Introduction
The environment serves an important function in that it is the habitat for all living things (plants and animals). An environment experiences different conditions owing to the change in weather patterns that alter from one season to another. Over the years, the ecosystem has been changing owing to the continuous activities of human beings (Jalil, 2013). One of the main reasons for the increased human activity is the high rate of industrialization, urbanization, and globalization which all represent a modern environment. There are a number of advantages that human beings experience from the development of industries. Despite this, development introduces negative implications to the environment. The paper discusses pollution with regard to the causes and effect on the environments sustainability (Allin et al., 2000).
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"Pollution Definition".
Pollution can be described as the introduction of contaminated substances into the environment. Some of the substances in this case are chemical substances, litter, and garbage (Rahaman, 1979). Notably, all forms of pollution are dangerous to the general health of the ecosystem and all its environs. As such, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of the various ways in which pollution can affect the environment by discussing the different types of pollution (Rhodes, 2005).
Types of Pollution
Water Pollution
As stated earlier, pollution can be experienced in many forms depending on the agent of pollution and the method of transfer of the pollutant. One of the most common types of pollution is water pollution. Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies and surfaces by throwing litter, empty cans, paper bags, sharp objects, and chemical substances into natural reserves. When dirty substances are thrown into a lake, animals which reside in the habitat are affected. For example, the continued littering of the local river will kill the fish, frogs, and plants which live inside the river. As such, the sustainability rate of such animals will depreciate in the long run (Freinkel, 2011).
Ideally, human beings also stand to be affected by water pollution in more ways than one. For instance, most of the water that is used in industries and families is attained from water bodies through the creation of draining systems. The pollution of water poses a threat to the sustainability of human beings seeing as 70% of the water that is sourced to communities is attained from such reservoirs (Allin et al., 2000).
Air pollution
Like water pollution, air pollution affects the environment severely if not monitored well. Notably, all human beings cannot survive without breathing the air in the environment. To add on, human beings are societal creatures in that they spend a significant part of their lives socializing with their neighbors. As such, the environment is important for human beings because it is used to host people in places such as parks, schools, social gatherings, hospitals, and roads (Freinkel, 2011). If the air in these environments is not protected, the people who live in these regions will be affected. For example, if chemical substances are released into the air, human beings face the risk of attaining lung cancer, respiratory diseases, and heart conditions. Alternatively, air pollution can be done by littering trash from the homestead into different locations. If garbage is not properly disposed, human beings stand to lose considering that they breath in the dangerous fumes released by the waste products (Rhodes, 2005).
Soil Pollution
Another way in which pollution can be transferred into the environment is through discarding harmful objects in the solid, floors, gardens, parks, roads, and various grounds. Soil pollution is harmful to both plants and animals that consume foods in the soil for their survival. Moreover, human beings are once again affected considerably seeing as most of the foods such as vegetables, potatoes, and cereals are obtained from farming. Therefore, if not well maintained, the environment stands to lose its value in the near future (Jalil, 2013).
In essence, there are other ways in which pollution is experienced in the environments. For instance, one of the forms of pollution that is practiced on a daily basis is noise pollution. This form of pollution differs from the mentioned forms because it’s transmitted in a different way. Notice pollution is actually dangerous to human beings because it affects their hearing. Noise can be transferred by loud sounds from hooting, banging, of loud drinks, excessive loud music, and shouting. Noise pollution can be controlled by punishing offenders who are caught enhancing this practice. Failure to control noise pollution can result to the disturbance of peace in the surrounding environment (Allin et al., 2000).
In conclusion, pollution can be caused in many ways depending on the agent and type of pollution. Furthermore, the various causes of pollution impact on the environmental safety in the long run. There are many ways in which this issue can be controlled. However, all members of society need to be alerted on how to identify agents of pollution and the means in which they are transferred. The first approach in which individuals can curb this environmental issue is by creating awareness of the various ways in which societies can play an active role in controlling pollution.
- Allin, C. W., & McClenaghan, R. (2000). Encyclopedia of environmental issues. Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Salem Press.
- Freinkel, S. (2011).Plastic: A Toxic Love Story. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
- Jalil, A. (2013). Using plastic bags and its damaging impact on environment and agriculture: An alternative proposal 3 (4).
- Rahaman, M. (1979). Indian journal of agricultural sciences, 49 (6): 483.
- Rhodes, E. L. (2005). Environmental justice in America: A new paradigm. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
