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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 ...
Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances called pollutants in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials. [ 1] It is also the contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment either by chemical, physical, or biological ...
Major current environmental issues may include climate change, pollution, environmental degradation, and resource depletion. The conservation movement lobbies for protection of endangered species and protection of any ecologically valuable natural areas, genetically modified foods and global warming. The UN system has adopted international ...
Greenhouse gas emissions. Annual carbon dioxide emissions per person (height of vertical bars) and per country (area of vertical bars) of the fifteen highest-emitting countries [ 1 ] Greenhouse gas ( GHG) emissions from human activities intensify the greenhouse effect. This contributes to climate change.
e. A pollutant or novel entity[ 1] is a substance or energy introduced into the environment that has undesired effects, 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 ).
Ecology portal. v. t. e. 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] Plastics are ...
An air quality index (AQI) is an indicator developed by government agencies [ 1 ] to communicate to the public how polluted the air currently is or how polluted it is forecast to become. [ 2 ][ 3 ] As air pollution levels rise, so does the AQI, along with the associated public health risk. Children, the elderly and individuals with respiratory ...
Greenhouse gases ( GHGs) are the gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets such as the Earth. What distinguishes them from other gases is that they absorb the wavelengths of radiation that a planet emits, resulting in the greenhouse effect. [ 1 ]