 degrees South and not to mention dry weather most of the year, it makes a perfect place for smog to stay.
Tehran, Iran: In December of 2005, the public offices and schools were closed due to smog from unfiltered car exhaust, sending 1,600 people to the hospital.
United States: In 1933 the publication of Henry Obermeyer's book "Stop That Smoke". He was a New York utility official, and the purpose of the book was to show the effect on human life and how it caused the destruction of 3,000 acres of spinach farmers' crop fields. The United States Environmental Protection Agency switched over 300 U.S. counties to non-attainment areas, with one or more pollutants found for the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. These areas are largely clustered around large metropolitan areas, and the largest contiguous zones were located in California and the Northeast. One place in California, which is notorious for it's smog pollution, is Los Angeles and the San Joaquin Valley. They're located in low basins, surrounded by mountains, so the smog doesn't get blown to other towns. With millions of vehicles in both regions plus the additional effects from the San Francisco Bay and Los Angeles/Long Beach ports air pollution is consistently added to the atmosphere. Also pollution is collected from trucks, cars and other fixed sources. The health standards had been exceeded, with it becoming a pressing issue for 25 million people. However, there has been a decreased number in the amount of Stage 1 smog alerts. It's gone down from about several hundred to an annual few.
United States: In 1933 the publication of Henry Obermeyer's book "Stop That Smoke". He was a New York utility official, and the purpose of the book was to show the effect on human life and how it caused the destruction of 3,000 acres of spinach farmers' crop fields. The United States Environmental Protection Agency switched over 300 U.S. counties to non-attainment areas, with one or more pollutants found for the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. These areas are largely clustered around large metropolitan areas, and the largest contiguous zones were located in California and the Northeast. One place in California, which is notorious for it's smog pollution, is Los Angeles and the San Joaquin Valley. They're located in low basins, surrounded by mountains, so the smog doesn't get blown to other towns. With millions of vehicles in both regions plus the additional effects from the San Francisco Bay and Los Angeles/Long Beach ports air pollution is consistently added to the atmosphere. Also pollution is collected from trucks, cars and other fixed sources. The health standards had been exceeded, with it becoming a pressing issue for 25 million people. However, there has been a decreased number in the amount of Stage 1 smog alerts. It's gone down from about several hundred to an annual few.
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia: During the late 1990's a massive migration occurred in Mongolia's urban areas. Around 150,000 households were moving from the countryside, and they mainly lived in traditional Mongolian gers, which is just another name for a yurt; a portable bent dwelling structure that is traditionally used by nomads in Central Asia. A few of the poor families would run out of wood and coal for their fires, so they would end up burning car tires and trash during the harsh winters that lasted from October to April. So many families were moving because the outskirts weren't connected to the city's central heating system. It was thought that stoves would help to reduce the smog pollution, but they couldn't find a difference. So the coal-fired ger stoves were put behind. These stoves produced high levels of ash and other particulate matter, which when inhaled would settle in the persons lungs and respiratory tract, which in the end would cause more health problems then they already had. The air pollution here was so bad that it was two to ten times above the Mongolian and international air quality, making it be among the worst air in the world. Along with four percent of Mongolia's GDP all health costs were due to air pollution.
Southeast Asia: For Southeast Asia, smog pollution is a regular problem. The air pollution is caused from land and forest fires in the Indonesian towns of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Plantation owners and farmers would usually be the source of the fires when they would clear their land for planting. These fires would mostly affect Brunei, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, and sometimes Guam and Saipan. Economic losses from the destructive fires in 1997 would cost more than 9 billion U.S. dollars. These damages were in agricultural production, forest land destruction, health, transportation, tourism and economic endeavors. Some things that were not include are environmental, long-term health effects, social and psychological problems.
The haze was preferred more than the smog. This haze occurred in October of 2006, happening in Malaysia, Singapore and the Malacca Straits from the fires in Indonesia. South-westerly winds blew across the Straits of Malacca. A similar haze happened on June 21st, 2013, with a new PSI record in Singapore at 12pm with a reading of 401, with 401 being located in the "Hazardous" range. When this happened the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) came up with the Agreement on Trans-boundary Haze Pollution in 2002 with all of the ASEAN nations. ASEAN also went on to create the Regional Haze Action Plan(RHAP), and it helped to establish a coordination and support unit, also known as the CSU. RHAP then went on to get help from Canada to create a warning and monitoring system for vegetation/forest fires, and then proceeded to put a Fire Danger System(FDRS) in place. MMS, or the Malaysian Meteorological Service would issue a daily rating, starting all the way back in September of 2003, but they were ineffective at enforcing it due to uncooperative farmers not liking the new legal policies.
Southeast Asia: For Southeast Asia, smog pollution is a regular problem. The air pollution is caused from land and forest fires in the Indonesian towns of Sumatra and Kalimantan. Plantation owners and farmers would usually be the source of the fires when they would clear their land for planting. These fires would mostly affect Brunei, Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, and sometimes Guam and Saipan. Economic losses from the destructive fires in 1997 would cost more than 9 billion U.S. dollars. These damages were in agricultural production, forest land destruction, health, transportation, tourism and economic endeavors. Some things that were not include are environmental, long-term health effects, social and psychological problems.
The haze was preferred more than the smog. This haze occurred in October of 2006, happening in Malaysia, Singapore and the Malacca Straits from the fires in Indonesia. South-westerly winds blew across the Straits of Malacca. A similar haze happened on June 21st, 2013, with a new PSI record in Singapore at 12pm with a reading of 401, with 401 being located in the "Hazardous" range. When this happened the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) came up with the Agreement on Trans-boundary Haze Pollution in 2002 with all of the ASEAN nations. ASEAN also went on to create the Regional Haze Action Plan(RHAP), and it helped to establish a coordination and support unit, also known as the CSU. RHAP then went on to get help from Canada to create a warning and monitoring system for vegetation/forest fires, and then proceeded to put a Fire Danger System(FDRS) in place. MMS, or the Malaysian Meteorological Service would issue a daily rating, starting all the way back in September of 2003, but they were ineffective at enforcing it due to uncooperative farmers not liking the new legal policies.
major incidents in the u.S.
On October 30th to October 31st, in Donora, Pennsylvania 600 people were hospitalized, 20 died while thousands more were stricken with sickness in 1948. All the lawsuits were finally settled in 1951.
In November of 1953 smog was reported to have killed 170 to 260 people.
October of 1954 in Los Angeles a heavy smog epidemic hit and shut down schools and industries for a majority of the month.
Again in 1963 smog hit New York, and was similar to what happened in London in 1962 when the "Killer Smog" hit and was "blamed for 200 deaths."
Once again in New York, this time in 1966 when smog got "blamed for 169 deaths."
In November of 1953 smog was reported to have killed 170 to 260 people.
October of 1954 in Los Angeles a heavy smog epidemic hit and shut down schools and industries for a majority of the month.
Again in 1963 smog hit New York, and was similar to what happened in London in 1962 when the "Killer Smog" hit and was "blamed for 200 deaths."
Once again in New York, this time in 1966 when smog got "blamed for 169 deaths."
Cultural References
The London "pea-soupers" who also earned the nickname "The Smoke". It was featured in novels as a motif to portray mystery or hidden danger. In Margery Allingham's The Tiger in the Smoke (1952), Dickens's Bleak House (1852), and T.S. Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock." Also in 1970 A Clear and Present Danger appeared, being one of the first American Television networks to warn people about the smog, and the dangers that arose with it. Godzilla, and the monster Hedorah, who feeds on pollution and is also known as "The Smog Monster." When Claude Monet went to London in 1899 and 1901 he painted the Thames and the Houses of Parliament, which showed the sun trying to break through the thick smog.