Air pollution has intensified to such an extent that we can no longer
escape from it in the “protection” of our homes.
In history, the first kind of air pollution must
have affected people when they built fires in their inadequately ventilated homes, making the air
un-breathable because of the contaminated air particles (smoke).
The world has come a long way ever since, but
in an industrialized and mechanized society, things have gone drastically wrong in terms of environmental living
quality.
The planet is in desperate need to find methods to clean up the air, but in the
meantime we must find ways of limiting the causes for the poor air quality.
More exposed and
guilty of air pollution are built up cities. Car exhausts, industrial fumes and all sorts of chemicals we use in
our daily activities deteriorate the air condition even further.
This ranges from
deodorant to the cleaners we use around the house, the factors that cause air pollution are
countless.
Indoor air pollution is just as serious and
dangerous as the larger outdoor pollutions created by making.
The main factor
lies in poor ventilation systems and the accumulation of all sorts of contaminated chemicals and toxic substances
in the air.Pollutants come from the cleaning products, the furniture, the building materials, not to mention
cigarette smoke and the much debated odourless radon gas.
The accelerated
problem of air pollution is determined not only by the increase of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere but the
phenomenon is closely connected with deforestation as well. Trees absorb the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and
in turn release oxygen but with the reduction of the wooded areas like forests, jungles and
parks.
With the number
of cars on the road polluting the air, is making it more than difficult to maintain a balance. Statistics indicate
that there are countries that cause more damage to the environment than others.
Global Pollution
and why we should act NOW!
The situation
becoming extremely serious and unless we all make efforts to diminish air pollution, chances of survival on the
planet will become desperate.
The alarm bells are already ringing around the world with the rapid melting
of the glaciers, due to the global warming, which threatens so many countries.
The gases trapped
in the atmosphere prevent it from cooling, acting as a barrier for the surface of the planet; this affects climate,
animal behaviour and the very evolution of species and mankind on the whole.
Pollution
Facts
Every year,
reports reveal alarming pollution facts that affect the humans life on earth.
If we talk to
each and every individual we would actually discover a very low environmentel consciousness and awareness that
allows for the care and regeneration of ecosystems, recycling of most house waste and the respect for nature in the
tiniest aspect.
The following pollution facts serve as an
example for our level of ignorance and lack of commitment to an environment-friendly lifestyle.
Ships and cruise
boats are major water pollutants that are responsible for the deaths of about 65 thousand people every
year.
The most
polluting and busiest ports in the world include Hong Kong, Shanghai and Singapore, these ports have the highest
health threat in the world.
Such pollution
facts should make us wonder about the future of maritime trade and transportation.
Power plants that
generate the electricity which we rely on everywhere in our society cause about three and half thousand lung cancer
cases and over thirty-five thousand heart attacks and this is just in the United States on a yearly
basis.
The same
statistics indicate that pollution facts are even more serious in the under-developed areas of the globe where the
industrial and the private sectors do not apply consistent environment protection
governance.
Some important and extremely relevant pollution
facts refer to the close connection between air and water contaminants; the chemicals in the water evaporate and
fall back on the ground under in the form of acid rains.
Rainwater is not treated like the one in the
sewers and the pollutants are merely changing their aggregation state while still remaining present in the
atmosphere or the water.
Did you know that
the very detergent or soap you use to wash your car at home can pollute and destroy the chemical balance of an
ecosystem?
At the car-wash
the waste water will be sent to the sewer and will eventually undergo some treatment before being released in the
river, lake or ocean; whereas the waste water that you create in your back yard will infiltrate in the ground with
all the gas residues and detergent in it.
There are 74
different kinds of pesticides have been found in groundwater, which is used today as potential drinking
water.
Last but not least, pollution facts indicate
that animals can pollute too.
Thus, livestock with free access to a stream
will carry unwanted and potential harmful bacteria to the water, not to mention that the water that runs over
fields and pastures could very well bring fertilizers into the streams as well as in the underground water
sources.