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Soil contamination, soil pollution, or land pollution as a part of land degradation is caused by the presence of xenobiotic (human-made) chemicals or other alteration in the natural soil environment. It is typically caused by industrial activity, agricultural chemicals or improper disposal of waste. The most common chemicals involved are ...
Land degradation is a process in which the value of the or biophysical or biochemical environment is affected by a combination of natural or human-induced processes acting upon the land. [ 1][ 2] It is viewed as any change or disturbance to the land perceived to be deleterious or undesirable. [ 3] Natural hazards are excluded as a cause ...
Soil erosion is the denudation or wearing away of the upper layer of soil. It is a form of soil degradation. This natural process is caused by the dynamic activity of erosive agents, that is, water, ice (glaciers), snow, air (wind), plants, and animals (including humans ). In accordance with these agents, erosion is sometimes divided into water ...
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change. [ 1] Pollution can take the form of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or energy (such as radioactivity, heat, sound, or light). Pollutants, the components of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring ...
Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. [ 1][ 2] Plastics that act as pollutants are categorized by size into micro-, meso-, or macro debris. [ 3]
Water pollution also reduces the ecosystem services such as drinking water provided by the water resource. Sources of water pollution are either point sources or non-point sources. [153] Point sources have one identifiable cause, such as a storm drain, a wastewater treatment plant or an oil spill. Non-point sources are more diffuse.
One major component of environmental degradation is the depletion of the resource of fresh water on Earth. [23] Approximately only 2.5% of all of the water on Earth is fresh water , with the rest being salt water . 69% of fresh water is frozen in ice caps located on Antarctica and Greenland , so only 30% of the 2.5% of fresh water is available ...
Air pollution, whether it’s from factories, car exhaust, or secondhand smoke from family members, is a major cause of fatal respiratory infections. Pollution kills millions of little kids a year ...