However, there are different health outlooks in different regions of the world. Take two cities at polar extremes in pollution and environmental degradation: In Germany’s beautiful town of Dorsten lying on the graceful banks of Rhine, and Fresno, a city in California drenched in sunshine. With urban sprawl taking over landscapes in every corner of the earth, understanding how these places adopt the resilience strategies becomes more knowledge. Buckle up as we take you through a comparative study between Dorsten and Fresno: industrialization versus ecological consciousness, hostility towards clean air versus the desire for a cleaner environment. Get to know what makes these two cities different in their fight against pollution and get lessons that will motivate cities all over the world to do something about the pollution.
Introduction to pollution and its effects on the environment
Pollution has become one of the major problems and blights amongst the cities. Its repercussions do not only include smelly combustion products and muddy streams, but may also impair habitats, endanger lives and health, and inhibit economic activity. As societies face these problems as the normal way of life, analyzing other societies bring lessons on the repercussions of pollution.
Here comes Dorsten, a German city with a lot of history and life, and Fresno, a center of agriculture in the sun setting valley of California.
Despite high borders and distinct cultures, the two cities have one sad concern in common. Pollution, struggle with it. Studying the environmental contexts in detail correlated to a number of indicators such as air pollution ratios, determines significant features of urban living today.
Chronicling the challenges posed by pollution in the cities of Dorsten and Fresno gives readers an appreciation of the complexities of each city’s challenges and what is being done to overcome them in order to place the health of the people in the forefront.
Comparative of Dorsten and Fresno in terms of pollution: Overview of Dorsten and Fresno: overview of polluted cities
Dorsten is a soft urban center in Germany that is embraced of history and culture as it has both ancient and recent structures. Like every other place in the world, it also has pollution problems in the case of cities. Industry and also transportation pose threats to air pollution that weather the life of the residents.
Fresno, California—a contrast to this city—lies on the opposit part of the world. This is an agricultral city that is also fast developing. Although no farming is a very important economic sector in Fresno, it brings about environmental issues too. Farming, vehicular traffic, and industries all contribute to the problem of air pollution in Fresno.
Both cities are very similar – they are both at the juncture of development and sustainability. The compromise on construction and environmental protection is still maintained since every society tries to develop and resolve its problems in its own manner.
Analysis of pollution parameters of Dorsten city and Fresno city (graph)
When pollution parameters of Dorsten and Fresno are concerned, then they are not so identical anymore.
Air quality ranks as one of the most serious issues that concerns both states. Dorsten, in the region of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany, generally has low concentration of particulate matters when compared to Fresno. The latter usually suffers from high levels of smog and ozone which are as a result of its topographical features.
Water pollution is also another challenge that faces each of the cities. For instance, Dorsten is subject to more extreme control measures over industrial discharges into the local waterways. On the other hand, Fresno has struggled with runoff water pollution from farming activities.
Noise pollution is the other many faceted complexity of these cities. More urbanized areas of Fresno have more noisy decibels compared to the quiet areas in the city of Dorsten which contains no urbanization.
A chart emphasizing these metrics makes it clear about the environmental status of each of the cities and gives details on the areas which have already been addressed and the remaining ones still outstanding.
Sources of pollution in each city (industrial, transportation, etc.)
In Dorsten, the pollution mainly comes from its industries. The pollutants include those discharges airborne from the manufacturing plants and those that pollute the water bodies. Factory emissions pollute the environment with harmful gases and other toxic substances.
Transportation is an important contributor also to the pollution problem faced by the people. Traffic on the main roads is usually high increasing the levels of emissions released by the vehicles which makes the air to be of poor quality.
Fresno also has pollution problems like any other city. Farming is an indispensable economic activity in the area but a negative environmental impact is also evident. Pesticides and fertilizers are hazardous and their wash off tends to extend to the water bodies.
Also, Fresno’s transport system transports so many people and the residents are mostly faced with the challenges of smog, and fine particles. Ozone levels go over safe limits due to high numbers of cars moving in and outside the region daily causing health concerns for the residents.
Pollution sources are available in both cities and systematically structures their pollution profile differently.
Effects of pollution on the environment, public health, and economy in both cities
The context however pollution either proportionately or universally exist in both Dorsten and even in Fresno. According to the residents of Dorsten, air quality related problems result in damages of the ecosystem and this affects the biological diversity. Industrial wastes that are washed off lead to water pollution which has adverse implications on the survival of marine creatures.
The city of Fresno in turn has its own problems with the pollution of particulate matter from the contributions of both the residents and the industries. Some of the residents suffer from respiratory illnesses, asthma and some chronic conditions. Such patients have continued populating the health care system in search of redress for pollution-related ailments.
From an economic perspective, it is clear that the two cities also suffer as a result from the reduction in property prices as a result of poor environmental conditions. Firms may think twice about putting money where the quality of air or water is significantly below acceptable. Additionally, if such attractions become polluted or unsafe, visitors may stay away leading to revenue loss.
It is important to recognize the role of community actions in fighting pollution and other environmental degradation despite the fact that they tend to seek public funds and campaigns which are normally in short supply in both cities.
The separate and shared activities and measures of each of the cities directed toward the reduction of pollution.
As far as it comes down to the city of Dorsten, it is quite active with the aspects of greening activities and pollution control based on their consideration of waste management as a preclusive measure. The city is looking up to harnessing the shelf of energy resources in the form of solar and wind energy etc. Such an alteration assists in minimizing the consumption of non-renewable energy resources.
Alongside this, the city of Dorsten encourages its residents to cycle and use mass transit. New bike paths and better bus services make people choose more ecological means of transport than cars.
The policy approach taken in this case in Fresno does not look at the reduction of the problem due to the related causes, namely the reduction of pollutant emissions attributable to industries. The officials of the state have enacted policies which require industries to be cleaner in terms of their outputs.
Additionally, community outreach programs are also an essential facet of the strategy in Fresno. The local residents get to take part in activities such as the tree planting exercises and air quality improvement education.
(11), residents of both cities appreciate the initiatives that seek the cooperation of all, including environmental bodies. Campaigns that seek to make citizens understand why it is important to participate in preventing pollution require such strategic alliances.
How the completed actions worked out and what of the objectives are planned within this initiative to reduce pollution
Dorsten has had some success in the implementation of pollution reduction plans. The local government has put in place strict control policies aimed at industrial waste emissions. Reportedly multiple studies also confirm a decrease in particulate matter (PM 2.5) levels in this city characterizing it reductions of approximately 15% at five years.
Governments do face struggles; however, fresno is taking courageous steps forward to controlling air pollution. Some projects such as education on the use of electric vehicles as well as improvements of the local public transport are starting to bear fruits. Recent reports show a reduction in the level of ozone by about 10% over the last few months.
Also in both cities, there has been an establishment of aggressive action plans for cleaner air. The citizens of Dorsten still is targeting another improvement of twenty percent in the amount of pollutants emitted within the next ten years to be one of the greener economies due the new technology.
Other areas in which Fresno is concentrating include increasing urban forest cover and community education on which practices are sustainable. In both cities, addressing the residents is highly recommended since it is projected that some of them would eventually participate in projects towards healthier environments.
Conclusion: Which city appears to be more polluted and how can their comparison be useful for us?
When assessing the data on the pollution indices of Dorsten and Fresno, it is evident that the level of pollution in both cities is quite high. Dorsten, located in Germany, is also a small city which unfortunately faces a prick of industrial pollutant emissions and localized transport problems. The city’s air quality has improved with regulatory measures but still remains under watch.
Fresno on the other hand, has even more serious pollution problems, which are predominantly caused by farming activities and enormous traffic congestions. It is worth mentioning that Fresno County is located within the San Joaquin Valley, the region where the weather conditions aggravate the in-air contaminations.
There have been some steps taken in both towns towards reducing pollution in cities. For example, there has been a lot of green development in Dorsten and the people strategy within the city advances development and growth. Now, however, she is shifting towards active involvement of people and improvement of urban infrastructure in fighting against pollution.
Such contrast between these two cities provides useful lessons both in urban design as well as the aspects of health among the populations. The cluster approach concerning pollution control measures makes directions for what should be done in other countries with similar problems.
In the end, while it is evident that both cities experience pollution in different ways, it is also evident that both seek to help clean up their environment. Such comparative studies remind us of the need to develop the spirit of caring for the environment among us all.
