all we are is dust in the wind

I know we all get concerned when we know of a polluting factory a few miles away, or power stations burning acidic coal a couple of states away. But did you realize that dust from as far away as China and Africa can reach the US by the millions of tons? And better yet, that dust can actually carry microbes and germs that survive the trip and can infect people?

For example, scientists now thing that contaminants and microbes in dust clouds from Africa might be behind the rise in asthma in the Caribbean and southeastern United States.

Stories like this just underscore the importance of a sane approach to the environment. What happens on the other side of the world can touch you.