Bad for Our Health
New roads will increase air pollution. Traffic pollution has been linked to increased rates of childhood asthma, impaired lung function, premature death and death from cardiovascular diseases and cardiovascular morbidity for communities that live within .2 to .3 miles of a highway. While traffic pollution affects the development of children and teenagers, adults who have long-term exposure to traffic air pollution have increased risk for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and dementia. And don’t think because the traffic is far from you that your community will be spared — Sarasota’s poor air quality is a result of the traffic congestion in Tampa and the winds that send the pollution south.
Public health and safety are already threatened by climate change, and an expansion of fossil fuel infrastructure will only worsen the problem.
Florida is currently ranked at #33 in the nation in health; instead of spending tax dollars on unneeded toll roads that will threaten our health, we should instead devote funding to ensure the life-long wellbeing of all Floridians.