Urban Air Pollution - Air Pollution and Global Warming: History, Science, and Solutions - page 79

(a)

(b)

(c)

Figure 4.3. Panoramic views of (a) Reading, Pennsylvania, c. 1909, photo by O. Conneaut, available from
Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, DC; (b) Youngstown, Ohio, c. 1910, photo
by O. Conneaut, available from Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, DC; and
(c) Indiana Steel Co.'s big mills, Gary, Indiana, c. 1912, photo by Crose Photo Co., available from Library of
Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, DC.

elderly with previous heart or lung disease. Symptoms
of the victims included chest pain, cough, shortness of
breath, and eye irritation.

Steel manufacturing spread to many other cities in the
region, including Reading, Pennsylvania; Youngstown,
Ohio; and Gary, Indiana. These cities burned coal not
only for steel manufacturing, but also for iron manufac-
turing and railway transportation. Figure 4.3 shows that
the burning of coal in Reading, Youngstown, and Gary
darkened the skies of these cities.
Uncontrolled burning of coal in Allegheny County
continued through 1941, when the first strong smoke
abatement laws were passed in Pittsburgh. The 1941
laws, however, were suspended until the end of World
War II, and even then resulted in only minor improve-
ments in air quality due to a lack of enforcement.
Donora, Pennsylvania, is a town south of Pittsburgh
along the Monongahela River. Between October 26 and
31, 1948, heavy emissions of soot and sulfur dioxide

4.1.6.3. Donora, Pennsylvania, United States
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is located near large coal
deposits and major river arteries. In 1758, coal was
first burned in Pittsburgh to produce energy for iron
and glass manufacturing. By 1865, half of all glass
and 40 percent of all iron in the United States were pro-
duced in Allegheny County, where Pittsburgh is located
(McNeill, 2000). In the late 1800s, the county emerged
as a major industrial consumer of coal, particularly
for steel. In 1875, Andrew Carnegie opened the Edgar
Thomson Works in Braddock, Pennsylvania, introduc-
ing a source of high-volume steel to Allegheny County.