Download A Study of Environmental Pollution, Its Sources and Effects

Volume I, Issue II, May 2016
IJRIAS
ISSN 2454 – 6194
A Study of Environmental Pollution, Its Sources
and Effects
Vijay Kumar
Global Institute of Technology and Management, Gurgaon
Abstract: Environmental pollution is the introduction of
harmful pollutants into a certain environment that make an
environment unhealthy to live in. The widespread pollutants
are
usually
chemicals,
garbage,
and
wastewater.
Environmental pollution is happening in multifold parts of
Earth usually in the form of air and water pollution. In this
review paper we studied about pollution effect, sources.
Environmental pollution is a global issue that affects almost all
ecosystems on Earth. Scientists have begun to focus on
environmental factors---such as pollution, living conditions
and food additives and preservatives---as major potential
determinants of health and safety. The absorption of toxins
from the atmosphere and from foods has been linked to a
number of major health issues including birth defects and
cancer.
Keywords: Air Pollution, Water Pollution, Soil Pollution.
I. INTRODUCTION
nvironmental pollution is ―the contamination of the
physical and biological components of the
earth/atmosphere system to such an extent that normal
environmental processes are adversely affected‖.
In many developed countries laws have been introduced to
regulate multifarious types of pollution and to palliate the
adverse effects of pollution. Pollution levels must be
controlled at all the time if we want to keep our
environment safe and healthy. Without proper pollution
control, the environment soon becomes unhealthy and
nothing will be able to live in it. Preventing introduction of
pollutants into the environment is the best way to protect the
environment from pollution. To do this it is important to
develop ecological conscience of nearby communities and
manage waste by recycling.
E
A healthy environment is prerequisite of healthy life and
fighting pollution is definitely the best way to keep the
environment healthy.
Many Defination of pollution are given below by different
authors:
"... the direct or indirect introduction, as a result of human
activity, of substances or heat into the water or land which
may be harmful to human health or the quality of aquatic
ecosystems or terrestrial ecosystems directly depending on
aquatic ecosystems, which result in damage to material
property, or which impair or interfere with amenities and
other legitimate uses of the environment."
The Environmental Management Act of British Columbia
defines pollution as:
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"... the presence in the environment of substances or
contaminants that substantially alter or impair the usefulness
of the environment."
"... a person shall not discharge a contaminant or cause or
permit the discharge of a contaminant into the natural
environment, if the discharge causes or may cause an
adverse effect."
Similar to the definition of marine pollution given in the UN
Convention on the Law of the Sea(UNCLOS), the Canada
Shipping Act 2001, at §165 defines a pollutant in the context
of maritime law, as follows:
"... a substance that, if added to any waters, would degrade
or alter or form part of a process of degradation or alteration
of the quality of the waters to an extent that is detrimental to
their use by humans or by an animal or a plant that is useful
to humans; and any water that contains a substance in such a
quantity or concentration, or that has been so treated,
processed or changed, by heat or other means, from a
natural state, that it would, if added to any waters, degrade
or alter or form part of a process of degradation or alteration
of the quality of the waters to an extent that is detrimental to
their use by humans or by an animal or a plant that is useful
to humans."
II. TYPES OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
Basically three types of Environmental pollution



Air pollution
Water pollution
Soil pollution
A. Air pollution
Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulate
matter, or biological materials that cause harm or discomfort
to humans or other living organisms, or cause damage to the
natural environment or built environment, into the
atmosphere.
The atmosphere is a complex dynamic natural gaseous
system that is essential to support life on planet Earth.
Stratospheric ozone depletion due to air pollution has long
been recognized as a threat to human health as well as to the
Earth's ecosystems.
Ozone, a gas, is a major part of air pollution in cities. When
ozone forms air pollution, it's also called smog.
Some air pollutants are poisonous. Inhaling them can
increase the chance you'll have health problems. People
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IJRIAS
with heart or lung disease, older adults and children are at
greater risk from air pollution. Air pollution isn't just
outside - the air inside buildings can also be polluted and
affect your health.
Most people agree that to curb global warming, a variety of
measures need to be taken. On a personal level, driving and
flying less, recycling, and conservation reduces a person’s
"carbon footprint"—the amount of carbon dioxide a person
is responsible for putting into the atmosphere.
Indoor air pollution and urban air quality are listed as two of
the world's worst toxic pollution problems in the 2008
Blacksmith Institute World's Worst Polluted Places report.
According to the 2014 WHO report, air pollution in 2012
caused the deaths of around 7 million people worldwide.
B. Water pollution
Water pollution is any chemical, physical or biological
change in the quality of water that has a harmful effect on
any living thing that drinks or uses or lives (in) it. When
humans drink polluted water it often has serious effects on
their health. Water pollution can also make water unsuited
for the desired use.
water pollution can be anything that disrupts the natural
environmental or biotic cycle of the body of water. this can
include the obvious such as oil spills, fertilizer and
insecticide run-off, to excessive aquatic organism waste
(such as an open water fish farm).
There are several classes of water pollutants. Water
pollution is usually caused by human activities. Different
human sources add to the pollution of water. There are two
sorts of sources, point and nonpoint sources. Point sources
discharge pollutants at specific locations through pipelines
or sewers into the surface water. Nonpoint sources are
sources that cannot be traced to a single site of discharge.
Examples of point sources are: factories, sewage treatment
plants, underground mines, oil wells, oil tankers and
agriculture.
Examples of nonpoint sources are: acid deposition from the
air, traffic, pollutants that are spread through rivers and
pollutants that enter the water through groundwater.
Nonpoint pollution is hard to control because the
perpetrators cannot be traced
C. Soil pollution
Soil pollution definition is the presence of toxic chemicals
(pollutants or contaminants) in soil in high enough
concentrations to be of risk to human health and/or
ecosystem.
it's a change in physical, chemical & biological
characteristics of land /soil, due to anthropogenic activities.
it's include releasing chemical waste on land, overuse of
pesticides etc.which made land polluted & out of use. Land
pollution is the degradation of Earth's land surfaces often
caused by human activities and their misuse of land
resources. It occurs when waste is not disposed properly.
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III. SOURCES OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
Pollutants are substance or energy which when introduced
into the environment causes undesired effects or adverse
effects on useful resources. These pollutants may be gases,
liquids, solids or high pitched sounds. Gaseous pollutants
are produced during the manufacturing process by most
industries. Gaseous pollutants are also emitted by vehicles
and burning of fuel and other substances. Some of the
common gaseous pollutants are carbon monoxide, carbon
dioxide, sulphur dioxide, hydrogen sulphide, hydrogen
cyanide, ammonia gas.
Air pollution comes from both natural and human-made
(anthropogenic) sources. However, globally human-made
pollutants from combustion, construction, mining,
agriculture and warfare are increasingly significant in the air
pollution equation.
Motor vehicle emissions are one of the leading causes of air
pollution. China, United States, Russia, India Mexico, and
Japan are the world leaders in air pollution emissions.
Principal stationary pollution sources include chemical
plants, coal-fired power plants, oil refineries, petrochemical
plants, nuclear waste disposal activity, incinerators, large
livestock farms (dairy cows, pigs, poultry, etc.), PVC
factories, metals production factories, plastics factories, and
other heavy industry. Agricultural air pollution comes from
contemporary practices which include clear felling and
burning of natural vegetation as well as spraying of
pesticides and herbicides
About 400 million metric tons of hazardous wastes are
generated each year. The United States alone produces
about 250 million metric tons. Americans constitute less
than 5% of the world's population, but produce roughly 25%
of the world’s CO2, and generate approximately 30% of
world’s waste. In 2007, China has overtaken the United
States as the world's biggest producer of CO2, while still
far behind based on per capita pollution - ranked 78th
among the world's nations.
An industrial area, with a power plant, south of Yangzhou's
downtown, China
In February 2007, a report by the Intergovernmental Panel
on Climate Change (IPCC), representing the work of 2,500
scientists, economists, and policymakers from more than
120 countries, said that humans have been the primary
cause of global warming since 1950. Humans have ways to
cut greenhouse gas emissions and avoid the consequences
of global warming, a major climate report concluded. But to
change the climate, the transition from fossil fuels like coal
and oil needs to occur within decades, according to the final
report this year from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on
Climate Change (IPCC).
IV. EFFECTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
Effects are given below:
Environment Degradation: Environment is the first casualty
for increase in pollution weather in air or water. The
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IJRIAS
increase in the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere leads to
smog which can restrict sunlight from reaching the earth.
Thus, preventing plants in the process of photosynthesis.
Gases like Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide can cause acid
rain. Water pollution in terms of Oil spill may lead to death
of several wildlife species.
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which brings about changes that affect our normal lifestyles
adversely Above we studies about effect of pollution on
human health, ozone depletion etc.
REFERENCES
[1]
Human Health: The decrease in quality of air leads to
several respiratory problems including asthma or lung
cancer. Chest pain, congestion, throat inflammation,
cardiovascular disease, respiratory disease are some of
diseases that can be causes by air pollution. Water pollution
occurs due to contamination of water and may pose skin
related problems including skin irritations and rashes.
Similarly, Noise pollution leads to hearing loss, stress and
sleep disturbance.
Global Warming: Global Warming is the increase of Earth's
average surface temperature due to effect of greenhouse
gases, such as carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil
fuels or from deforestation, which trap heat that would
otherwise escape from Earth. This is a type of greenhouse
effect. The planet is warming, from North Pole to South
Pole, and everywhere in between. Globally, the mercury is
already up more than 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.8 degree
Celsius), and even more in sensitive polar regions. And the
effects of rising temperatures aren’t waiting for some farflung future. They’re happening right now. Signs are
appearing all over, and some of them are surprising. The
heat is not only melting glaciers and sea ice, it’s also
shifting precipitation patterns and setting animals on the
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Ozone Layer Depletion: Ozone layer is the thin shield high
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earth. As a result of human activities, chemicals, such as
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), were released int to the
atmosphere which contributed to the depletion of ozone
layer.
Other effect are given below




Impure air can kill many organisms including human
beings.
Pollution can cause heart disease, throat inflammation,
respiratory disease, congestion, and chest pain,. Water
pollution cause due to contamination or drinking water
by untreated sewage cause about 14,000 deaths per
day.
Oil spills can cause skin irritations and rashes. Noise
pollution can cause hearing loss, high blood pressure,
stress, and sleep disturbance.
Chemical and radioactive contamination can cause
cancer and birth defects.
V. CONCLUSION
Pollution, we hear it every other day at school, college and
read about it in newspapers. So what is it? Pollution occurs
when pollutants contaminate the natural surroundings;
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