Pollution can simply means the act of contaminating the environment by harmful substances. It can also be said to be the act of making air, water, land and the environment dirty and unsafe for use. When some things are introduced artificially into the environment it constitute what we call pollution e.g light. Pollution is a major barrier that must be addressed because it reduces the lifespan of human in so many aspects. Babies are given birth to with defects which arises from pollution and over 2 million people are affected nationwide. Toxic substances released to the environment add to what is known as pollution.
TYPES
1. LAND POLLUTION
Land can be polluted in so many ways. Garbages and industrial wastes are the major constituent of land pollution. Most of the wastes are gathered in landfills yearly making the land to be polluted.
Paper waste, food waste, yard trimming, plastics, glass, metals, woods, leather and other miscellaneous materials made up what pollute the land on everyday basis. Commercial or industrial waste is a significant portion of solid waste, some of the waste are classified as hazardous and non hazardous. The hazardous waste is any liquid, solid or sludge waste that contain properties that are dangerous of potentially harmful to human health or the environment which includes waste from mining, petroleum refining, pesticide manufacturing and other chemical production.
The nonhazardous includes construction material (wood, concrete, bricks, glass, etc.) and medical waste (bandages, surgical gloves, surgical instruments, discarded needles, etc.).
2.WATER POLLUTION
Water pollution take place when chemicals or dangerous foreign substances are introduced to water, including chemicals, sewage, pesticides and fertilizers from agricultural runoff, or metals like lead or mercury. All these renders water unsafe for fishing and swimming. Most water contaminants includes bacteria, mercury, phosphorus and nitrogen. Most of the water that are available in little quantity are contaminated and make unfit for drinking, the rural people are seriously suffering from this problem. Adequate sanitation helps to keep sewage and other contaminants from entering the water supply. It's not only human that water pollution affects it's also affects the Marine life like fish etc. Sewage encourages pathogen growth. Warming water is called thermal pollution because most of the water are warmed by big factories towards cooling their power plants in the process holding oxygen which kills the fish and wildlife that is present inside the water. The sudden change of temperature in the body of water can also kill fish.
Nutrient pollution, also called eutrophication, is another type of water pollution. It is when nutrients, such as nitrogen, are added into bodies of water. The nutrient works like fertilizer and makes algae grow at excessive rates, according to NOAA . The algae blocks light from other plants. The plants die and their decomposition leads to less oxygen in the water. Less oxygen in the water kills aquatic animals.
3. AIR POLLUTION
The air we breathe has a very exact chemical composition; 99 percent of it is made up of nitrogen, oxygen, water vapor and inert gases. Air pollution occurs when unfit substances enter into air. Air is polluted during sweeping of floor because some tiny dust particles are added to air which make it difficult to breathe.
Another common type of air pollution is dangerous gases, such as sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and chemical vapors. These can take part in further chemical reactions once they are in the atmosphere, creating acid rain and smog. Other sources of air pollution can come from within buildings, such as cooking smoke. Finally, air pollution can take the form of greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide or sulfur dioxide, which are warming the planet through the greenhouse effect. Most life are lost through air pollution yearly according to world health. An irritant (e.g. particulates less than 10 micrometers) may cause respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular disease and increases in asthma. "The very young, the old and those with vulnerable immune systems are most at risk from air pollution. The air pollutant may be carcinogenic (e.g. some volatile organic compounds) or biologically active (e.g. some viruses) or radioactive (e.g. radon). Other air pollutants like carbon dioxide have an indirect impact on human health through climate change.
4.NOISE POLLUTION
Noise can't be seen but we can still feel the effect on human and in the environment. Noise pollution happens when the sound coming from planes, industry or other sources reaches harmful levels. Unexpected noise from vehicle(ambulance), beating of drums reduces human lifespan on daily basis.