Pollution

Pollution tests in Nigeria

Pollution is when harmful substances are added to the environment and then change it in a bad way. There are six kinds of pollution of the environment:

As pollution grows, ways to combat it have been in demand. Solar energy and wind energy give people clean opportunities to power their homes. But these may also have environmental issues depending on the situation. When people use these alternative forms of energy, they put less carbon dioxide into the environment.^[1]

Water pollution

Waste from a sewer pipe is an example of water pollution

Water pollution is the presence of harmful materials in water, such as sewage, dissolved metal, waste from farms, factories and crude oil spilled from oil tankers. The three main substances that pollute water are nitrates from fertilizers, sewage, and detergents.

Activities such as bathing and washing clothes near lakes, ponds or rivers add nutrients like nitrate and phosphate into the water bodies.This leads to excessive growth of algae on the surface of water. It blocks the penetration of sunlight and air, thus reducing oxygen.

It causes harm to organisms living in water and can also harm people's health. In extreme cases, it may cause diseases like cancer.^[2] It also leads to loss of a large amount of aquatic life.

Epidemic diseases

Water pollution has been a problem from the time human population increased, and live in cities. Cities have been prone to cholera and typhoid fever and other infectious diseases since Roman times. Existing water systems put in place in the 19th century are overwhelmed by the rapid growth of population in cities.

Air pollution

Smoke coming out from a chimney is an example of air pollution.

Air can be polluted by many things. Examples include poisonous gases, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and very small particulates. Smoke and harmful gases released by fires, industries, and thermal power plants cause air pollution. Using coal and wood as fuels for fire causes a lot of air pollution. Petroleum produces less pollution per ton, but it causes a lot of pollution since a lot of it is burned globally. Air pollution may cause health problems such as asthma or other breathing problems.

Air pollution causes global warming and acid rain. This makes it difficult for some living things to survive.

Noise pollution/Sound pollution

A sample of noise pollution

Noise pollution, also known as sound pollution, is harmful to the brain and hearing of all animals and humans. This includes the sound of vehicles, loud speakers, airplanes, jets, train horns etc. Noise pollution can cause ear problems or even permanent deafness, especially to older people. The schools which are beside the roads suffer from the car exhaust fumes as well as noise pollution caused by cars. Students cannot concentrate in their studies sometimes because of noise pollution. People in hospitals near main roads also suffer.

Thermal pollution

Thermal pollution is the harmful release of heated liquid into a body of water or heat released into the air as a waste product of an industry.

A common cause of thermal pollution is using water as a coolant by power stations and industrial manufacturers. This puts back warm water, and so raises the temperature and decreases how much oxygen is in the water. The heat released into the air will make the air warmer which increase global warming.

Pollution Media

Showing the litter problem on the coast of Guyana.
Smog in the center of Moscow, Russia in August 2010
Air pollution produced by ships may alter clouds, affecting global temperatures.
Deaths caused as a result of fossil fuel use (areas of rectangles in chart) greatly exceed those resulting from production of renewable energy (rectangles barely visible in chart).
An industrial area, with a power plant, south of Yangzhou's downtown, China
Historical and projected CO2 emissions by country (as of 2005).*Source: Energy Information Administration.
Overview of main health effects on humans from some common types of pollution
Great Pacific garbage patch
Global carbon dioxide emissions by jurisdiction (as of 2015)
A litter trap catches floating waste in the Yarra River, east-central Victoria, Australia.