Kopi talk Kuliglig cabs and pollution

MANILA, Philippines - A FIL-AM (my first cousin) from Chicago asked me if abundance of pork and beef is no problem in Metro Manila's population of 12 M plus from Monday to Friday. Metropolitan Chicago - with Naperville and Joliet - is third in US population with 9.6 M as of July 1, 2008. Livestock on sightseeing tour From neighboring provinces north, south, and east of Manila - west is the sunset on Manila Bay - we don't buy meat but live cows, carabaos, pigs that are loaded on trucks and paraded through major roads in Manila, Caloocan, Pasay, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Makati, and QC. My cousin turned pale. He asked: "Do trucks loaded with animals for slaughter pass through Rizal Ave. and perhaps Escolta?" Escolta in the old era I said the Escolta that he knew between 1951 and 1966 is now used for parking. The department stores known to promdis in the 1950s moved to other cities or became mammoth malls. I asked if animals on board trailer trucks can go on a sightseeing tour in downtown Chicago. His answer: "Over the dead body of the mayor or the police commissioner. It will frighten tourists away." Kuliglig drivers vs PNP Last Wednesday afternoon, there was a pitched battle between the police and kuliglig (KLL) drivers/operators in the vicinity of Manila City Hall. Kuliglig is banned from entering major roads like Taft Ave., Rizal Ave., Roxas Blvd., etc., but can enter side streets. Smoke belchers all KLL cabs have fishing-boat engines that belch black smoke and create deafening roar. It is reported that the cab and its driver may not be covered by LTO rules but are subject only to city and municipal ordinances and orders. KLL cabs/drivers are not covered by traffic rules, defying one-way streets and scaring most motorists out of their wits. And their drivers wear slippers, sando without sleeves, long hair, and dirty shorts. Most college girls, their passengers, complain against their smell for not taking a bath before going to "work." The louder complaint is about the cabs' contribution to the city's pollution level and the drivers' recklessness and speeding on the road. High pollution level on EDSA Finally, DENR has viewed EDSA as a polluted or a "nonattainment area" and plans to limit public vehicles allowed to use it and the factories built along the highway. DENR's latest study indicates that air pollution worsened in the first half of the year, compared with last year, based on the level of suspended particulates. What's particulate matter? Particulates, according to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), include dust, dirt, soot, smoke, and liquid droplets directly emitted into the air from: Factories, power plants, cars, construction sites, fires, and natural erosion, as well as particles formed in the atmosphere by condensation or transformation of emitted gases such as sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds. Grave health hazards Particulate matter, according to EPA, is responsible for most adverse health effects in the lower regions of the respiratory tract. People with chronic obstructive pulmonary or cardiovascular disease, asthmatics, the elderly, children, and individuals with influenza are specially sensitive. Odorless poison Carbon monoxide is another threat to human health. It is a colorless, odorless, and poisonous gas produced by incomplete burning of carbon in fuels. It enters the blood stream and disrupts delivery of oxygen to the body's organs and tissues. The health threat from carbon monoxide is serious for those suffering from cardiovascular diseases. Healthy individuals are also affected, and exposure to elevated carbon monoxide levels is associated with impairment of visual perception and manual dexterity. (Summary from a publication of The New York Times) US federal regulations have succeeded in cleaning up much of the carbon monoxide pollution that plagued Americans in the 1980s. The review of carbon monoxide standards required by federal rules is due to be completed in 2011. (Comments are welcome at roming@pefianco.com).