ficant effect on the local environment in terms of the loss of green space (ôAtlantaö 38). Approximately 50 acres of tree cover are being lost every day, and according to Sierra Club estimates, 500 acres of forest and farmland are lost every week to development. Air and water quality are also being adversely affected by this developmental growth. To try and combat some of these problems, local agencies are trying to promote more high-density housing accommodation, which they say will allow for more open space, and also allow for better public transportation systems, which will, in turn, reduce traffic congestion, and the air pollution it causes.
In Asia, industrial development and the concomitant air pollution are causing serious damage to the many ancient temples throughout the region (ôDelayingö 48). The damage is being caused by acid rain, industrial emissions, and biological deterioration from accumulations of airborne hydrocarbons. Biodeterioration seems to be the most problematic. Microorganisms on stone feed on the hydrocarbons from unburned fuels which are rampant in the local urban atmospheres. Lichens and yeasts are primarily responsible for the resulting decay. Pockets of oil form, and destructive vegetation soon takes hold. High temperatures and humidity exacerbate these problems. A successful campaign was waged to prevent industrial development in the vicinity of the Taj Mahal, in Agra, India, to prevent such problems, but most ancient monuments
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