Pollution

Pollution

1. Air Pollution

   • Causes
     • One of the major contributions to global warming are vehicles. This can vary from just small cars, all the way to large trucks.The main type of pollution from vehicles are greenhouse emissions. In vehicles, the principal greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide (CO2), however, vehicles can also produce other greenhouse gases such as nitrous oxide and methane.
     • Byproduct of Industries
   • Effect
     • Acid Rain
       • Acid rain can be occur when sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are emitted out into the atmosphere and is carried by wind and air currents. The SO2 and NOx react with the water, oxygen and other chemicals to create sulfuric and nitric acids. These finally combine with other materials before falling and hitting the ground.
     • Smog
       • Smog is a form of air pollution that can be caused by small particles that float in the air.The meaning behind smog was originally the words smoke and fog combined and was originally used to describe the hazy mixture that sulfur dioxide created in the early 1900’s. Smog doesn’t only have a negative impact on humans, however, it also affects the health of plants and animals and is often a result of industrious activities.
     • Higher rates of asthma
       • When pollution levels are at a significant high, people breathe in the harmful substances that is present as a result of the pollution. However, if you have asthma you are more likely to suffer from the effects. This can be because pollutants, for example traffic fumes can be small enough to fit inside your lungs resulting in irritation to your airways triggering asthma symptoms.
     • Global Warming
       • Global warming can occur when carbon dioxide (CO2) and other air pollutants begin to mix together within the atmosphere, then absorbing sunlight and solar radiation that have reflected off of the earth's surface. This radiation would often just emit into the space, however these pollutants that are greenhouse gases that can last from years to centuries in the atmosphere trap the heat, eventually causing the planet to become hotter.
   • Air pollution, the contamination of healthy and natural air. Air pollution can be caused by combining the natural air with different types of pollutants, including harmful fumes and chemicals.

2. Noise Pollution

   • Effect
     • Noise pollution can have a variety of effects, such as hearing problems, health issues, sleeping disorders and an effect on wildlife. Wildlife suffers from noise pollution far more than humans do because they are often more depend on sound than humans. Animals can develop a better sense of hearing than humans because their survival depends on it, however, noise pollution can affect the animals hearing and potentially even prevent the development of it.
   • Cause
     • Industrialization
       • A majority of industries use machines of a significant size, and as a result produce a significant amount of noise. Various equipment such as compressors, generators and exhaust fans also generate a large amount of noise.
     • Poor urban planning
       • Poor urban planning can often be found in developing countries. This can result in congested housing, large families sharing a small space, fighting over parking and frequent disputes over small inconveniences.
     • Social events
       • Noise can be generated by social events such as concerts, parties, pubs and even marriages. People often break rules that are set by the local administration which can potentially result in a large amount of noise generation.
   • Noise pollution is the production of noise with a negative and harmful impact on the activity or human or animal life. The source of outdoor noise worldwide is primarily created by machines and transport.

3. Light Pollution

   • Cause
     • Light pollution is created from various sources of light, this can include intrusive light fall that is sourced from within buildings, large industrial and residential areas that can create light clutter and finally, excessive and immoderate use of lighting causes over-illumination which is also a type of light pollution.
   • Effect
     • Wildlife
       • Nocturnal Wildlife
         • Heavy light pollution can disrupt nocturnal wildlife, causing a negative impact on plant and animal psychology. This can result in an altered interactions of animals such as migratory patterns, competitive interactions and change predator-prey relations.
     • Humans
       • Natural Body Cycle
         • The natural sleep cycle of a human (known as the circadian rhythm) is a 24 hour internal clock that is always running within your brain, and serves as your wake and sleep cycle. An example of the circadian cycle is that most adults often become most tired around 2:00 am - 4:00 am, when the adult is most commonly fast asleep.
         • If humans are exposed to a high amount of light while sleeping, the production of melatonin can be decreased. As a result of a decrease in production of melatonin, mental health issues and other health concerns can arise. This can lead to further disorders such as sleep disorders, eventually resulting in daily health problems such as headaches.

4. Roles and Responsibilities

   • Government
     • National Clean Air Agreement
       • Governments of all levels manage the National Clean Air Agreement.
       • All levels of government in Australia contribute to the management of air quality.
       • The purpose of the National Clean Air Agreement is focus on improving the air quality within Australia, in a cooperative effort by Governments on all levels. It is also an effort to improve access and communication with the general public about the air quality, and advice on improving the air quality.
     • Administer the legislation related to air quality management and reporting.
     • Further improve the science that relates to the quality of air via the National Environment Science Program.
     • Provide policy on advice on air quality matter.
   • General Public
     • Alternatives
       • Ride a bike to destinations
       • Begin recycling
       • Use products that create less pollution
     • Spread the word
       • Engage in fundraisers

5. Biodiversity, the meaning of the varying species and fauna that exists around the world or in a particular habitat. Biodiversity can include any kind of living animal life, even in the depths of the ocean, however, pollution is having a significantly negative impact on the growth and survival of biodiversity. In fact, the largest issue of concern of pollution and biodiversity is primarily in correlation with marine debris and plastics consumed by marine life, rising in the last 5 years. Reports of the effect of pollution on marine life can be found, written by ‘The Coasts’ and ‘Marine Environment’. The biggest concern being that marine debris is directly affecting marine fauna, entangling them, for example around the Gulf of Carpentaria where around 5,000-15,000 estimated turtles were trapped in abandoned fishing nets, each year.

6. Statistics

   • In 2012, worldwide air pollution caused up to around 3 million premature deaths per year. These fatalities are due to the exposure to small particulate matter that is 10 microns or less in diameter. This can cause cardiovascular and respiratory disease and cancers.
   • Research presented by ‘AAFA’ shows that air pollution can potentially worsen asthma symptoms. A study that was done of young campers that suffered from moderate to severe asthma showed that they were 40% more likely to suffer from acute asthma episodes on high pollution summer days than on days with just average pollution levels.