Question

What is environmental pollution? Discuss in brief the various types of pollution affecting your locality.

Answer 1

Hint: Pollution is any undesirable change in the physical, chemical, or biological characteristics of the air, water, soil, or land. The agents causing pollution are known as pollutants. Pollution causes the depletion of valuable natural resources.

Complete answer: Environmental pollution is defined as the harming of the environment in such a way that normal environmental processes are hampered. When unwanted substances are added to the environment to extreme concentrations then it is termed as pollution. Therefore, the contamination of the environment with unwanted substances is termed as environmental pollution. Environmental pollution plaguing my surroundings are as follows –
1. Air pollution – Pollutants from automobiles, burning of land in neighboring states has caused the air quality index to rise to dangerous levels. The pollutants hang in the air for a very long-time causing smog which when inhaled by humans, animals can cause adverse health effects such as asthma and can significantly decrease life expectancy.
2. Global warming – The emission of greenhouse gases by humans has led to the rise in Earth's temperature. These gases trap the sunlight escaping from the Earth's atmosphere causing the planet to heat up. This heating up of the planet has a domino effect which causes the melting of snow caps among many other things.
3. Water pollution – The domestic sewage and industrial effluents are discharged into the water bodies which have made them unfit for human consumption. This has led to the scarcity of drinking water in many parts of the country.
4. Land or soil pollution – The solid wastes are usually dumped on the land. This occupies the land unnecessarily. Moreover, it makes the soil unfit for growing crops.

Note: In order to control environmental pollution, the Government of India formed and passed the bill known by the name of the Environmental Protection Act. This act was passed in the year 1986. The act aimed to form laws that could protect and improve the quality of the environment.