Air Pollution

Good morning sir and my fellow classmates I would like to discuss about air pollution.
As we all know that fresh air is the most important element of the healthy life, we need
to think that what happens if whole atmospheric air gets dirty. As we all know that fresh
air is the most important element of the healthy life, we need to think that what happens
if whole atmospheric air gets dirty. So air pollution is the presence in air of substances
put there by acts of man in concentrations sufficient to interfere with the comfort, safety,
or health of man or with the full use or enjoyment of his property. The presence of
contaminants in the atmosphere is considered to be in sufficient quantities and duration,
to cause them to be injurious to human health, animal and plant life and reduce welfare
in general. These are the causes of Air Pollution. There are two sources of air pollution.
1. Natural Sources:
There are many natural sources of air pollution, such as volcanic eruptions, forest fires,
dust storms, pollen grains of flowers, spores of fungus, etc.
2. Man-made Sources:
Air pollution is also due to human activities.

There are many causes of air pollution:

 Pollution by Industries:
The problem of industrial pollution is acute in areas where petroleum refineries,
chemical industries, pulp and paper and textile industries are concentrated. Even small
scale industries like foundries, and brick making are significantly air polluters.
 Pollution by Vehicles:
Increasing vehicular traffic is the most important source of air pollution in big cities.
Other reasons for this are two stroke engines, old vehicles, traffic congestions, bad
roads and obsolete automotive technologies and lack of traffic management system.
 Old Methods of Cooking:
People residing in shanty towns, slums and poorly ventilated houses and using
household stoves, wood and coal for cooking, further increase air pollution in
underdeveloped countries. Smoky indoor air mainly affects the health of women and
children.
  Agricultural Activities:
Most of the pesticides are applied through spraying in the fields. This spraying
increases the quantity of many chemicals used in pesticides in the surrounding
atmosphere and hence pollutes the environment.
 Mining Activities:
Air pollution is mainly the outcome of the dust generated during mining and processing
activities. During mining, dust arises from blasting excavation, crushing and
transportation of ore, and from tips, stockpiles and de watered tailing. Huge quantities of
dust become wind borne.
 Thermal Power Stations:
The power stations that use the combustion of coal or petroleum for the generation of
heat and power produce smoke and sulphur dioxide (SO2). It has been estimated that
thermal power stations emit about two-thirds of total sulphur dioxide released in air.
These gases result in air pollution.
 Effects on Human Beings:
It is a universal truth that air pollution has an adverse effect upon human health. Cause
and effect relationships have been proved between air pollution and diseases. It has
been proved that people living in polluted areas are suffering from certain diseases than
people living in fresh air. Air pollution generally enters human body through the
respiratory system and thus causes many respiratory disorders. Moreover, toxicity due
to absorbed toxic substances also affects human health. For example, lead particles
from vehicle exhaust in higher dose can kill outright but in lower dose, can shorten life
span by causing deterioration of the nervous system.