Let’s talk about smog.
Sorry. *Ahem* Smaug.
Now, Smaug is much more than his riddles, his majestic being, or the brilliant acting of Benedict Cumberbatch. He is also a dragon, which naturally means he’s inclined to be attracted to things worth a lot of money. In this case, a lot of gold and treasure and that arkenstone that everyone seems to be so psyched about. Basically, where there is Smaug, you’re also bound to find things of value.
Cool story, right? Right. But besides being awesome, it’s also really relatable. Is it a coincidence that Smaug resides in the Misty Mountains?! I think not.
You see, smog (as in, that really nasty smoky, foggy, “I’d rather stay inside than risk getting the black lung” type stuff) is a worldwide problem. Which means that yes it’s happening here in Utah. Salt Lake City in particular can get some pretty nasty smog, especially in the wintertime.
Maybe there’s a lesson to be learned from the cheesy Smaug/smog analogy. If we get rid of smog we can unlock something of value. And we’ll get to that part...but first, in order to access something of value, our dragon needs to be defeated.
This can be done through a new technology called the “Smog Free Tower.” Using technology that’s currently implemented in hospitals, it becomes a type of giant air filter. It captures and collects polluted air particles and releases clean air back into its surroundings. This makes the air around it 75% cleaner than it would otherwise be if the tower wasn’t there!
Not to mention that the Tower looks good, and it’s publicly displayed so that the community can feel more engaged in the cause for cleaner air. It’s a win-win, really.
There are a few steps the Smog Free Project would need to take to implement this into Salt Lake City. The first step is getting support from SLCgreen.
SLCgreen is Salt Lake City’s sustainability department. The question is, “what is slcgreen already doing?”, “are they doing anything?”. So far, the initiatives include:
- Adopted Idle Free laws
- More than doubled our bike lanes
- Extending discounts on electric vehicles
- Phase out 2-stroke engines (lawn mowers, leaf blowers, trimmers, etc.)
So basically, SLCgreen wants everyone to start riding bikes everywhere and the smog will disappear. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to ride my bike 10 miles to work and get sweaty every day. Also, it is below 40 degrees 8 months out of the year. So riding bikes is not the most ingenious plan.
But what we want to do is literally take out those pollutants from the air. By adding the Smog Free Project to SLCgreen’s initiatives our air will get cleaner, faster.
Step number two is actually finding a place to put the tower. The towers in Rotterdam and Beijing were put in parks so I think that’s what will happen in Salt Lake City.
Some of the parks in the area include Liberty park, City Creek park, Sugar House park, so any of these parks would be suitable for the tower.
The third and final step is to build the tower. I looked into the basic concept of the tower and it essentially consists of copper coils that are put in the ground. The grass is put over them so you don't see it. The coils create an electrostatic field that magnetises the smog particles into the tower and then the tower cleans it.
Kinda gross when you look at this picture, but hey, I’d rather that be in a bag than in my lungs.
It’s pretty similar to the principle of having a statically charged balloon next to your head and your hair floats toward the balloon. Pretty cool huh?!?!
Benefits of the Smog Tower include:
- The tower creates a dome of filtered air which is easier and healthier to breathe, and can be up to 75% cleaner inside
- It runs on wind energy- a clean form of power
- It inly needs 1400 watts of power to run, the equivalent of a microwave
- Designed to be aesthetically pleasing; a work of modern art, I mean look at it:
- It acts as a symbol that we won’t give up on the earth (because who wants to be a quitter?)
- It would be first in the United States
- Rings and cufflinks are made from collected particles and spread awareness about the project, especially because of their unique design
- Each ring represents 1000 meters cubed of clean air
- Money raised from the jewelry fund construction of other towers, and maintenance of the established tower
What? Jewelry? What’s this about jewelry? Yeah, the carbon taken from the smog in the air is compressed to make cool-looking rings and cufflinks that look a little like this:
Yeah, the rings are a bit expensive. Like, $275 expensive. But it’s worth it, I promise! Especially when it all adds up to $125,000, which is what the Kickstarter for this project landed, over double their initial $50,00 goal.
But this really isn’t enough. We need to keep this ball rolling, and that’s where you guys come in. While not every can afford $275 dollar rings, you might be able to afford a smaller donation. And when you guys all do a little something, it seriously adds up. So if we worked together and donated a little, it could help other places that seriously need it. Maybe then we can start to finally be rid of Smaug, er, *cough* smog for good.
