Assessment Sheet
o Name - Rishabh Yadav
o Class/Section - XI-A
o Topic of Project - Environmental
Pollution
o Teacher’s Signature-
1
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to my
teacher Mrs. Rima Ma’am as well as our senior principal Mrs.
Jyoti Ma’am and junior principal Shivani Ma’am who gave
me the golden opportunity to do this wonderful project on the
topic Enviornmental Pollution, which also helped me in doing
a lot of Research and i came to know about so many new
things I am really thankful to them.
Secondly i would also like to thank my parents and friends
who helped me a lot in finalizing this project within the limited
time frame. 2
INDEX
Serial No. Topic Page No. Date Signature
01. Introduction 06 28/9/2020
02. Types of 07 28/9/2020
Environmental
Pollution
03. Air Pollution 08 28/9/2020
04. Water Pollution 09 28/9/2020
05. Soil Pollution 10 28/9/2020
3
Serial No. Topic Page No. Date Signature
06. Various types of 11 28/9/2020
Pollutants
07. Smog 12-13 28/9/2020
08. Acid Rain 14 28/9/2020
09. Ozone Layer 15 28/9/2020
Depletion And Its
Effects
10. Greenhouse Effect 16 28/9/2020
11. Global Warming 17 28/9/2020
12. Pollution due to 18 28/9/2020
Industrial wastes
4
Serial No. Topic Page No. Date Signature
13. Green Chemistry 19 28/9/2020
as an alternative
tool for reducing
pollution
14. Strategies for 20-21 28/9/2020
control of
Environmental
Pollution
5
Environmental Pollution
Environmental pollution is defined as any undesirable change in
physical, chemical and biological characteristics of air, land and
water. Pollution can be natural as well as man-made. The
agents or substances that cause pollution are known as
pollutants.
Environmental problem is known to exist in developed as well
as developing countries and the problem is gradually growing
day by day since the onset of industrial revolution. Population
explosion and urbanization have made excess use of natural
resources and natural wealth and have resulted in nature’s
dreadful conditions. 6
Types Of Environmental Pollution
o Air Pollution
o Water Pollution
o Soil Pollution
7
Air Pollution
Air pollution is the presence of substances in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and
other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. There are different types of air
pollutants, such as gases (such as ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane
and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic and inorganic), and biological molecules. Air pollution
may cause diseases, allergies and even death to humans; it may also cause harm to other living
organisms such as animals and food crops, and may damage the natural or built environment. Both
human activity and natural processes can generate air pollution.
Air pollution is a significant risk factor for a number of pollution-related diseases, including respiratory
infections, heart disease, COPD, stroke and lung cancer. The human health effects of poor air quality are
far reaching, but principally affect the body's respiratory system and the cardiovascular system. Individual
reactions to air pollutants depend on the type of pollutant a person is exposed to, the degree of exposure,
and the individual's health status and genetics. Indoor air pollution and poor urban air quality are listed as
two of the world's worst toxic pollution problems in the 2008 Blacksmith Institute World's Worst Polluted
Places report. Outdoor air pollution alone causes 2.1 to 4.21 million deaths annually. Overall, air pollution
causes the deaths of around 7 million people worldwide each year, and is the world's largest single
environmental health risk.
Productivity losses and degraded quality of life caused by air pollution are estimated to cost the world
economy $5 trillion per year. Various pollution control technologies and strategies are available to reduce8
air pollution.
Water Pollution
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human activities. Water bodies
include for example lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers and groundwater. Water pollution results when
contaminants are introduced into the natural environment. For example, releasing inadequately treated
wastewater into natural water bodies can lead to degradation of aquatic ecosystems. In turn, this can lead
to public health problems for people living downstream. They may use the same polluted river water for
drinking or bathing or irrigation. Water pollution is the leading worldwide cause of death and disease, e.g.
due to water-borne diseases.
Water pollution can be classified as surface water or groundwater pollution. Marine pollution and nutrient
pollution are subsets of water pollution. Sources of water pollution are either point sources or non-point
sources. Point sources have one identifiable cause of the pollution, such as a storm drain or a wastewater
treatment plant. Non-point sources are more diffuse, such as agricultural runoff. Pollution is the result of
the cumulative effect over time. All plants and organisms living in or being exposed to polluted water
bodies can be impacted. The effects can damage individual species and impact the natural biological
communities they are part of.
9
Soil Pollution
Soil contamination or soil pollution as part of land degradation is caused by the presence of xenobiotics
(human-made) chemicals or other alteration in the natural soil environment. It is typically caused by
industrial activity, agricultural chemicals or improper disposal of waste. The most common chemicals
involved are petroleum hydrocarbons, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (such as naphthalene and
benzo(a)pyrene), solvents, pesticides, lead, and other heavy metals. Contamination is correlated with the
degree of industrialization and intensity of chemical substance. The concern over soil contamination stems
primarily from health risks, from direct contact with the contaminated soil, vapours from the contaminants,
or from secondary contamination of water supplies within and underlying the soil. Mapping of
contaminated soil sites and the resulting clean-up are time-consuming and expensive tasks, requiring
extensive amounts of geology, hydrology, chemistry, computer modelling skills, and GIS in Environmental
Contamination, as well as an appreciation of the history of industrial chemistry.
In North America and Western Europe the extent of contaminated land is best known, with many of
countries in these areas having a legal framework to identify and deal with this environmental problem.
Developing countries tend to be less tightly regulated despite some of them having undergone significant
industrialization.
10
Various types of Pollutants
● Nitrogen oxides (NOx)
● Sulfur oxides (SOx)
● Particulate matter (PM)
● Ground level ozone (O3)
● Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)
● Mercury (Hg)
● Peroxyacyl nitrates (PANs)
● Persistent organic pollutants (POPs)
● Environmental Persistent Pharmaceutical Pollutants (EPPP)
● Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs)
Smog
Smog is a type of intense air pollution. The word "smog" was coined in the early 20th century, and is a
contraction (portmanteau) of the words smoke and fog to refer to smoky fog due to its opacity, and odour.
The word was then intended to refer to what was sometimes known as pea soup fog, a familiar and
serious problem in London from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. This kind of visible air pollution is
composed of nitrogen oxides, sulphur oxides, ozone, smoke and other particulates. Man-made smog is
derived from coal combustion emissions, vehicular emissions, industrial emissions, forest and agricultural
fires and photochemical reactions of these emissions.
Smog is often categorized as being either summer smog or winter smog. Summer smog is primarily
associated with the photochemical formation of ozone. During the summer season when the temperatures
are warmer and there is more sunlight present, photochemical smog is the dominant type of smog
formation. During the winter months when the temperatures are colder, and atmospheric inversions are
common, there is an increase in coal and other fossil fuel usage to heat homes and buildings. These
combustion emissions, together with the lack of pollutant dispersion under inversions, characterize winter
smog formation. While photochemical smog is the main smog formation mechanism during summer
months, winter smog episodes are still common. Smog formation in general relies on both primary and
secondary pollutants. Primary pollutants are emitted directly from a source, such as emissions of sulphur
dioxide from coal combustion. Secondary pollutants, such as ozone, are formed when primary pollutants12
undergo chemical reactions in the atmosphere.
Photochemical smog, as found for example in Los Angeles, is a type of air pollution derived from vehicular
emission from internal combustion engines and industrial fumes. These pollutants react in the atmosphere
with sunlight to form secondary pollutants that also combine with the primary emissions to form
photochemical smog. In certain other cities, such as Delhi, smog severity is often aggravated by stubble
burning in neighboring agricultural areas. The atmospheric pollution levels of Los Angeles, Beijing, Delhi,
Lahore, Mexico City, Tehran and other cities are often increased by an inversion that traps pollution close
to the ground. The developing smog is usually toxic to humans and can cause severe sickness, a
shortened life span, or premature death.
13
Acid Rain
Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated
levels of hydrogen ions (low pH). It can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and infrastructure.
Acid rain is caused by emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which react with the water
molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids. Some governments have made efforts since the 1970s to
reduce the release of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide into the atmosphere with positive results.
Nitrogen oxides can also be produced naturally by lightning strikes, and sulphur dioxide is produced by
volcanic eruptions. Acid rain has been shown to have adverse impacts on forests, freshwaters, and soils,
killing insect and aquatic life-forms, causing paint to peel, corrosion of steel structures such as bridges,
and weathering of stone buildings and statues as well as having impacts on human health.
14
Ozone Depletion and its Effects
Ozone depletion, gradual thinning of Earth’s ozone layer in the upper atmosphere caused by the release
of chemical compounds containing gaseous chlorine or bromine from industry and other human activities.
The thinning is most pronounced in the polar regions, especially over Antarctica. Ozone depletion is a
major environmental problem because it increases the amount of ultraviolet (UV) radiation that reaches
Earth’s surface, which increases the rate of skin cancer, eye cataracts, and genetic and immune system
damage. The Montreal Protocol, ratified in 1987, was the first of several comprehensive international
agreements enacted to halt the production and use of ozone-depleting chemicals. As a result of continued
international cooperation on this issue, the ozone layer is expected to recover over time.
Effects of Ozone Depletion:
● Increased UV
● Biological effects
● Basal and squamous cell carcinomas
● Malignant melanoma
● Cortical cataracts
● Increased tropospheric ozone
15
Greenhouse Effect
The greenhouse effect is the process by which radiation from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's
surface to a temperature above what it would be without this atmosphere.
Radiatively active gases (i.e., greenhouse gases) in a planet's atmosphere radiate energy in all directions.
Part of this radiation is directed towards the surface, warming it. The intensity of the downward radiation –
that is, the strength of the greenhouse effect – will depend on the atmosphere's temperature and on the
amount of greenhouse gases that the atmosphere contains.
Earth's natural greenhouse effect is critical to supporting life, and initially was a precursor to life moving
out of the ocean onto land. Human activities, however, mainly the burning of fossil fuels and clearcutting of
forests, have accelerated the greenhouse effect and caused global warming.
The planet Venus experienced runaway greenhouse effect, resulting in an atmosphere which is 96%
carbon dioxide, with surface atmospheric pressure roughly the same as found 900 m (3,000 ft) underwater
on Earth. Venus may have had water oceans, but they would have boiled off as the mean surface
temperature rose to the current 735 K (462 °C; 863 °F).
The term "greenhouse effect" continues to see use in scientific circles and the media despite being a slight
misnomer, as an atmosphere reduces radiative heat loss while a greenhouse blocks convective heat loss.
The result, however, is an increase in temperature in both cases. 16
Global Warming
Global warming is the temperature of Earth's surface, oceans and atmosphere going up over tens to thousands of
years. Average temperatures today are about 1°C(1.8°F) higher than before the Industrial Revolution, which
started around 1750, during the Little Ice Age, an abnormally cold period. But in some parts of the world it is less
than this and some more. Some scientists say that by the year 2100 temperatures will be 1.5°C(2.7°F) to 5°C(9.0°
F) higher than they were before 1750. The most noticeable changes because of this increase in temperature is
the melting of ice caps all around the world. Sea level is rising steadily because of continental ice melting into the
sea. Many cities will be partly flooded by the ocean in the 21st century.
Among the greenhouse gases, the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is one of the causes of global
warming, as predicted by Svante Arrhenius a hundred years ago, confirming the work of Joseph Fourier more
than 200 years ago. When people burn fossil fuels like coal, oil and natural gas this adds carbon dioxide into the
air. This is because fossil fuels contain lots of carbon and burning means joining most of the atoms in the fuel with
oxygen. When people cut down many trees (deforestation), this means less carbon dioxide is taken out of the
atmosphere by those plants.
As the Earth's surface temperature becomes hotter the sea level becomes higher. This is partly because water
expands when it gets warmer. It is also partly because warm temperatures make glaciers and ice caps melt. The
sea level rise causes coastal areas to flood. Weather patterns, including where and how much rain or snow there
is, are changing. Deserts will probably increase in size. Colder areas will warm up faster than warm areas. Strong
storms may become more likely and farming may not make as much food. These effects will not be the same 17
everywhere. The changes from one area to another are not well known.
Pollution due to Industrial wastes
Industrial waste is the waste produced by industrial activity which includes any material that is rendered
useless during a manufacturing process such as that of factories, industries, mills, and mining operations.
Types of industrial waste include dirt and gravel, masonry and concrete, scrap metal, oil, solvents,
chemicals, scrap lumber, even vegetable matter from restaurants. Industrial waste may be solid, liquid or
gaseous. It may be hazardous or non-hazardous waste. Hazardous waste may be toxic, ignitable,
corrosive, reactive, or radioactive. Industrial waste may pollute the air, the soil, or nearby water sources,
eventually ending up in the sea. Industrial waste is often mixed into municipal waste, making accurate
assessments difficult.
An estimate for the US goes as high as 7.6 billion tons of industrial waste produced every year. Most
countries have enacted legislation to deal with the problem of industrial waste, but strictness and
compliance regimes vary. Enforcement is always an issue.
18
Green Chemistry as an alternative tool for
reducing pollution
Green chemistry, also called sustainable chemistry, is an area of chemistry and chemical engineering
focused on the design of products and processes that minimize or eliminate the use and generation of
hazardous substances. While environmental chemistry focuses on the effects of polluting chemicals on
nature, green chemistry focuses on the environmental impact of chemistry, including reducing
consumption of non-renewable resources and technological approaches for preventing pollution.
The overarching goals of green chemistry—namely, more resource-efficient and inherently safer design of
molecules, materials, products, and processes—can be pursued in a wide range of contexts.
19
Strategies for control of Environmental Pollution
● Combustible solid wastes should be burnt in incinerators. This method does not solve the problem in
a real sense because in this, solid waste is being converted into gaseous wastes causing air
pollution. Unless it is properly controlled, incineration may cause more nuisance.
● Solid organic wastes including faecal matter and wastes from tanneries should be converted into
compost manure at the places far away from the cities and human dwellings. The composting should
be done in pits or in heaps adequately covered with layers of soil at least 8-10 cm thick to prevent fly
breeding and rat menace which are important carriers of various diseases.
● Non-combustible solid waste materials like ash, rubbish, tins, glass pieces if not recoverable for
usual purposes should be disposed of by landfill method in low-lying areas.
● Anaerobic septic tank treatment can be used for individual houses or small communities. Besides,
aerobic biological treatment systems including trickling filters, activated sludge treatment and
oxidation ponds can also be used for liquid wastes or sewage disposal.
● Automobiles must be either made to eliminate use of gasoline and diesel oil or complete combustion
is obtained in the engine so that noxious compounds are not emitted. The automobiles, trucks and
other transport systems must have an anti smog device. In some countries factories are using
devices like scrubbers, cyclone separators or electrostatic precipitators to minimize pollution.
● There should be cut back in the use of fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides and other agrochemicals as
far as possible.
● Excessive and undesirable burning of vegetation should be stopped.Smoking should be stopped 20
(there is 5, 00,000 tonnes tobacco pollution annually).
● Sponges and towels should be used in place of paper towels and also the use of paper cups and
plates and similar materials should be stopped.
● Little use of electric appliances and motor-nm appliances will reduce thermal pollution.
● Washing soda and scouring pad should be used instead of detergents.
● Waste management is based on principle of ‘3Rs’ i.e. Reduce, Recycle and Reuse. Used boxes,
bags, plastics and bottles should be reused whenever possible.
● Since about 40% of the phosphates in water pollution comes from detergent, it has been suggested
that only detergents low in phosphates should be used.
● Shampoos, lotions and similar products should not be bought in plastic bottles. It has recently been
suggested that use of plastic containers and glasses may cause cancer.
● Proper attention should be given by the government to make people realize the implications of
environmental problem,
● Legislation against pollution should be strictly implemented.
● International action is needed to deal with the problems presented by highly toxic pollutants like lead,
mercury, chlorine pesticides released into the atmosphere and carried far beyond the country of
origin as well as carried down to the sea by rivers. Successful action to improve environmental
qualities depends mainly on the acceptance by industry and local authorities of the need to reduce
greatly both quantities and toxicity of certain wastes at present being discharged into the sea and the
modernization and expansion of sewage disposal systems.
● Environmental education is the best programme to deal with the environmental problems. It is most
fundamental in our efforts to combat and control pollution, overpopulation and misuse of natural 21
resources
BIBLIOGRAPHY
o https://www.google.com/
o https://en.wikipedia.org
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