The perfume, pots of paint and cleaning products you keep in your home could be more harmful in terms of air pollution than cars, according to new research.
A study by the University of Colorado, with the National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration in the US, saw scientists measure the effects of ‘volatile chemical products’ like perfumes, paints, printing inks, pesticides, cleaning agents and other scented consumer items in the greater Los Angeles area of California.
The scientists found that even though 15 times more petroleum is consumed as fuel in cars than is in the ingredients of these products, the ‘amount of chemical vapours emitted to the atmosphere in scented products is roughly the same’.
The environmental issues occur because the chemical vapours, known as volatile organic compounds (VOCs), react with sunlight to form ozone pollution. They also react with other chemicals in the atmosphere to form particulates in the air, which can cause damage to people’s lungs.
The fact that cars might now be better for pollution than household products, comes after governments and law makers have sought to regulate the harmful emissions cars can produce.
‘As the transportation sector gets cleaner, these other sources become more and more important,’ the lead author Brian McDonald said. ‘A lot of stuff we use in our everyday lives can impact air pollution.’
Co-author Jessica Gillman added that products with VOCs might also be causing more harm to the environment due to the nature of how they are used. As with the case of cars, fuel systems minimise the loss of gasoline to evaporation so that there is enough petrol to fuel the car. But, on the other hand, many personal care products are ‘literally’ designed to be wafted into the air.
‘Perfume and other scented products are designed so that you or your neighbour can enjoy the aroma,’ she said. ‘You don’t do this with gasoline.’
While this study only tested one area, the city of Los Angeles, the authors said it could be applicable to other major urban cities and towns. The authors also suggested the contribution of VOCs to air pollution had been underestimated until now.
