First Los Angeles smogIn 1943, Los Angeles, California, suffered a smog so bad that visibility downdown was limited to three blocks. The noxious smog appeared during a heat wave, causing discomfort to throats and stinging eyes. A butadiene manufacturer was blamed, and temporarily closed, but it became clear it was not the primary source as smog conditions continued. From Oct 1943, the Smoke and Fumes Commission appointed by the city studied the problem. The causes it named were many: locomotive smoke, diesel truck fumes, back-yard rubbish burning plus the mountain topography, stagnant winds and atmospheric temperature inversions. On 14 Oct 1947, the Los Angeles County Air Pollution Control District, the first in the nation, was created. London, England, experienced a killer Great Smog on 5 Dec 1952.«[Image: The first recorded photograph of LA smog, 26 July 1943] |
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