Introduction

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Hello Campusconnect, welcome to a new week, We will be learning about pollution, pollutants, causes and how it affects our environment.

Pollution is a Greek word that means 'Defilement', thus pollution can be said to be the addition of waste or materials that defiles the environment and makes it unfit for life. Pollution can also be said to be the release of chemicals or substances into the environment through the activities of man, in such quantities within a duration of time that can be catastrophic to man, his environment and resources.

There are three types of pollution

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i. Air Pollution
ii. Water Pollution
iii. Land Pollution

In man's effort to upgrade his standard of living, we have increased our activities in the Agricultural and Industrial Sector. These has resulted in the release of Agricultural and Industrial wastes and energy into our ecosystem this disturbing their fragile balance, making the environment unfit for habitation and threatening human and organism existence.

A lot of pollutants pile up in the environment because they are not degradable, they includes plastics, glass, tin etc. Some pollutants are poisonous like mercury, lead etc. Also pollutants could be biodegradable waste from living organism when they are produced in large quantities and the natural cycle cannot cope, these waste accumulate and become harmful for the environment.

Atmospheric or Air Pollution

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Atmospheric Pollution are caused mainly by the pollutants produced when fossil fuels like oil, oil are burnt, chlorofluorocarbons, radiation and noise produced by heavy machinery, vehicles, aircrafts etc.

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Burning of fuel releases carbon monoxide. This is a poisonous gas and it combines with the hemoglobin which is the Oxygen carrying pigment in the blood. Thus when this poisonous pollutant is inhaled, it competes with the haemoglobin for oxygen and this leads to less oxygen been carried by the blood. Carbon monoxide are produced from vehicle exhaust, aircrafts, incinerators etc.

Noise is also a source of air pollution, it is an unpleasant and irritating sound. This is common in big cities and industrial towns. Sound is measured in Decibels(dB). When noise continues for a long time, it can irritate us and cause headache and stops us from sleeping properly. This can cause illness and it has been linked to high blood pressure and heart disease. Noise over 85dB may cause deafness.

Reduction of Air Pollution

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i. Chimneys should be fitted with filters to remove pollutants

ii. Gasious waste from industries should be treated to remove pollutants.

iii. Renewable Energy should be used to replace non-renewable energy like Crude oil.

iv. Ozone destroying chemicals like chlorofluorocarbon should be replaced.

Water Pollution

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Water Pollution is destroying clean freshwater and clean freshwater is a very important resource in our environment. Water Pollution also endangers aquatic life in various water bodies be it fresh or Salty water. The main cause of pollutants in our water is the dumping of waste indiscriminately. Water pollutants are refuse and sewage, industrial wastes and agricultural wastes etc.

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Refuse is household waste while sewage is human excreta. When these wastes are disposed into water bodies it becomes a health risk if it is consumed without treatment. These wastes contain infectious bacteria. Industrial wastes produce chemicals like alkalis, detergents, dyes etc. They are non biodegradable and when disposed untreated into the water, they remain in the water and cause serious damage to aquatic plants and animals. Some chemicals accumulate in Organisms and passed down along food chains. This can lead to mercury poisoning.

Reduction of Water Pollution

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i. Sewage should be treated in sewage plants before they are emptied into the rivers and seas. When this is done, harmful disease causing bacteria are removed as well as Organic wastes.

ii. Industrial wastes should also be treated before disposing them into water bodies. Through this process organic wastes are transformed to biodegradable forms and toxic materials are removed.

iii. Organic manure should be used in farms instead of inorganic fertilizers

iv. Waste silos should be constructed for storing radioactive waste materials so that ground water is not contaminated by radioactive waste.

Soil Pollution

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Soil Pollution destroys the layer of topsoil that mostly covers the earth's land surface. This layer is crucial for the growth of plants. This layer of soil is maintained by the various nutrient cyclew and activities of decomposers continuously in a balanced ecosystem.

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Erosion is the main cause of Soil Pollution in many countries, this is as a result of careless and harmful farming methods. Pesticides kill crop pests but also harm soil bacteria and soil animals that are useful to the environment. Also the inorganic fertilizers drys up the topsoil making it easy for wind to blow it away. Mining also strips the land of vegetation and topsoil. Land Pollution is also causes by dumping of garbage. Garbage includes domestic, industrial and agricultural solid wastes.

Reduction of Soil Pollution

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i. Mining activities should involve the corporations who carry out this mining should restore the land after mining operations are concluded.

ii. Solid wastes should be collected and disposed so that they don't accumulate on the land. These wastes should be recycled to produce other useful materials.

iii. Overgrazing of pastures should be reduced and good farming activities such as using Organic manure instead of inorganic fertilizers.

iv. Trees should be planted after deforestation so as to not live the land bare, this helps to prevent erosion, desertification and sustains life of micro-organisms and soil animals.

Conclusion

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For every problem their is a solution, it is our duty to protect our environment. By reducing the release of pollutants into the environment, we are able to protect our land, air and water from pollution. This keeps us safe and healthy and reduces the effects of climate change.