Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into a natural environment that causes instability, disorder, harm or discomfort to the ecosystem

i.e. physical systems or living organisms.[1] Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light. Pollutants, the elements of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring contaminants. Pollution is often classed as point source or nonpoint source pollution. The Blacksmith Institute issues an annual list of the world's worst polluted places. In the 2007 issues the ten top nominees are located in Azerbaijan, China, India, Peru, Russia, Ukraine and Zambia.[2]

Air Pollution
May 28th, 2011 | Author: admin Air supplies us with oxygen, which is important for our bodies to live. Air is 99.9% made up of nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor, and inert gases. There are many types of pollution, which include smog, acid rain, the greenhouse effect, and holes in the ozone layer. These problems have implications for our health and the whole environment. One type of pollution is the release of particles in the air from burning fuel. Smoke is a good example of particulate matter. The particles are very small pieces measuring about 2.5 microns. This is referred to as black carbon pollution. From burning fuels in cars, homes and industries is a source of air pollution. Some people believe that burning wood and charcoal can release significant amounts of soot into the air. We cause air pollution when we use electricity, home fuels and transportation. We also cause air pollution indirectly, when we buy goods and services that use energy in their product or delivery. Most of this air pollution results from the burning of fossil fuels likes coal, oil, natural gas and gasoline. Carbon dioxide is a good indicator of how much fossil fuel is burned and how much of other pollutants we cause to be emitted. Like photochemical pollutants, sulfur oxides contribute to the incidence of respiratory diseases. Acid rain is a form of pollution that contains high levels of sulfuric or nitric acids which can contaminate drinking water, vegetation, damage aquatic life and erode buildings. When a weather condition known as a temperature inversion causes smog to form, the inhabitants of the area, especially children, the elderly and chronically ill, are warned to stay indoors and avoid physical stress. The World Health Organization estimates that about two million people die prematurely every year as a result of air pollution, while many more suffer from breathing ailments, heart disease, lung infections and even cancer.Fine particles or microscopic dust from coal or wood fires and unfiltered diesel engines are rated as one of the most lethal forms or air pollution caused by industry, transport, household heating, cooking and ageing coal or oil-fired power stations. There are four reasons of air pollution are emissions from vehicles, thermal power plants, industries and refineries. The problem of indoor air pollution in rural areas and urban slums has increased. CNG is not without environmental drawbacks says a new Central Pollution Control Board study on January 05, 2011. The study says burning CNG has the highest rates of potentially hazardous carbonyl emissions. The study also made a case for regulating CNG and other

fuels for methane emissions. Methane, a greenhouse gas, is a key contributor to climate change. Among the studys finds were that retrofitted CNG car engines emit 30% more methane than original CNG engines. Almost all CNG car engines in India are retrofitted. Studies conducted in various parts of the world have revealed a strong link between type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular diseases and continuous exposure to ultra fine particulate matter present in the air.Particluate matter in the air which is very fine and is less than 2.5 microns in size is called PM2.5 and has been known to cause diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

Water pollution
May 28th, 2011 | Author: admin There are so many sources of water pollution. One kind of source is a non-point source of pollution. A non-point source of pollution is water that runs off construction sites and farmland, different kinds of soil particles and nutrient that goes into streams and lakes. They also include water from things like lawns and gardens that sometimes carries fertilizer, insecticide, water from the roads and parking lots that carries things like salt, oil, and grease. These sources are (1) industrial wastes, (2) sewage, and (3) agricultural chemicals. Another type of source is municipal. The municipal source of water pollution consists wastewater from home and commercial establishments. For years the main goal of treating municipal wastewater was simply to reduce its content of suspended solids, oxygen-demanding materials, dissolved inorganic compound, and harmful bacteria. The basic methods of dealing with municipal wastewater falls into three stages: primary treatment, including grit removal, screening, grinding, and sedimentation. Now you know about the sources of water pollution. Causes of Water Pollution There are many causes of water pollution but two categories exist: direct and indirect. Natural and unknown causes of pollutants can impact water quality and it may be related to some of the human activities. The major causes of pollution in surface water in the state of Texas are elevated concentrations of dissolved solids, salinity, or sulfates. Many causes of pollution including sewage and fertilizers contain nutrients such as nitrates and phosphates. These types of organisms clogs our water way, use up dissolved oxygen as it decomposes, and block the light to deeper waters. This proves very harmful things to aquatic as it effects the respiration ability or fish and other things that reside in water. Now you know about the causes of water pollution. Effects of Water Pollution The effects of water pollution include poisonous drinking water, poisonous food animals, unbalanced river and lake ecosystems that can no longer support full biological diversity, deforestation from acid rain, and lots of other effects. Water pollution can also affect rain, rivers, lakes, oceans, and the water beneath the surface of earth called ground water. The effects of water pollution varied by lots of things. Help Stop Water Pollution You can help try to stop water pollution by making sure that no one throws any thing in the water. Another way you can help is by not trashing the land by the polluted water because

when the water rises up it will take all the garbage by the shore and more pollution will come to the water. Now you know how you can help stop pollution. Pollution Can Affect Animals Pollution affects the animals because when little microscopic animals called zooplankton eat the algae, and the fish eat the zooplankton, the fish produce body wastes and they eventually die. Another reason why water pollution can effect the animals is because when all the chemicals come into the polluted water the fish have to eat the plants and it may have chemicals on it. Eventually the fish ends up getting sick from the chemicals and die. In addition to clean air, all living organisms, animals and plants call for a clean water supply in order to continue to exist. We may think that we contain lots of water but merely a small amount of it is fresh water that we can use and day by day we are polluting our water in the same way we are polluting our air. When harmful substances such as oil and chemical wastes come in the waterways either through accidents or through being deliberately dumped, they are soon carried away by tides or the flow of the river and are really not easy to remove. As a river makes its way to the ocean, a number of different chemicals can enter its waters. Harmful chemicals can enter our rivers and lakes from any number of sources. For example they can dribble out of dumpsites or pesticides and fertilizers or may draw off from farmlands or they may find their way into manure that is pumped from local towns and cities.

Noise pollution
May 28th, 2011 | Author: admin Noise pollution is a category of energy pollution in which off-putting, infuriating, or harmful sounds are without restraint capable of being heard. As with other forms of energy pollution such as heat and light pollution, noise pollution contaminants are not substantial particles, but to a certain extent waves that get in the way with naturally-occurring waves of similar type in the same surroundings. Thus, the explanation of noise pollution is open to dispute, and there is no clear boundary as to which sounds may add up to noise pollution. In the narrowest common sense, sounds are well thought-out noise pollution if they unfavorably have an effect on natural world, human activity, or are competent of destructive physical structures on a customary, repeating starting point. In the broadest sense of the expression, a sound may be painstaking noise pollution if it disturbs any ordinary course of action or causes human harm, even if the sound does not take place on a habitual basis. Prolonged introduction to noise levels higher than eighty-five decibels can damage inner ear cells and show the way to hearing loss. The customary starting place of fake noise pollution is from transportation. In rural areas, train and airplane noise can upset natural world way of life, thereby affecting the manner in which animals in areas around train tracks and airports hunt and mate. In urban areas, automobile, motorcycle, and even amusement noise can cause sleep interference in humans and animals, hearing loss, heart disease as a result of stress, and in ruthless cases even mental flux. Even low levels of noise can be maddening or annoying. Sudden increases in volume

can make sounds aggravating this is why sirens are so disturbing. The quieter the environment, the sharper a noise can be. As noise levels have risen, the sound effects of noise have become plainer as the nose on your face. Although most urbanized nations have government agencies in charge for the safeguard of the ambiance, no nation has a single body that regulates noise pollution. Transportation noise is more often than not regulated by the related transportation ministry, health-related work noise is often keeping pace by health ministries and workers unions, and entertainment noise such as loud music is a against the law crime in many areas. As the bodies to blame for noise pollution reduction usually view noise as an annoyance rather than a trouble, and dropping that noise time and again hurts the industry economically, little is at present being done to trim down noise pollution in urbanized countries.

Causes Of Noise Pollution

Noise pollution is quiet a cause of death and much community concern has not been created on the untrustworthy effect of noise on both workers in the industries in particular and the public in the community in universal. Noise is a significant environmental contaminant that befouls our air, water and soil. It has the capability to destroy bridges and develop cracks in the buildings. The noise can also cause skin and mental diseases. It has been exposed that noise is a technology generated problem and the on the whole noise doubles every 10 years keeping pace with our social and industrial progress. Environmental pollution has been largely affected due to noise pollution with the rising of the sun each day. The noise pollution in the different parts of the city increases in and around work places and homes. The noise levels a peak in the twilight areas when people are off to work hours as traffic too reaches at peak. In India the problems caused by noise pollution are further provoked in view of the fact that there are scarcely any celebrations, festivals, marriage or religious functions where there is no use of loud speakers at a very high pitch for long period of time. In offices too there is noise pollution owing to the clicking of typewriters, bells, telephones, clattering office machines and conversations. On the roads noise pollution occurs due to rising no of automobiles each day. Screeching of tyres, squealing breaks and sirens honking at highest decibels possible are all factors that add violently and at length to noise pollution.Blaring televisions, radios and live shows are another major factors contributing t noise pollution in India. The other most important problem adding to the existing problem of noise pollution is that the profit-making and the industrial units are either not very far from the inhabited areas or from time to time they are setup in the residential areas itself. To meet the demands of the basic requirement of living the structure of highways, buildings and city streets causes a lot of noise. Air compressors, bulldozers, loaders, dump trucks and concrete workers are the major sources of noise pollution in construction sites. Though, not a most important reason industrial noise adds to the noise pollution. Machinery, motors and compressors used in the industries creates a lot of noise which adds up to the harmful state of noise pollution. Boilers, generators and conditioners add to the

previously established noise pollution. Slowly, unresponsively, we seem to agree to noise and the physiological and psychological wear and tear that accompanies it as an unavoidable element of our lives.

Environmental Pollution
The environmental problems in India are growing rapidly. The increasing economic development and a rapidly growing population that has taken the country from 300 million people in 1947 to more than one billion people today is putting a strain on the environment, infrastructure, and the countrys natural resources. Industrial pollution, soil erosion, deforestation, rapid industrialization, urbanization, and land degradation are all worsening problems. Overexploitation of the countrys resources be it land or water and the industrialization process has resulted environmental degradation of resources. Environmental pollution is one of the most serious problems facing humanity and other life forms on our planet today. Indias per capita carbon dioxide emissions were roughly 3,000 pounds (1,360 kilograms) in 2007, according to the study. Thats small compared to China and the U.S., with 10,500 pounds (4,763 kilograms) and 42,500 pounds (19,278 kilograms) respectively that year. The study said that the European Union and Russia also have more emissions than India. India has been ranked as seventh most environmentally hazardous country in the world by a new ranking released recently. The study is based on evaluation of absolute environment impact of 179 countries, whose data was available and has been done by researchers in Harvard, Princeton, Adelaide University and University of Singapore 0n January 12, 2011. Brazil was found to be worst on environmental indicators whereas Singapore was the best. United States was rated second worst and China was ranked third. India and US clean energy pact: India and the U.S. on November 8, 2010 inked an agreement to establish a bilateral energy cooperation programme to promote clean and energy-efficient businesses, Indian and U.S. companies inked joint venture deals worth $175 million in the renewable energy sector. The Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced the setting up of Joint Clean Energy Research and Development Centre. The proposed centre is part of the Partnership to Advance Clean Energy (PACE), which forms the core of the green partnership. Funding for the centre is expected from national budgets and the private sector. Each government proposes to commit $25 million over the next five years.. A Comprehensive environmental assessment of industrial clusters, undertaken by IIT Delhi and the CPCB, found that the environmental pollution levels in 10 major industrial hubs had reached a very alarmingly high level. The World Bank Group has sanctioned two loans worth around Rs1,185 crore for environment management projects in India on July 22, 2010. Of this, Rs897crore will go for the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) project and the remaining for Capacity Building for Industrial Pollution Management project. .

Soil pollution
May 28th, 2011 | Author: admin

Soil pollution comprises the toxic waste of soils with resources, mostly chemicals that are out of place or are present at concentrations advanced than normal which may have unpleasant effects on humans or other organisms. However, soil pollution is also caused by resources other than the undeviating addition of man-made chemicals such as undeveloped runoff waters, industrial waste materials, acidic precipitates, and radioactive clash. Both organic and inorganic contaminants are imperative in soil. Soil pollution is caused by the presence of synthetic chemicals or other modification in the natural soil background. This type of contamination normally arises from the split of underground storage links, use of pesticides, and percolation of polluted surface water to subsurface strata, oil and fuel dumping, leaching of wastes from landfills or direct discharge of industrial wastes to the soil. The most common chemicals involved are petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, lead and other heavy metals. This episode of this incident is linked with the degree of industrialization and intensities of chemical treatment. Soil pollution can lead to water pollution if poisonous chemicals percolate into groundwater, or if contaminated overflow reaches streams, lakes, or oceans. Soil also naturally contributes to air pollution by releasing likely to explode compounds into the atmosphere. The decay of untreated materials in soil can release sulfur dioxide and other sulfur compounds, causing acid rain. Heavy metals and other potentially toxic elements are the most grave soil pollutants in sewage. Sewage mud contains heavy metals and, if functional over and over again or in large amounts, the treated soil may build up heavy metals and as a result become not capable to even support plant life. In accumulation, chemicals that are not water soluble contaminate plants that grow on polluted soils. The greater than ever pollution of the atmosphere has been one of the greatest concerns for science and the universal public in the last fifty years. The brisk industrialization of agriculture, spreading out of the chemical industry, and the need to generate cheap forms of energy has caused the constant release of man-made organic chemicals into natural ecosystems. As a result, the atmosphere, bodies of water, and many soil environments have become contaminated by a large variety of toxic compounds. These include the hazard of acute toxicity, genetic changes, birth defects for humans and other organisms. Some of these artificial toxic compounds are also dead set against to substantial, chemical, or biological dreadful conditions and thus be a symbol of an ecological burden of considerable amount.

Causes Of Soil Pollution:

Soil pollution is caused by the existence of man-made chemicals or additional variation in the usual soil environment. This type of infectivity characteristically arises from the rupture of alternative storage links, application of pesticides, and percolation of contaminated surface water to subsurface strata, oil and fuel throwing away, leakage of wastes from landfills or nonstop discharge of industrial wastes to the soil.

A soil pollutant is any feature which deteriorates the excellence, stability and mineral substance of the soil or which disturbs the organic sense of balance of the organisms in the soil. Pollution in soil is coupled with factors such as: Haphazard use of fertilizers Soil nutrients are vital for plant growth and development. Fertilizers pollute the soil with impurities. The over use of fertilizers reduce quantity of vegetables and crops grown on soil

over the Years. It also reduces the protein content of wheat, maize, etc., grown on that soil. The carbohydrate quality of such crops also gets tainted. Surplus potassium at ease in soil decreases Vitamin C in vegetables and fruits. The vegetables and fruits grown on over fertilized Use of pesticides, insecticides and herbicides To kill useless insects living on crops farmers use pesticides. Pesticides not only bring toxic effect on human and animals but also drop off the fertility of the soil. Dumping of solid wastes In broad-spectrum, solid waste includes trash, domestic refuse and not needed solid materials such as those from commercial, industrial and agricultural operations. Since a considerable amount of urban solid throw away tends to be paper and food waste, the majority is recyclable or biodegradable in landfills. I the same way, most agricultural waste is recycled and mining waste is left on site. The segment of solid waste that is dangerous such as oils, battery metals, heavy metals from smelting industries and organic solvents are the ones we have to pay particular attention to. Deforestation Soil Erosion occurs when the worn out particles are dislodged and passed away by wind or water. Deforestation, agricultural development, temperature extremes, and human actions add to this erosion. Humans speed up this process by construction, mining, and overgrazing. It results in floods and cause soil erosion. Forests hold up many habitats and ecosystems, which make available immeasurable feeding pathways or food chains to all species. During the past few years quite a lot of vast green land has been converted into deserts. Deforestation is slowly destroying the most dynamic flora and fauna areas in the human race.

LAND POLLUTION The earth has suffered massive environmental degradation with the advent of industrialisation. Pollution is most sever in third world nations but is ever present in industrialised nations. Pesticide, oil and fuel dumping, leaching of wastes from landfills, and direct discharge of industrial wastes contaminate the soil. The most common chemicals found in contaminated soil are petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, lead and other heavy metals. Soil remediation techniques are being developed and redeveloped by scientists in order to restore contaminated soil back to health. Most processes are typically expensive and tedious. They are however absolutely necessary as the health dangers posed by contaminated soil are plenty. It triggers cancer, congenital disorders, and chronic illnesses. Of course, eco systems are also affected. Some soil remediation techniques are excavation and dredging, aeration, thermal remediation, bioremediation, phytoremediation, and electromechanical extraction of

groundwater. Apart from contamination by biohazards, soil is also harmed by over salinity and aridness. New performance enhancing plants are offering up practical and ingenious soil remediation techniques. These kinds of plants are bred to positively impact the earth. It can benefit nature in more than one way. They grow much faster, offer a source of renewable energy with enriched syngas and biochar, are 50% more effective at absorbing carbon dioxide, have the ability to significantly improve the quality and availability of water and soil, can yield about 30% more than their mono-genomic or bi-genomic parents given the same growing environment. Given the same methods of growing a normal plant, you can grow performance enhancing plants and expect much more impactful mechanisms for generating renewable energy, carbon capture and storage, water and soil remediation techniques, forestry, and overall global warming management. There are efforts to restore nature and adopt a sustainable lifestyle and among these are the soil remediation techniques. These efforts have to be on a global scale and everyone should treat this issue with high priority in order for substantial changes to manifest. New technologies offer a beacon of hope but also hopefully, it isnt too little too late.

Human health
Adverse air quality can kill many organisms including humans. Ozone pollution can cause respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease, throat inflammation, chest pain, and congestion. Water pollution causes approximately 14,000 deaths per day, mostly due to contamination of drinking water by untreated sewage in developing countries. An estimated 700 million Indians have no access to a proper toilet, and 1,000 Indian children die of diarrhoeal sickness every day.[29] Nearly 500 million Chinese lack access to safe drinking water.[30] 656,000 people die prematurely each year in China because of air pollution. In India, air pollution is believed to cause 527,700 fatalities a year.[31] Studies have estimated that the number of people killed annually in the US could be over 50,000.[32] Oil spills can cause skin irritations and rashes. Noise pollution induces hearing loss, high blood pressure, stress, and sleep disturbance. Mercury has been linked to developmental deficits in children and neurologic symptoms. Older people are majorly exposed to diseases induced by air pollution. Those with heart or lung disorders are under additional risk. Children and infants are also at serious risk. Lead and other heavy metals have been shown to cause neurological problems. Chemical and radioactive substances can cause cancer and as well as birth defects.

Environment
Pollution has been found to be present widely in the environment. There are a number of effects of this:

Biomagnification describes situations where toxins (such as heavy metals) may pass through trophic levels, becoming exponentially more concentrated in the process. Carbon dioxide emissions cause ocean acidification, the ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earth's oceans as CO 2 becomes dissolved.

The emission of greenhouse gases leads to global warming which affects ecosystems in many ways. Invasive species can out compete native species and reduce biodiversity. Invasive plants can contribute debris and biomolecules (allelopathy) that can alter soil and chemical compositions of an environment, often reducing native species competitiveness. Nitrogen oxides are removed from the air by rain and fertilise land which can change the species composition of ecosystems. Smog and haze can reduce the amount of sunlight received by plants to carry out photosynthesis and leads to the production of tropospheric ozone which damages plants. Soil can become infertile and unsuitable for plants. This will affect other organisms in the food web. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides can cause acid rain which lowers the pH value of soil.

Environmental health information

The Toxicology and Environmental Health Information Program (TEHIP)[33] at the United States National Library of Medicine (NLM) maintains a comprehensive toxicology and environmental health web site that includes access to resources produced by TEHIP and by other government agencies and organizations. This web site includes links to databases, bibliographies, tutorials, and other scientific and consumer-oriented resources. TEHIP also is responsible for the Toxicology Data Network (TOXNET)[34] an integrated system of toxicology and environmental health databases that are available free of charge on the web. TOXMAP is a Geographic Information System (GIS) that is part of TOXNET. TOXMAP uses maps of the United States to help users visually explore data from the United States Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Toxics Release Inventory and Superfund Basic Research Programs.

Regulation and monitoring

Main article: Regulation and monitoring of pollution

To protect the environment from the adverse effects of pollution, many nations worldwide have enacted legislation to regulate various types of pollution as well as to mitigate the adverse effects of pollution.

Pollution control
Pollution control is a term used in environmental management. It means the control of emissions and effluents into air, water or soil. Without pollution control, the waste products from consumption, heating, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, transportation and other human activities, whether they accumulate or disperse, will degrade the environment. In the hierarchy of controls, pollution prevention and waste minimization are more desirable than

pollution control. In the field of land development, low impact development is a similar technique for the prevention of urban runoff.

Perspectives
The earliest precursor of pollution generated by life forms would have been a natural function of their existence. The attendant consequences on viability and population levels fell within the sphere of natural selection. These would have included the demise of a population locally or ultimately, species extinction. Processes that were untenable would have resulted in a new balance brought about by changes and adaptations. At the extremes, for any form of life, consideration of pollution is superseded by that of survival. For humankind, the factor of technology is a distinguishing and critical consideration, both as an enabler and an additional source of byproducts. Short of survival, human concerns include the range from quality of life to health hazards. Since science holds experimental demonstration to be definitive, modern treatment of toxicity or environmental harm involves defining a level at which an effect is observable. Common examples of fields where practical measurement is crucial include automobile emissions control, industrial exposure (e.g. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) PELs), toxicology (e.g. LD50), and medicine (e.g. medication and radiation doses). "The solution to pollution is dilution", is a dictum which summarizes a traditional approach to pollution management whereby sufficiently diluted pollution is not harmful.[36][37] It is wellsuited to some other modern, locally scoped applications such as laboratory safety procedure and hazardous material release emergency management. But it assumes that the dilutant is in virtually unlimited supply for the application or that resulting dilutions are acceptable in all cases. Such simple treatment for environmental pollution on a wider scale might have had greater merit in earlier centuries when physical survival was often the highest imperative, human population and densities were lower, technologies were simpler and their byproducts more benign. But these are often no longer the case. Furthermore, advances have enabled measurement of concentrations not possible before. The use of statistical methods in evaluating outcomes has given currency to the principle of probable harm in cases where assessment is warranted but resorting to deterministic models is impractical or infeasible. In addition, consideration of the environment beyond direct impact on human beings has gained prominence. Yet in the absence of a superseding principle, this older approach predominates practices throughout the world. It is the basis by which to gauge concentrations of effluent for legal release, exceeding which penalties are assessed or restrictions applied. One such superseding principle is contained in modern hazardous waste laws in developed countries, as the process of diluting hazardous waste to make it non-hazardous is usually a regulated treatment process.[38] Migration from pollution dilution to elimination in many cases can be confronted by challenging economical and technological barriers.

Greenhouse gases and global warming

Carbon dioxide, while vital for photosynthesis, is sometimes referred to as pollution, because raised levels of the gas in the atmosphere are affecting the Earth's climate. Disruption of the environment can also highlight the connection between areas of pollution that would normally be classified separately, such as those of water and air. Recent studies have investigated the potential for long-term rising levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide to cause slight but critical increases in the acidity of ocean waters, and the possible effects of this on marine ecosystems.