Smoke stacks and pollution?

Question

How has the building of smokestacks contributed to interregional air pollution problems?

Answer 1

Well I'm the type of person that doesn't smoke! do you smoke?

Answer 2

Smokestacks do not contribute to air pollution problems.  Smokestacks are connected to what are called scrubbers.  Scrubbers remove most of the ash that is left over after the coal has been burned.  The smokestacks just elevate the mostly steam into the upper atmosphere so that this ashy steam does not hover close to the ground.  The problems that you should be concerned about is what type of high sulfur coal being used.  The high demand that increases the demand for the output of electric.  Also, how many power plants that are located within a radius of each other.  Here in Southern Indiana, we have approximately 8 power houses and two aluminum plants that are powered by the power houses within a 50 mile radius of each other.  NOW THIS IS A CONCERN FOR THE RESIDENTS OF THIS AREA.  Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Smokestacks put pollutants high in the air where they can be carried further before they fall to the ground.  This mainly relates to particulate pollutants.

BTW - I read that on the west coast of the USA, as much as 30% of the air pollution comes from China, which has hardly any pollution controls.  This is one of the real costs of shifting our production to China by overtaxing and over-regulating US businesses until they cannot do business here.  To create the same products in China creates more pollution than creating those products here.