Cough, Cough, Cough!! These are the side effects I felt after being in Vietnam last month. I thought after living in Atlanta that I had experienced bad traffic and knew how to handle and deal with it… Ho Chi Minh City taught me otherwise.

I became accustomed to darting and weaving through the most ridiculous traffic I have ever seen. Ho Chi Minh is nicknamed the capital of motorbikes. The population there is over 8 million people and 95% of traffic in this city is two-wheeled. Yes it was ridiculous to try and cross and street hoping not to get run over. A bit like a video game actually. But there is more to this than just crazy traffic – air pollution is a big problem here. In some of the pictures you will see that many of the moto divers have surgical type masks on. Those masks become fashion accessories to the locals. Not only does it match their outfit or helmet, but it will help keep some pollution out of their lungs.

Ho Chi Minh’s air is affected by smog and fine particles emitted from motor vehicles which are known to be the main health hazard for city dwellers. The air pollution is often caused by two major sources which include natural weather conditions and man-made air pollution.

With every breath of air, the locals also breathe in very fine particles and pollutants from traffic which seeps into their lungs and even their blood stream. Side effects could be eye irritation, runny nose, and cough.  Down the road this could lead to male infertility, heart diseases, kidney problems and lung cancer.

If you would like to learn more about what is being done in Vietnam to improve the air quality please check out the following website:

www.cleanairnet.org/caiasia/1412/propertyvalue-26875.html

The Clean Air Initiative for Asian Cities “promotes and demonstrates innovative ways to improve the air quality of Asian cities through partnerships and sharing experiences.” This is a great source of information to learn what Vietnam is doing to make the change that will make a difference in the long run.

It upsets me after doing research about pollution in Vietnam because what can I do, what can you do, how do we make a difference!?!?! I was unable to find organizations that are taking a stand in this country and wanting to end pollution in the city. I did find an organization that is making a change in the Philippines and helping to clean up the air there. It is called Envirofit. One project they are working on is cleaning up the air by changing the technology on 2 or 3 wheeled engines and making it cleaner as well as more energy and cost-efficient.

This is what was said about the project called 2 Stroke Retrofit on their website, “In comparison to the carbureted 2-stroke engine, Envirofit’s two-stroke DI retrofit kit reduces carbon monoxide emissions by 76%, carbon dioxide emissions by 35%, and hydrocarbon emissions by 89%. At the same time, fuel use is reduced by 35% and oil by 50%. In comparison, carbureted 4-strokes increase carbon monoxide by 2% and only have a 20% reduction in fuel consumption.”

Please visit their website to find out about your personal impact on the environment and offset it with a donation. Or sign up for their newsletter or to join the group on Facebook please, visit their website at: www.envirofit.org.

Knowledge of the problem is where we start, but it is your responsibility to make a difference. It is time we act. Mother Earth is begging us to heal the wounds that we have inflicted on her. The time to act is now.

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