Thoughts on Engagement

     A lot of the problems that contribute to air pollution in Houston are pretty complicated and time consuming in regards to solving the problem. One of the biggest contributors to air pollution in Houston is motor vehicles and their output which is especially large in our city because it's a very car-dependent one. Another problematic contributor to air pollution are the many refineries and chemical plants that line the outside of the city. Just last month (during A-Term), chemical explosions have caused large amounts of carcinogens such as benzene to be released all at once and temporarily cause Air Quality Index (AQI) levels to be anywhere around 100 to 200 which is considered to be very unhealthy, to put into perspective, AQI levels usually range from 20 to 50 which is considered to be healthy and moderate.
     Most of the people on my contact list were put there in hopes of being able to talk about the chemical explosions and how they affected Houston. After talking to any of them, I'd like to write some kind of petition to restrict situations that would cause an explosion to happen during warmer seasons since hot weather makes air pollution worse and it gets very hot in Houston. Tackling the problem regarding Houston being a car-dependent city is more of a long term solution since a lot of people would have to begin advocating for more public transportation which the city has been having a problem with for a while now. I've been having trouble coming up with any kind of solution for this that's realistic besides promoting the use of electric cars or maybe writing another petition to temporarily fund public transit services.

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