Applications for the protection of the environment and human health
Using stainless steels for certain applications helps to protect our natural environment and our health.
A plentiful supply of clean potable water is surely an essential component of a healthy living environment. However, increasing living standards and population densities continue to put pressure on available water supplies, such that investment in new sources and water treatment facilities is expanding rapidly and will continue to do so for some time to come.
The ease with which stainless steel surgical instruments and appliances can be kept clean and sterile provides an obvious illustration of the way the material helps to safeguard our health. However, there are so many less obvious ways in which the contribution of stainless steel to our well-being is of growing importance.
The prevention of air pollution has become one of the most challenging environmental issues facing mankind. The effect of increased levels of “greenhouse gases” on climate change is perhaps the most topical example, but pollutants such as sulphur dioxide, a major cause of “acid rain”, and fine particulates with their implications for human health, are others worthy of note.
