whether you want to classify is as a “pollutant” or not is really a moot point. The man-made over-abundance of it is having a very negative impact on the environment.
Is water a pollutant? No.
Can you die from over-hydration? Absolutely.
http://environmentalchemistry.com/yogi/environmental/200611CO2globalwarming.html
Carbon dioxide has taken center stage in the environmental arena in recent months. In August of 2003 the US Administration reversed the 1998 decision of the previous administration, which had classified carbon dioxide as a pollutant, and made it subject to the provisions of the Clean Air Act. As a result of the reversal of the 1998 decision, automobile manufacturers and power plants have been able to avoid making costly modifications that would have been required under the 1998 ruling. In 2006 environmental groups pushed for legislation that would reinstate carbon dioxide as a pollutant. In August of 2006 EPA General Counsel Robert Fabricant concluded that since the Clean Air Act does not specifically authorize regulation to address climate change, CO2 is not a pollutant (1).
The reason given for not classifying CO2 as a pollutant is based upon the fact that it is a natural component of the atmosphere and needed by plants in order to carry out photosynthesis. No one would argue the fact that carbon dioxide is a necessary component of the atmosphere any more than one would argue the fact that Vitamin D is necessary in the human diet. However, excess Vitamin D in the diet can be extremely toxic (6). Living systems, be they an ecosystem or an organism, require that a delicate balance be maintained between certain elements and/or compounds in order for the system to function normally. When one substance is present in excess and as a result threatens the wellbeing of an ecosystem, it becomes toxic, and could be considered to be a pollutant, despite the fact that it is required in small quantities.
So basically the EPA did define it as a pollutant until 2003, until the Bush Administration reversed the decision. Big shocker there.
It’s not just downtown Pittsburgh. The pollution doesn’t even come from us. It gets blown in from Ohio. So really it’s all of Western PA that’s eating Cleveland’s soot.
There are plenty of Obama proposals I don’t care for. But the fucking retards that seem to be morally offended by us trying to make the air cleaner so we don’t all fucking die of lung cancer are excessively annoying.