AIR POLLUTION

Meaning of air pollution

Air pollution is the contamination of air due to 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 many different types of air pollutants, such as gases including ammonia, carbon
monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane, carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons,
particulates both organic and inorganic, and biological molecules. Air pollution can cause diseases,
allergies, and even death to humans; it can also cause harm to other living organisms such as
animals and food crops, and may damage the natural environment for example, climate change,
ozone depletion or habitat degradation or built environment for example, acid rain. Air pollution can
be caused by both human activities and natural phenomena.

Sources of air pollution
Air pollution is caused by the emission of dirty smoke by industry directly into the air through factory
chimneys, motor vehicles on the road, cigarette smoke, open burning and volcanic eruptions. Among
the effects of air pollution are thinning of the ozone layer, haze, acid rain, and global warming. Air
pollution may affect the health, safety and comfort of people or property.

Effect of air pollution to human health
1.Skin cancer
- the ozone layer serves to protect humans from direct sunlight. Direct exposure to sunlight can
cause skin cancer in humans.

2. The respiratory system is disturbed
- Pollutants trapped in the air will enter the human nose or mouth and then the lungs through the
trachea. Carbon monoxide is a gas that will poison the oxygen transport system in the blood. Causes
people to quickly feel nauseous and severely tired.

3. Human vision is affected
- Air pollution affects the atmosphere. Therefore visibility is affected due to haze. This can cause
accidents on the road or at work.
Effects of Air Pollution on Plants
There are many harmful effects of Air Pollution on Plants; they can have direct poisonous impacts, or
by implication by changing soil pH followed by solubilization of toxic salts of metals like aluminum.
The particulate issues have a negative mechanical effect. The effects of Air Pollution on Plants in
points by the major Air pollutants are explained as follows:

Ozone

Ozone is a significant greenhouse gas and is useful for life on earth – it prevents ultraviolet beams
from going through. Be that as it may, when ozone is most valuable when it is high up in the climate.
On the ground, ozone can cause a ton of medical problems for people, for example, breathing issues,
clog, throat disturbance and so on. Effects of Air Pollution on Plants lead to loss of capacity for the
plant cell. This is thought to influence the procedure of photosynthesis.

Sulphur Dioxide

Plants get presented to sulphur dioxide through the acid downpour. The quick impacts show
themselves as discolouration as an effect of Air Pollution on leaves. It is likewise known to hinder
photosynthesis by disturbing specific mechanisms required for photosynthesis. Besides, sulphur
dioxide can influence the opening of the stomata, bringing about excessive loss of water. Be that as
it may, the impact of introduction to sulphur dioxide changes as per the plant species and the degree
of exposure.

Nitrogen Dioxide

Nitrogen dioxide is framed from the ignition of non-renewable energy sources and discharges from
refining oil. This gas is harmful, which is considered one of the significant effects of Air Pollution on
Plants; in high amounts, stunts plant development.

Effect of air pollution to animals
Animals will be endangered or die as a result of air pollution. This is caused by air entering the
animal's lungs. In addition, food from plant sources will be contaminated by air pollution.
Effect of air pollution to EARTH/GLOBAL
The most significant effect and being hotly discussed by the whole country nowadays is about the
effect of global warming caused by the greenhouse effect. The increase in the earth's temperature
and the depletion of the ozone layer are also the cause of global warming that can be felt by the
whole world. The increase in the earth's temperature is caused by the release of carbon dioxide
gases accumulated in the air.

Too much carbon dioxide gas has caused the heat in the earth to be trapped and eventually the
temperature of the earth rises and the environment warms. Depletion of the ozone layer also causes
this global warming event. The effect is that the earth's surface will heat up, the ecosystem will be
disrupted, floods will occur frequently and also the occurrence of abnormal natural events.