Authors:

Joon Kang

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About Paper:

Tobacco manufacturing is a prominent industry in the state of North Carolina. The production of tobacco products results in air emissions of ammonia, which is used in tobacco manufacturing to "free-base" nicotine to facilitate faster absorption into the bloodstream. Ammonia is known to lead to health issues related to the cardiovascular system. It is also a major element of Particulate Matter 2.5 (PM2.5) in the atmosphere and is deemed a pollutant by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This study aimed to understand the effect of tobacco manufacturing in North Carolina on ammonia air emissions released from facilities that report to the EPA's Toxic Release Inventory (TRI). Tobacco production data from the United States Department of Agriculture was utilized as a comparison to the TRI database. The Kendall rank correlation coefficient and regression analysis were used to analyze the relationship between production and emission. It is important to consider if sustainable practices are already taking place in reducing total ammonia air emissions from the tobacco manufacturing industry. Moreover, as cigarettes are well known to cause cancer, it is important to consider the corporate social responsibility paradox and greenwashing of these facilities. Keywords: Tobacco Manufacturing; Ammonia Air Emissions; North Carolina; Toxic Release Inventory (TRI); Agricultural Industry

Source:

Purdue University / 2024

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Co-authors:

Joon Kang