Unicef Should Be Banned....

[10ClarionSt]

....after the outrageous and ridiculous claims it makes today about pollution. On the ITV News at dinner time they said that school children are more susceptible to car pollution than adults because of their smaller height. UNICEF and other organisations are making people think they are going to die because of these claims, and the sad thing is, people believe it. The reverse of their thinking must be true if we go back to the industrial revolution and 300 hundred years of pollution, when smoke and pollutants from chimneys and factories would affect adults more because they were taller than children. Is that true? Reports like this are trying to frighten people and it's probably turning them into hypochondriacs. UNICEF and the NSPCCC should be outlawed. They're useless and exist only for their own gain.

[sunny-dave]

I have no particular love for UNICEF (or for most other bloated and over-sized charities), but their comments about pollution and children do have some basis in fact.

The prime cause of dangerous pollution on our streets is particulates from dirty diesels - especially those being used near schools and left inefficiently idling whilst children are awaited/loaded/unloaded.

These particulates are belched out at around 18 inches from the ground and hence much more likely to be breathed in by a 2ft 6in child than a 6ft adult. Proximity is very relevant as the impact lessens as the pollution dissipates with distance from the exhaust pipe.

It's not the only consideration, but it is a valid point.

[douglas9401]

Cynics might see it as the latest arc in the circle of deceit created by manufacturers and governments to buy more economical, efficient diesel cars.
Praise in the press
Discount prices
Scrappage scheme
Low fuel price
Saturate the market
Raise the fuel price
Uncover emissions shadiness
Hike the price
Offer scrappage on nearly new cars
Praise electric and hybrid

And so on in a manipulative and cynical cycle.

[vulcan42]

There are very few days when there is no wind, even a breeze will quickly dissipate the chemicals won't it?

[dannyk13]

Vulcan, judging by this photo, no.

[woofgang]

danny photo?

[dannyk13]

Oops.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/02/climate/china-cars-pollution.html

[vulcan42]

Don't see much evidence of children walking to school.

[beso]

In the industrial revolution, pollution killed countless thousands of people of any height.

Pollution levels are higher closer to the ground. It is a simple fact.
Amazing how clueless suckers for the industrial propaganda decide that science or indeed rationality itself must be wrong.

I am really tired of stupid, ignorant people who argue that nothing has to change. Their attitudes are driven by rampant greed and a complete disregard for the future of the planet.

The really sad thing is that change is not only affordable but represents the greatest economic opportunity in history.

[dannyk13]

I was referring to your query re fumes being dissipated.