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Diseases caused by pollution, lead to the chronic illness and deaths of about 8.4 million people each year. However, pollution receives a fraction of the interest from the global community. [1] This is in part because pollution causes so many diseases that it is often difficult to draw a straight line between cause and effect.
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause harm. [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 contaminants.
Outdoor particulate pollution was the largest cause of death (4.7 million), followed by indoor air pollution (3.1 million) and ozone (0.5 million). [5] A study published in 2019 estimated that, for 2015, the number was around 8.8 million, with 5.5 million of these premature deaths due to air pollution from human sources.
The history of environmental pollution traces human-dominated ecological systems from the earliest civilizations to the present day. [1] This history is characterized by the increased regional success of a particular society , followed by crises that were either resolved, producing sustainability , or not, leading to decline.
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. [156] 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.
There are five types of air pollution dispersion models, as well as some hybrids of the five types: [1] Box model – The box model is the simplest of the model types. [2] It assumes the airshed (i.e., a given volume of atmospheric air in a geographical region) is in the shape of a box.
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 .
Pollution from the Exxon Valdez oil spill. As with many countries, pollution in the United States is a concern for environmental organizations, government agencies, and individuals. Billions of pounds of toxic chemicals are released into the air, land, and waterways in the U.S. each year.