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Pollution by heavy metals decreases the soil organic matter composition resulting in a decline in soil nutrients which then leads to a decline in the growth of plants or even death. [197] Besides creating environmental damage, the contamination resulting from leakage of chemicals also affect the health of the local population. [198]
Environmental health is the branch of public health concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment affecting human health. To effectively control factors that may affect health, the requirements that must be met to create a healthy environment must be determined. [ 1 ]
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.
Environmental epidemiology is a branch of epidemiology concerned with determining how environmental exposures impact human health. [1] This field seeks to understand how various external risk factors may predispose to or protect against disease, illness, injury, developmental abnormalities, or death.
Environmental disasters have historically affected agriculture, wildlife biodiversity, the economy, and human health. The most common causes include pollution that seeps into groundwater or a body of water, emissions into the atmosphere, and depletion of natural resources, industrial activity, and agricultural practices. [5]
Environmental hazards are those hazards that affect biomes or ecosystems. [1] Well known examples include oil spills, water pollution, slash and burn deforestation, air pollution, ground fissures, [2] and build-up of atmospheric carbon dioxide. [3] Physical exposure to environmental hazards is usually involuntary [3]
Various definitions of pollution exist, which may or may not recognize certain types, such as noise pollution or greenhouse gases.The United States Environmental Protection Administration defines pollution as "Any substances in water, soil, or air that degrade the natural quality of the environment, offend the senses of sight, taste, or smell, or cause a health hazard.
This would save about $600 billion in health costs a year due to reduced air pollution in 2050, or about 3.6% of the 2014 U.S. gross domestic product. [271] Air quality improvement is a near-term benefit among the many societal benefits from climate change mitigation .