Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light. Pollutants, the components of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring contaminants.
Also Pollution is when something is added to the environment that is harmful or poisonous to living things. Smoke or dust in the air is a type of pollution as it is bad for the lungs when we breath in. Sewage in drinking water is another type of pollution, as it can make people ill because it contains germs and viruses.
Environmental pollution consists of five basic types of pollution, namely, air, water, soil, noise and light.Air pollution is by far the most harmful form of pollution in our environment. Air pollution is cause by the injurious smoke emitted by cars, buses, trucks, trains, and factories, namely sulphur dioxide, carbon monoxide and nitrogen oxides. Even smoke from burning leaves and cigarettes are harmful to the environment causing a lot of damage to man and the atmosphere. Evidence of increasing air pollution is seen in lung cancer, asthma, allergies, and various breathing problems along with severe and irreparable damage to flora and fauna. Even the most natural phenomenon of migratory birds has been hampered, with severe air pollution preventing them from reaching their seasonal metropolitan destinations of centuries.Toxic pollution affects more than 200 million people worldwide, according to Pure Earth, a non-profit environmental organization. In some of the world’s worst polluted places, babies are born with birth defects, children have lost 30 to 40 IQ points, and life expectancy may be as low as 45 years because of cancers and other diseases. Read on to find out more about specific types of pollution.
Air Pollution is the most prominent and dangerous form of pollution. It occurs due to many reasons. Excessive burning of fuel which is a necessity of our daily lives for cooking, driving and other industrial activities; releases a huge amount of chemical substances in the air everyday; these pollute the air.
Smoke from chimneys, factories, vehicles or burning of wood basically occurs due to coal burning; this releases sulphur dioxide into the air making it toxic. The effects of air pollution are evident too. Release of sulphur dioxide and hazardous gases into the air causes global warming and acid rain; which in turn have increased temperatures, erratic rains and droughts worldwide; making it tough for the animals to survive. We breathe in every polluted particle from the air; result is increase in asthma and cancer in the lungs.
Water Pollution has taken toll of all the surviving species of the earth. Almost 60% of the species live in water bodies. It occurs due to several factors; the industrial wastes dumped into the rivers and other water bodies cause an imbalance in the water leading to its severe contamination and death of aquatic species. If you suspect that nearby water sources have been contaminated by a corporation then it might be a good idea to hire an expert to see your options.
Soil Pollution occurs due to incorporation of unwanted chemicals in the soil due to human activities. Use of insecticides and pesticides absorbs the nitrogen compounds from the soil making it unfit for plants to derive nutrition from. Release of industrial waste, mining and deforestation also exploits the soil. Since plants can’t grow properly, they can’t hold the soil and this leads to soil erosion.
Noise pollution is caused when noise which is an unpleasant sound affects our ears and leads to psychological problems like stress, hypertension, hearing impairment, etc. It is caused by machines in industries, loud music, etc.
Radioactive pollution is highly dangerous when it occurs. It can occur due to nuclear plant malfunctions, improper nuclear waste disposal, accidents, etc. It causes cancer, infertility, blindness, defects at the time of birth; can sterilise soil and affect air and water.
Some Facts On Pollution Are:-
Fact 1: Pollution is one of the biggest killers, affecting more than 100 million worldwide.
Fact 2: More than 1 billion people worldwide don’t have access to safe drinking water.
Fact 3: 5000 people die every day as a result of drinking unclean water.
Fact 4: The garbage dumped in the ocean every year is roughly around 14 billion pounds. Plastic is the major constituent.
Fact 5: Pollution kills more than 1 million seabirds and 100 million mammals every year.
Fact 6: People who live in high-density air pollution area, have 20% higher risk of dying from lung cancer, than people living in less polluted areas.
Fact 7: Approximately 46% of the lakes in America are extremely polluted and hence risky for swimming, fishing and aquatic life.
Fact 8: In the great “Smog Disaster“, that happened in London in the year 1952, approximately four thousand people died in a few days due to the high concentrations of pollution.
Fact 9: United States produces 30% of the world’s waste and uses 25 % of the worlds natural resources
Fact 10: The Mississippi River dumps 1.5 million metric tonnes of nitrogen pollution in the Gulf of Mexico every year.
Fact 11: Every year around one trillion gallons of untreated sewage and industrial waste is dumped in the U.S water.
Fact 12: Children contribute to only 10% of the world’s pollution but are prone to 40% of global disease.
Fact 13: More than 3 million kids under the age of 5 years die every year due to environmental factors like pollution.
Fact 14: Composting and recycling alone have prevented 85 million tons of waste to be dumped in 2010.
Fact 15: China is the world’s largest producer of carbon dioxide. United States is number 2.
Fact 16: Almost 80% of urban waste in India is dumped in the river Ganges.
Fact 17: Noise pollution is the most neglected type of pollution.
Fact 18: The amount of money invested in nuclear test could be used to finance 8,000 hand pumps, giving villages across third world access to clean water.
Fact 19: Acidification of the ocean is the worst type of pollution. Oceans are becoming more acidic rue to green house emissions from fossil fuel.
Fact 20: Livestock waste majorly contributes to soil pollution. During monsoon, water runs over the fields carrying dangerous bacteria from the livestock into the streams.
Fact 21: More than 100 pesticides in any medium- air, water or soil can cause birth defects, gene mutation and cancer.
Fact 22: There are more around 73 various kinds of pesticides in the groundwater, which is used as drinking water.
Fact 23: There are more than 500 million cars in the world and by 2030 the number will rise to 1 billion. This means pollution level will be more than double.
Fact 24: Major oil spills like those in the Gulf of Mexico, is the the worst type of pollution due to consistent oil spills in the water body which spreads everywhere else.
Fact 25: House owners use chemicals that are 10 times more toxic per acre, than the amount used by the farmers.
Fact 26: Around 1000 children die in India every year due to diseases caused from the polluted water.
Fact 27: In India, the Ganges water is gradually becoming septic, especially due to dumping of half burnt dead bodies and enshrouded babies.
Fact 28: 88% of the children in Guiyu, China suffer from various respiratory diseases as the area they live in is a huge e-waste site.
Fact 29: Antarctica is the cleanest place on Earth protected by anti-pollution laws.
Fact 30: Scientific research has proven that carbon dioxide emissions are lowering the pH of the ocean and are acidifying them even more.
