1. POLLUTION
The word, 'pollution' means to make dirty. Pollution causes imbalance in the
environment. Environmental pollution is a serious problem. Nearly 35 percent of India's
total land area is subject to serious environmental pollution.
Industrialization has led to urbanization, which has added to the pollution problem. Air
pollution is the most dangerous form of pollution. land and water pollution have
worsened the situation. Pollution causes several types of harmful disease. We must
control pollution for our survival.
The word pollution 'pollution', has been derived form a Latin word, 'pollutionem,' which
means to make dirty. Pollution is the process of making the environment. i.e. the land,
water and air dirty by adding harmful substances to it. Pollution causes imbalance in the
environment. This imbalance has threatened the very survival of life. It is a threat to the
whole world.
Environmental pollution is the biggest menace to the human race on this planet
today. It means adding impurity to environment. Environmental pollution is a serious
problem of the industrialized societies. The industrial development and the Green
Revolution have adversely affected the environment. People have converted the life
supporting systems of the entire living world into their own resources and have vastly
disturbed the natural ecological balance. Serious degradation and depletion have been
caused thought overuse, misuse and mismanagement of resources to meet the human
greed.
Environmental pollution is defined as the unfavorable alteration of our surroundings. It is
by product of man's activities through direct or indirect efforts of changes. These
changes could be in the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of land, air or
water that harmfully affect human life or any desirable living thing. Human population
explosion, rapid industrialization, deforestation, unplanned urbanization, scientific and
technological advancement etc. are the major causes of environmental pollution. Three
fourths of the earth consists of water, yet there is is a scarcity of potable water. In India,
all the sources of water like rivers, lakes, ponds and wells have been polluted and are
unfit for drinking. As a result of the increased use of fertilizers, the rivers, seas and
oceans have become contaminated with harmful pollutants. It is estimated that more

2. than 500 tons of mercury enters the ocean every year. Oil slicks, pollution caused by
the flow of industrial waste, sewage and fertilizer have also threatened the aquatic life.
Industrialization has led to urbanization. The migration of rural population to the cities in
search of work has created an unhealthy environment. It has led to overcrowding,
establishment of slum areas. Towns and cities are full of smoke, fumes, dirt, dust,
rubbish, gases, foul smell and noise. Air, water and land pollution have further
worsened the very survival of human beings.
The environment consists of earth, water, air, plants and animals. If we pollute them,
then the existence of man and nature will be hampered.
It is true that trees are being cut down rapidly. Our earth is becoming warmer. If
pollution continues, the day is not far when our earth will be a boiling pan and become a
desert. Or it will be covered with sea water causing destruction of mankind.
Types of Pollution
1. Air Pollution —
2. Water Pollution —
3. Land Pollution —
4. Noise Pollution —
5. Radio Active Pollution
AIR POLLUTION
Pure air is always needed for inhaling. If we take pure air, our health improves. On the
other hand impure air causes diseases and impairs our health and causes our death.
Smoke pollutes the air. It is the root of air pollution. Major Causes of Air Pollution are
Industries ,Automobiles and Domestic fuels -High Proportion of undesirable gases, such
as sulphur dioxide and carbon monoxide. The smoke which is discharged from
industries, automobiles and kitchens is the mixture of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide,

3. methane etc. These are all poisonous gases. These cause lung-cancer, tuberculosis
etc. which take a heavy toll of life. The glaring incident is the Bhopal gas leak in
December 1984. Thousands of the residents of Bhopal died due to lungs problem which
was caused by methylamine gas from the Union Carbide Plant.
The garbage emitting foul smell, the decaying plants and animals also cause air
pollution. Hence the doctors advise the patients having lungs trouble to settle in some
rural places because the air of villages is pure and free from population.
WATER POLLUTION.
The water of rivers and seas is being constantly polluted all over the world by various
dangerous chemical and biological wastes. Mills and factories discharge very harmful
waste waters into many rivers and sea. The water of the Ganges flowing by the side of
both Varanashi and Calcutta is extremely polluted and contains all sorts of dangerous
bacteria. It is really very strange and laughable that large number of the Indians regard
this water as holy. They even drink this water for salvation. There is no doubt that the
fish that grow in such waters are poisonous too.
Reckless application of chemical fertilizers, insecticides and pesticides pollutes the soil.
Vegetables and fruits are quite injurious today, because they contain the poison of
insecticides and pesticides.
Land Pollution
Pollution occurs when people dispose of their waste on the land. The disposal of non-
biodegradable and toxic waste in landfills may result in numerous problems.
Firstly, when it rains, rain water may seep through the soil and waste, dissolving and
carrying away with it, harmful substances that pollute the soil, groundwater and any
nearby streams. Moreover, when the waste in the landfill decomposes under heat and
pressure of the soil above, they would release poisonous fumes such as methane.
Many buildings in America and Europe are sited on such land. Hence, an excavation of
the ground may result inn the release of these fumes into the atmosphere, killing
people, animals and plants nearby. Moreover, the land above the landfill is filled with
pockets of gas and this makes the land very unstable. Subsidence may occur at any
time and this makes the land dangerous to live on. examples of such land include:
Love Canal, New York, USA

4. Portsmouth, England
Moreover, with a growing population on Earth, land is becoming scarcer and there may
not be enough land to be used as landfills in the future.
SOUND POLLUTION
Then comes sound pollution. The harsh sounds of buses, its, mopeds etc. affect our
power of hearing and causes fart trouble. It has been reported that there are two
villages named Biraspalli and Devadas Palli near Dum Dum airport m Calcutta where a
large number of people have lost their power of hearing. This is because of the frequent
sounds of planes coming in and going out of Dum Dum Airport. The evils of sound
pollution can be imagined from this example.
RADIOACTIVE POLLUTION
The radioactive pollution is defined as the physical pollution of air, water and the
otherradioactive materials. The ability of certain materials to emit the proton, gamma
rays and electrons by their nuclei is known as theradioactivity. The protons are known
as the alpha particle and the electrons are also known as the beta particle. Those
materials are known as the radioactive elements. The environmental radiations can be
from different sources and can be natural or manmade.
The natural radiations are also known as the background radiations. In this the cosmic
rays are involved and reach the surface of earth from space. It includes the radioactive
elements likeradium, uranium, thorium, radon, potassium and carbon. These occur in
the rock, soil and water. The man made radiations include the mining and refining of
plutonium and thorium. This production and explosion of nuclear weapons include the
nuclear fuels, power plants and radioactive isotopes.
The first atom bomb was exploded in the Japan in the year 1945. It affected the
Hiroshima and Nagasaki cities. It adversely affected the flora, fauna and humans of that
area. In spite of these destructions the nuclear race is still going on between different
nations. The nuclear arms are tested with the production of nuclear weapons.

5. The radioactive elements are produced in the environment and affect other materials
also. It includes the strontium, radium and iodine. The gases and particles are produced
by theradioactive materials. They are carried by the wind and the rain brings down the
radioactive particles to the ground which is referred as nuclear fallout. The soil transfers
these radioactive substances to the plants and ultimately they reach the human body
and cause many side effects. The iodine may affect the white blood cells, bone
marrow, spleen, lymph, skin cancer, sterility, eye and damage to the lung. The strontium
has the ability to aggregate in the bones and form a bone cancer and leads to tissue
degeneration.
The radioactive materials are passed through the land to water and cause an adverse
effect on the aquatic animals. They reach to human through the food chain. The nuclear
power generates a lot of energy which is used to run turbines and produces electricity.
The fuel and the coolant produce a large amount of pollution in the environment. The
atomic reactors are also rich in the radioactive materials. There biggest problem is in
their disposal and if they are not properly disposed they can harm the living organisms.
If they escape they can cause a hell lot of destruction. The gases escape as a vapor
and cause pollution on the land and water. The use of radioactive isotopes is
multipurpose. They are of a great scientific value and they may be present in the waste
water. From these water resources they reach to the human body via food chain. The
people who work in power plants have more chances of the exposure to harmful
radiations. The human beings also receive the radiation and radiotherapy from the x
rays.
Effects of Pollution
Pollution causes different types diseases. Air pollution causes allergies, asthma, lung
cancer and bronchitis. Radioactive pollutants cause respiratory problems, paralysis,
cancer, and other diseases. Excessive noise pollution can lead to deafness, anxiety,
stress, increase in the rate of heart beat and other health problems. The depletion of the
ozone layer can also result in skin diseases. If the air we breathe, the water we drink
and the soil which produces our crops, vegetables and fruits, all become more and

6. more impure, then our chances of good health and longevity will be very less and less.
Environment pollution is a serious menace to our existence.
1. Human health
Overview of main health effects on humans from some common types of
pollution.[26][27][28]
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 diarrhea 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. Mercuryhas 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.
2. Environment

7. 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 CO2 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.
3. 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.
Pollution Control

8. Practices
 recycling
 reusing
 reducing
 mitigating
 preventing
 compost
Pollution control devices
 Dust collection systems
 Baghouses
 Cyclones
 Electrostatic precipitators
 Scrubbers
 Baffle spray scrubber
 Cyclonic spray scrubber
 Ejector venturi scrubber
 Mechanically aided scrubber
 Spray tower
 Wet scrubber
 Sewage treatment
 Sedimentation (Primary treatment)
 Activated sludge biotreaters (Secondary treatment; also used for industrial
wastewater)
 Aerated lagoons
 Constructed wetlands (also used for urban runoff)
 Industrial wastewater treatment
[15][35]
 API oil-water separators
 Biofilters
 Dissolved air flotation (DAF)
 Powdered activated carbon treatment
 Ultrafiltration
 Vapor recovery systems
 Phytoremediation

9. Realizing the danger, vigorous efforts should be made. The Anti-pollution law should be
strictly practiced. We must plant trees in large number to absorb impure air and vehicles
should be made eco-friendly. In order to check water pollution, the sewage and the
factory waste should be properly treated and cleaned before being discharged. Impure
water from industries can be sent back for purification and then it can be used for
irrigation purpose. Our government is well aware of the fact and is taking steps to save
environment from pollution.
Public education and awareness of the relationship between climate change and human
health is key to deal with problems more effectively. General awareness is must to save
our planted from destruction. All the nations of the world should work unitedly to control
environmental pollution.