Types of pollution
Types of pollutiondepending on the substance or the resource that is contaminated
- Air pollution
- Water pollution
- Soil pollution
Types of pollution depending upon the nature of pollutant:
- Plastic
- Radioactive substances
- Chemicals
- Acid rain
- Greenhouse effect
- Thermal pollution
- Smog and many more
Air pollution
“The contamination of air with harmful and undesirable substances “
Sources of pollutants:
- Natural sources
- Artificial sources
Natural –like volcanic eruption, pollen grains, forest fires, etc.
Man-madelike:
- Burning of fossil fuels
- Combustion of flukes in automobiles
- Increasing population
- Industries
- Agricultural activities
- Wars
The atmospheric pollution is basically contamination of troposphere and stratosphere.
Troposphere is mainly polluted by:
- Gaseous pollutants like carbon, Sulphuretc.
- Particulatepollutant’s like dust,mist,smoke etc.
There are five major pollutants of troposphere are like Carbon dioxide, Carbon monoxide etc.
Carbon monoxide: It is colourless and odourless gas and it is released in air by human activities like:
- incomplete combustion of fuels,
- forest fires
- dissociation of carbon dioxide at high temperature etc or
- natural sources like conversion of methane to carbon monoxide
- from decay of chlorophyll etc.
Though the CO is produced still its level do not rise in atmosphere because of conversion of CO to carbondioxide by the bacteria present in soil so we can say microorganisms act as a sink for carbon monoxide but this sink is not available in urban areas due to less soil.
Effects of carbon monoxide:
The carbon monoxide is a poisonous gas if inhaled can combine with haemoglobin (Hb) to form defective type of complex that can lead to suffocation and also deathTherefore it is a fatal gas.
Carbon dioxide: it is released in atmosphere due to burning; respirationetc.Excess of it is removed by plants as they utilize it for photosynthesis.However, increased in its concentration leads to global warming.