Human Activities Which Cause Air Pollution

Carl McDaniel and John Gowdy (2000) say, “Our world civilization and its global economy are based on beliefs incompatible with enduring habitation of the earth; that everything has been put on earth for our use, that resource not used to meet our needs wasted and that resources are unlimited.” Pollution is a common matter of the earth of today’s world, which our every part of body feels it every moment. Air pollution is refers to the pollution of the air impartial of indoors or outside. It occurs when any harmful gases, dust or smoke enters into the atmosphere and makes it difficult for plants, animal and human beings to breathe as the air is dirty. There are It occurs in many ways such as, burning of fossil fuel, agricultural activities, exhaust from factories and industries, mining operation and also indoor air pollution which destroying our lives and also our planet.

One of the major causes of air pollution in today’s world is burning fossil fuel. Fossil fuels are combination of hydrocarbon and collection of energy sources which is made by decomposing dead plants during long period. At that time, the Earth was covered in swamps teeming with plants and organisms, those organisms like, dead plants and animals began decomposing under huge layers of clay, sand and other minerals. Some of fossil fuels like coal, petroleum and natural gas create a huge amount of sulfur dioxide through burning which is one of the major causes of air pollution. This type of chemical elements are discharge from many vehicles, like trucks, jeeps, cars, trains, and airplanes that cause air pollution. Over use of these transportations kill our environment by releasing dangerous gases and also black smoke that makes carbon monoxide. According to Marquita K.Hill (2000) says that carbon monoxide is formed anywhere that carbon-containing materials is burned such as cigarette smoke which contains carbon monoxide. Facilities burning coal, natural gas, or biomass (for cooking, heating, and light) are also CO’s sources. Atmospheric oxidation of methane gas and other hydrocarbons can produce CO too, that makes the air polluted.

Agricultural activities causes air pollution such as using toxic chemical to disinfest. Farmers use insecticides, pesticides and fertilizers a lot in their cultivable land. These chemical elements are producing ammonia and nitrous oxide which is harmful for health and environment. A Daly and P Jannati (2007) say, “Human application for nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture can result in increased biogenic emissions of nitrogen compounds from the soil.”(1-14) Ammonia and nitrous oxide are mainly having nitrogen, which are evaporated chemical. That way these evaporate chemical can easily mixed up with the air and makes it viperous. It also cause for acid rain.

Mining operations like drilling, hauling, collection and transportation are the major sources of emission and air pollution. It is made by many chemicals like coal. Coal left in the ground can catch fire, and mine fire this are more complicate to control, also some burning for decades or even centuries, creating major source of air pollution. The use of explosive, such as in mountaintop removal, make some hole for construction, by doing these work it also releases CO. During mining, dust and coal particles stirred up, as well as it stood released at the time of coal transportation. M.K Ghose and S.R Mäjhee (2000), “Indian coal consumption is about 5.5% of the world and the share of coal as energy went up to 66%.”(Page 81-85). The open cast coal mining lead to release of dust and gaseous pollutants. This coal field is located in Jharia and it reserve 30% coal for India. On the other hand, mining operation make earth quake (Ghose and Majhee, 2000).

Some activities such as releasing dust here and there, excessive use of chemical process, burning of fossil fuels are one of the leading causes of pollution. These types of activities are mainly done by the factories and industries and increase the amount of pollution on earth rapidly that causes air pollution rather than the factory processes. Coal-powered and power plants release nitrogen and sulfur oxides, hydrogen chloride and hydrogen fluoride gases, arsenic, lead and other chemical which are responsible for air pollution. Factories are involved in various activities like, cleaning, heating, painting which release volatile organic compounds in the atmosphere. These are quickly evaporated in the air like carbon or hydrocarbon based chemicals. During the daylight, these are reacting with other air pollutants such as sulfur and nitrogen oxides which released from vehicle exhausts to create peroxyacetyl (a chemical element) nitrates and called photochemical smog. This thick brown haze can linger for days or week over urban centers. At the time of processing foods, like grains, flour, produce a lot of dust, meat and fish product produce liquid waste that makes various types of virus. During cooking and frying food time, smoking processes soot into the air. On the other hand, popularity to produce cell phone and consumer’s electronics have increased the heavy metal in the environment such as led, cadmium, mercury and arsenic which cause air pollution.

Activities like drilling, hauling, and collection are called mining operations through chemicals like coal. Coal use to catch fire and mine fire which are more complicated to control, it burned for many years and created the major source of air pollution. The use of explosive, such as in mountaintop removal, make some hole for construction, by doing these work it also releases CO. During mining, dust and coal particles stirred up, as well as it stood released at the time of coal transportation. M.K Ghose and S.R Mäjhee (2000), “Indian coal consumption is about 5.5% of the world and the share of coal as energy went up to 66%.”(Page 81-85). During coal mining, its release some dust and also gaseous pollutants. This coal field is located in Jharia and it reserves 30% coal for India. On the other hand, mining operation make earth quake (Ghose and Majhee, 2000).

Rate of pollution is increasing day by day. In order to live in a clean environment, first of all we have to protect our earth from air pollution and stop the factors that cause air pollution. Some of the ways for reducing the air pollution can be conserving energy at home, use industry reliable way, keeping car, boat and other engine under control, by using public transport, using environmentally safe painting, gases, by planting tree, considering to go green, always using and producing recyclable products, by creating more responsible chemical reactions.

References

1. Daly, A., & Zannetti, P. (2007). An introduction to air pollution–definitions, classifications, and history. Ambient air pollution. P. Zannetti, D. Al-Ajmi and S. Al-Rashied, The Arab School for Science and Technology and The EnviroComp Institute, 1-14.
2. McDaniel, Carl N., and John M. Gowdy (2000). Paradise for sale: a parable of nature. University of California Press.
3. Ghose M.K & Majhee S.R (2000). Environmental International: Source of air pollution due to coal mining and their impacts in Jharia coal field, 26(1-2), 81-85.
4. Hill, M. K. (2004). Understanding environmental pollution. Cambridge University Press.