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The notion of "biological pollution" and "biological pollutants" described by Elliott (2003) [2] is generally accepted in invasion biology; it was used to develop the concept of biopollution level assessment (Olenin et al., 2007 [3]) and criteria for a Good Ecological Status descriptor in the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive (Olenin ...
critical load – a concept in pollution studies hypothesizing that there exist quantitative thresholds for one or more pollutants above which significant detrimental effects on ecological systems (e.g. the eutrophication of natural waterways) will occur, and/or conversely below which they are not known to occur. [5]
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.
Biodilution is also a process that occurs to all trophic levels in an aquatic environment; it is the opposite of biomagnification, thus when a pollutant gets smaller in concentration as it progresses up a food web. [3] Many chemicals that bioaccumulate are highly soluble in fats and insoluble in water (hydrophobic). [4]
A pollutant or novel entity [1] is a substance or energy introduced into the environment that has undesired effect, or adversely affects the usefulness of a resource. These can be both naturally forming (i.e. minerals or extracted compounds like oil) or anthropogenic in origin (i.e. manufactured materials or byproducts).
Air pollution is an important risk factor for various diseases, such as COPD (a common lung disease), stroke, heart disease, lung cancer and pneumonia. Indoor air pollution is also associated with cataract. [118] Air pollution has further been linked to brain disorders, such as dementia, depression, anxiety and psychosis. [119]
Overview of the interdisciplinarity of environmental toxicology Categories of organisms commonly used for assessing environmental toxicity. Environmental toxicology is a multidisciplinary field of science concerned with the study of the harmful effects of various chemical, biological and physical agents on living organisms.
Contaminants of emerging concern (CEC) is a term used by water quality professionals to describe pollutants that have been detected in environmental monitoring samples, that may cause ecological or human health impacts, and typically are not regulated under current environmental laws.