Air Pollution

Bongcayo, Caales, Tabares

 Definition of Air
Pollution
Mixture of solid particles and gases in the air. (US National
Library of Medicine)

One or more chemicals or substances in high enough

concentrations in the air to harm humans, other animals,
vegetation, or materials (US Environmental Protection Agency).

The contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment

by any chemical, physical or biological agent that modifies
the natural characteristics of the atmosphere. (WHO)
One in nine of all deaths worldwide is caused by
pollution, and the vast majority occur in
developing countries (The Lancet, 2015).

With globalisation, mining and manufacturing

shifted to poorer countries, where
environmental regulations and enforcement
can be lax. (Pure Earth)
 Most Polluted Countries with Most
Number of Air Fatalities
101 g/m3 ; 110,000 deaths/year
Pakistan

China with 1,400,000 fatalities and

Qatar with 92 g/m3

59 g/m3 ; 645,000 deaths/year

India
Air Quality
Index (AQI)

- is a number
used
by government
agencies to
communicate to
the public
how polluted the
air currently is or
how polluted it is
forecast to
become.
 Types of Air Pollution
Urban Outdoor Air Pollution

refers to the air pollution experienced by

populations living in and around urban
areas.

Indoor Air Pollution

refers to the pollutants found indoors.

Causes and Sources of Air
Pollution
Natural

Anthropogenic
 Volcanic activity, producing chlorine,
sulfur, and ash particulates
&
Smoke and Carbon Monoxide from Wildfires
 Air pollution primarily
comes from burning
fossil fuels such as
natural gas, petroleum,
and coal. Humans are the
main cause of air
pollution.
Air Pollutants
SOURCES OF AIR POLLUTANTS

MOBILE SOURCES STATIONARY SOURCES

emitted by motor any fixed emitter of air

vehicles, airplanes, pollutants, such as
and other engines fossil fuel burning
and equipment power plants,
petroleum refineries,
petrochemical plants,
food processing plants
and other heavy
industrial sources
 CLASSIFICATION OF AIR POLLUTANTS

Primary Pollutants

Harmful substance that is

emitted directly into the
atmosphere

Secondary Pollutants

Harmful substance formed

in the atmosphere when a
primary air pollutant reacts
with substances normally
found in the atmosphere or
with other air pollutants
MAJOR AIR POLLUTANTS
Particulate Material

sum of all solid and liquid particles

suspended in air many of which are
hazardous
Includes: dust, pollen, soot, smoke, and
liquid droplets

Particles in air are either:

a) directly emitted, for instance when fuel
is burnt and when dust is carried by
wind, or
b) indirectly formed, when gaseous
pollutants previously emitted to air
turn into particulate matter.
Carbon Oxides and
Hydrocarbons

Carbon Oxides:
Carbon monoxide (CO) and
carbon dioxide (CO2),
Greenhouse gases

Hydrocarbons:
a compound of hydrogen and
carbon, such as any of those
that are the chief components
of petroleum and natural gas.
 Nitrogen and Sulfur Oxides

Nitrogen Oxides:
NO - nitric oxide
emitted directly by autos, industry

Sulfur Oxides:
SO2 - sulfur dioxide
produced largely through coal burning
responsible for acid rain problem
Ozone
OZONE

Tropospheric Ozone:
Man- made pollutant in
the Tropospheric
lower atmosphereOzone: Stratospheric Ozone:
Secondary air pollutant
Component
Man- made of pollutant Essential component
photochemical
in the lowersmog that screens out UV
atmosphere radiation in the upper
Stratospheric
SecondaryOzone:
air atmosphere
Essential component
pollutant Man- made pollutants
thatComponent
screens outofUV (ex: CFCs) can destroy it
radiation in the upper
photochemical smog
atmosphere
Man- made pollutants
(ex: CFCs) can destroy it
 derived from coal emissions,
SMOG vehicular emissions, industrial
emissions, forest and agricultural
fires and photochemical
reactions of these emissions

Chlorofluorocarbons

have been widely used as

refrigerants, propellants (in aerosol
applications), and solvents
Effects of Air Pollution
Health Effects of Air
Pollution
Globally, Air Pollution Killed 6.5 Million
People in 2015. And It Could Get Worse
Unless We Act Now! (International Energy
Agency, 2015 Report)

Air pollution from vehicles and factories is

the most fatal of all the deadly pollution.
2.5 million people died because of air
pollution in India in 2015, a figure which is
more than total number of deaths due to
smoking, hunger, and natural disasters.
Perhaps, even more than AIDS, tuberculosis,
and malaria combined (The Lancet).
Environmental Effects
of Air Pollution
 Acid Rain
Rain that has been made acidic by certain
pollutants in the air.
 Eutrophication
Condition in a water body where high concentrations of nutrients
stimulate blooms of algae, which in turn can cause fish kills
 Haze
Suspension in the
atmosphere of dry
particles of dust,
and other materials
that has bluish or
yellowish veil-like
appearance
Ozone Depletion
Global Climate Change
 Air Pollution Control
Techniques employed to reduce or eliminate
the emission into the atmosphere of substances
that can harm the environment or human
health.
 Absorption
Involves the transfer of a gaseous pollutant
from the air into a contacting liquid, such
as water.
 Adsorption
Gas adsorption as contrasted with
absorption is a surface phenomenon.

The gas molecules are sorbed

(attracted to and held on the

surface of a solid)
 Incineration or Combustion

Used to convert VOCs and other

gaseous hydrocarbon pollutants to
carbon dioxide and water.
Air Quality Management
 Republic Act No. 8749
(Philippine Clean Air Act)
A comprehensive air quality management policy
and program which aims to achieve and
maintain healthy air for all Filipinos.

It focuses primarily on pollution prevention rather

than control by encouraging cooperation and
self-regulation among citizens and industries.