Fresh air in Mexico City, and more - THE WEEK: "Fresh air in Mexico City, and more
Fresh air in Mexico City
The air pollution in Mexico City was once so bad that birds dropped dead while flying and children used brown crayons to draw pictures of the sky. But in recent years, the sprawling metropolis has enacted tough environmental standards, curbed driving, and aggressively promoted mass transit. As a result, its 20 million residents are breathing much easier. Compared with the early 1990s, lead levels in Mexico City are down 95 percent, sulfur dioxide is down 86 percent, and carbon monoxide, 74 percent. “There has been a large improvement,” said Nobel Prize–winning Mexican chemist Mario Molina, “and it’s important to show it can be done.”"
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
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The levels of polution is often ignored here in the USA. However, it is sometimes used as one of the criteria in developing countries in determing how safe and clean a place is to visit. From the post, Mexico City has made some significant improvments. I wonder how much tourism played a factor in "cleaning" up the city and neighboring communities.
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