What is Pollution?

Pollution is the action of environmental contamination with man-made waste. This includes mainly land, water, and air. Pollution can come in various forms including the lesser-known noise, light, and thermal pollution.

Land Pollution
land. Land pollution the action of environmental contamination with man-made waste on

It is possible that land pollution might also contaminate the air and/or the water or vice versa. In the picture above, for example, some of the trash may end up getting washed into the lake adjacent to it. In another situation, chemical waste may not be disposed of properly and toxic substances may seep into the ground. These seeping chemicals can potentially contaminate a local body of water. It is also possible that these chemicals may give off a toxic vapor, thereby contributing to air pollution as well.

Water Pollution
Water pollution is the action of environmental contamination with man-made waste into water. The source of this waste could be raw sewage, chemicals, trash, or fertilizer. Water pollution has severe human consequences, since less than 3% of the Earth contains water that is potable or safe for drinking. Also, water is so important for human survival because we cannot live without it. When a source for drinking water becomes contaminated with untreated sewage it is possible to spread diseases through the water. These types of diseases can also be caused by bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms. Another type of water pollution usually occurs when water is contaminated with fertilizer. The water is then nitrified and phosphorized by the fertilizer chemicals. These added nutrients in the water can cause eutrophication or the process of changing of a body water due to excessive plant nutrients. This eutrophication promotes excessive growth of algae and aquatic plants, which then chokes the open-water areas, thus decreasing the amount of oxygen available in the water. Consequently, fish and other organism may die off due to the lack of oxygen. Other types of water pollution include trash that is dumped into a body of water or chemicals that seep or are dumped into a body of water. These two types of water pollution can have harmful side effects for humans and different organisms.

Air Pollution
Air pollution is the action of environmental contamination with man-made waste into the air. The air we breathe is composed of a mixture of gases: 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, and a small percentage of other gases like argon, carbon dioxide, and water vapor. The Earth's air also contains pollutants or harmful material, we may also breathe. Some of these air pollutants may be odorless and colorless. Other air pollution may be so apparent that it surrounds us like smog, which is a cloud or haze of air pollution. Many times you can see smog hanging over the tall skyscrapers in urban areas. Why do you think cities are more likely to have smog than suburban or rural areas? Cities have a tendency to have greater portion of industrialized areas. Industry is the main contributor to air pollution. Many times factories release greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), methane, and nitrous oxide into the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases contribute to a phenomenon called the greenhouse effect or more simply put, global warming. These greenhouse gases trap heat within the atmosphere, thus raising the temperature of the Earth. There also other harmful gases that are released when fossil fuels are burned. These gases have significant negative health and environmental effects. These are following gases that are known as the "Big Six" air pollutants": Carbon Dioxide Carbon Monoxide Sulfur Oxide Nitrogen Oxide Hydrocarbons (Benzene, Terpene, etc.)