What is Air Pollution? | Types, Definition, Structure, Function & Facts
What is Air Pollution?
Air pollution occurs when unwanted chemicals, gases, and particles enter the air and atmosphere, harming animals and damaging the Earth’s natural cycles.
Natural Causes of Air Pollution
Some sources of air pollution come from nature. These include volcanic eruptions, dust storms, and wildfires.
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Air Pollution Caused by Humans:
Human activity is the main cause of air pollution, especially in big cities. Human-made air pollution is caused by things like factories, power plants, cars, planes, chemicals, smoke from aerosols, and methane from landfills.
Burning Fossil Fuels
One of the ways humans pollute the most air is by burning fossil fuels. Fossil fuels include coal, petroleum, and natural gas. When we burn fossil fuels, it releases all kinds of gases into the air, causing air pollution like smog.
Effects on the Environment
Air pollution and emissions into the atmosphere can have many negative effects on the environment.
Global Warming – One type of air pollution is the addition of carbon dioxide to the air. Some scientists believe that the release of too much carbon dioxide into the atmosphere is one of the causes of global warming. This upsets the balance of the carbon cycle.
Ozone layer – The ozone layer helps protect us from the sun’s harmful rays. It is damaged by air pollution, such as methane from livestock and CFCs from aerosols.
Effects on Health
Air pollution can also make people sick. This can make it difficult to breathe and cause diseases like lung cancer, respiratory infections, and heart disease. According to the World Health Organization, 2.4 million people die each year from air pollution. Air pollution can be especially dangerous for children living in big cities with bad smog.
Air Quality Index
The Air Quality Index is a way for governments to warn people about the air quality and severity of air pollution in an area or city. They use color to help you determine if you should go out or not.
- Green – good atmosphere.
- Yellow – mild atmosphere
- Orange – the air is not good for health for sensitive people such as the elderly, children and people with lung disease.
- Red – unhealthy
- Purple – Very Unhealthy
- Brown – Danger
Pollutants
The gas or air pollutant is called a contaminant. Here are some of the main pollutants:
Sulfur Dioxide – One of the most dangerous pollutants, sulfur dioxide (SO2) can be produced by burning coal or oil. It can cause acid rain as well as respiratory ailments like asthma.
Carbon Dioxide – Humans and animals exhale carbon dioxide (CO2). It is also released during the combustion of fossil fuels. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas.
Carbon monoxide – This gas is very dangerous. It is odorless and manufactured by automobiles. You can die if you inhale too much of this gas. This is one of the reasons why you should never leave your car in a garage.
Chlorofluorocarbons – These chemicals are also known as CFCs. They have been used in many appliances, from refrigerators to aerosols. They are not widely used today, but have caused significant damage to the ozone layer when they are heavily used.
Particulate Matter – These are tiny dust-like particles that enter the atmosphere and contaminate the air we breathe. They have been linked to diseases such as lung cancer.
What can you do to help?
Anytime you can use less energy, such as electricity or gasoline, it can help reduce air pollution. You can help by turning off the lights when you leave the room and not turning on the TV or computer when not in use. Driving less also helps a lot. Be sure to talk to your parents about carpooling with friends and plan errands so you can do it all in one trip. It also saves money on gas, which everyone loves!
Facts About Air Pollution
A thick layer of fog formed in London in the late 1800s. It was called the London Fog or Bean Soup Mist.
The biggest air pollutant is road vehicles such as cars.
Air pollution in the United States has improved since the Clean Air Act was enacted.
The most polluted city in the United States is Los Angeles.
Air pollution can cause eye burns and difficulty breathing.
Indoor air pollution can be much worse than outdoor pollution.