Remember the waves of fury and anger that swept over certain sections of the population when the London ULEZ zone was introduced.? Among many acts of lawlessness, cameras and signs were smashed and street calming flower planters torn up, all to a cascade of spittle-flecked rage online and in certain popular news outlets. For those not au fait with every aspect of London news, ULEZ is a set of mayoral restrictions on the more lethal forms of traffic pollution, such as nitrous oxides and PM 2.5 particles which was introduced in part in 2019 before subsequent extensions in 2021 and 2023.
Now news comes, from Smitha Mundasad of the BBC,[1] of the remarkable health benefits which have already accrued in the short time since the new scheme’s introduction. A five year study of 3400 children(that’s good numbers, folks) comparing London to Luton(less polluted, but with same mix) revealed
Scientists say they have been “stunned” by how quickly young children’s lungs began to recover and grow after …….. after the introduction of an Ultra Low Emission Zone (Ulez) in 2019 reduced emissions
Being good journalism, based on good science, Smitha points out that other factors must be considered as well. Of course: coping with complexity is what marks out this blog and its readers. But we know the ULEZ achievement to be remarkable nevertheless. And how much cleaner central London is looking these days![2]
Which brings us back to those on the other side who do not really do complexity. Their thought is fast, their opinion quickly formed, their conclusions firm. In this they reminded us of opponents of other episodes of social change: smoking bans in pubs leap to mind. But then we also recalled the angry opposition to seat belts; drink driving laws; clean air acts, child labour restrictions, slavery eradication…..all the way back to the same sort of people who opposed the abolition of gladiatorial games and beast hunting in Ancient Rome. Someone always sees the downside, don’t they?
Perhaps the common thread linking our opponents is not lack of education or indeed intelligence. Perhaps it is that they have made a bet that terrible things only happen to other people : so why should they care? This attitude may work for a while until it is applied to dealing with truly all encompassing phenomena such as antibiotic resistance , disease pandemics and global warming. At which point terrible things will happen to them too.
[1]https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c1l1r1zne1ro?at_link_origin=BBCNews&at_bbc_team=editorial&at_ptr_name=twitter&at_link_type=web_link&at_campaign_type=owned
#ULEZ #clean air #traffic pollution #health #london #diesel #particulates #lung #slavery #gladiators #smoking #antibiotic resistance #global warming #pandemics
Learning, Science and Society 