Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.
Environmental Pollution: Causes and Solutions
Introduction
Pollution of the Earth in recent years has become a problem that worries environmental activists and the states. Pollution of the oceans, depletion of the ozone layer, and air quality in large cities adversely affect the health of people and animals. Although the states are concerned about the impending environmental catastrophe, the situation is not changing much for the better. Practical methods are needed to combat various types of pollution to protect the Earth and its entire population.
Ocean Pollution
Oil
The most severe consequences for the ocean and its inhabitants occur because of environmental disasters. All severe cases of ocean pollution are associated with oil spills. The widespread washing of the holds of tankers resulted in between 8 and 20 million barrels of oil being deliberately dumped into the ocean every year (Bashir et al., 2020). Such violations often went unpunished in the past, but today satellites make it possible to collect the necessary evidence. The pollution problem of bottom sediments with oil and oil products requires special attention. The ocean remains the site of major and minor environmental disasters associated with the transport of hazardous goods.
Sewage
In addition to oil, sewage is one of the most hazardous wastes. In small quantities, they enrich the water and promote the growth of plants and fish; in large quantities, they destroy ecosystems. Satellite imagery clearly shows the effluent discharged by the exhaust manifolds. In the places of emissions, the ocean is a lifeless underwater desert littered with organic debris. Efforts to liquefy sewage are aimed at reducing their hazard.
Plastic
Accumulations of plastic waste form special garbage patches in the oceans under the influence of currents. Currently, five accumulations of garbage patches are known two in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans and one in the Indian Ocean (Van der Mheen et al., 2019). These garbage cycles mainly consist of plastic waste generated by discharges from the densely populated coastal zones of the continents. Plastic waste is also dangerous because marine animals often cannot see the transparent particles floating on the surface, and toxic waste enters their stomach, often causing death.
Consequences
The most devastating consequences are associated with the discharge and spill of oil. As a result of such incidents, marine flora and fauna die, and water remains unusable for thousands of kilometers. The discharge of sewage destroys the natural wealth of the ocean; living next to such water can be extremely dangerous for humans. Plastic is detrimental to marine life; its spread threatens species extinction.
Earths Atmosphere
Composition, Structure, and Function
The Earth is surrounded by a deep gaseous sheet extending several thousand kilometers above its surface; this envelope is the atmosphere. The atmosphere consists of many gases, solid and liquid particles aerosols (Ramachandran, 2018). Some of the gases can be considered as constant components of the atmosphere that remain in a fixed proportion to the total volume of the gas. The number of other components varies from place to place. In addition to these gases, large amounts of water vapor and dust particles are also present in the atmosphere. The Earths atmosphere contains oxygen, which most living organisms use for respiration, and carbon dioxide, which plants and cyanobacteria consume during photosynthesis. The atmosphere is also the planets protective layer, protecting its inhabitants from solar ultraviolet radiation and meteorites.
Ozone Layer
The ozone layer is a significant part of the earths atmosphere that protects people from the strong effects of the sun. The ozone layer is a part of the stratosphere at 20 to 40 km; the highest ozone content is formed due to exposure to solar UV radiation on molecular oxygen (Langematz, 2019). With the most incredible intensity, precisely due to the processes of decomposition of oxygen, the absorption of the near part of the ultraviolet of the solar spectrum occurs (Langematz, 2019). In addition, the dissociation of ozone under the influence of ultraviolet radiation leads to the absorption of its hardest part.
Tropospheric and Stratospheric Ozone
Ozone located in the stratosphere is beneficial to humans because it blocks UV radiation, which is harmful to human skin. If ozone enters the troposphere, it is harmful to humans because it acts as a greenhouse gas. Tropospheric gas appears as a result of human pollution of the atmosphere. Ozone belongs to the substances of the highest first-class of danger it is a powerful oxidizing agent which is highly toxic to humans.
Air Pollution
Causes of Increased Pollution in Big Cities
Any substances pollute the air: gaseous, solid, and liquid if they are contained in it in quantities exceeding their average content. Air pollution in large cities happens mainly due to the high rate of industrialization and the large spread of public and private transport. Air pollution is one of the most dangerous types of pollution due to its mobility and ability to pollute almost all environmental components.
Attempts to Improve Air Quality
The city that cares about improving air quality is New York. Trying to improve air quality, the Governor of New York announced almost $1.5 billion in funding to create renewable energy facilities, including solar and wind farms (UN Environment Program, 2021). The projects launched by 2022 will reduce carbon emissions by 1.6 million metric tons, the equivalent of taking 340,000 vehicles off the road (UN Environment Program, 2021). One option to combat air pollution could be to reduce the use of cars. For example, by 2026, London will spend a record billion dollars on improving the cycling infrastructure (London Assembly, 2021). Air quality initiatives should improve the lives of people in crowded metropolitan areas.
Duplication the Mistakes
Unfortunately, the mistakes made in ecology are realized too late. Cities in advanced countries are trying to implement initiatives to improve the state of the air, but they are too long and not radical. Since it will be possible to evaluate the effect of the implemented initiatives only after a few years, it is necessary to introduce new control measures now. The world community is aware of the problem of pollution but does not take decisive action.
Greenhouse Effect
Greenhouse Gases
Greenhouse gases can hold heat in the earths atmosphere, warming the planet. Greenhouse gases are divided into natural and fluorinated, which are synthetic. The leading gases responsible for the greenhouse are carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, and water vapor (Kweku et al., 2018). Greenhouse gases have different chemical properties; they can be removed from the atmosphere over time. Carbon dioxide, for example, is taken up by plants, soil, and the ocean. Fluorinated gases are only destroyed by sunlight in the upper atmosphere.
Causes of the Greenhouse Effect
The greenhouse effect is caused by combustible minerals in the industry coal, oil, natural gas, which release a vast amount of carbon dioxide and other harmful compounds. Transport also plays a significant role; cars emit exhaust gases that increase the greenhouse effect. Deforestation, the destruction of which increases carbon dioxide, also affects the greenhouse effect. An increase in population affects the increase in demand for food, clothing, and housing. Industrial production is growing, increasingly polluting the air with greenhouse gases.
Approaches and Effectiveness
The strategy to combat the increase in the greenhouse effect should reduce the use of fossil energy sources: coal, oil, and gas. It is also necessary to develop alternative energy and renewable energy sources widely. Developing new environmentally friendly and low-carbon technologies, particularly refrigerants and blowing agents with low global warming potential, can be effective. The restoration of forests natural carbon dioxide absorbers from the atmosphere are necessary. However, even the full-scale implementation of all these measures to prevent the increase in the greenhouse effect is unlikely to fully compensate for the damage caused to nature as a result of anthropogenic impact; therefore, in any case, people can only minimize the consequences. The listed approaches should be applied globally; however, unfortunately, at the moment, they are applicable only in developed countries. To combat climate change, assisting developing countries is essential, striving to join forces.
Conclusion
Environmental issues include pollution of the worlds oceans, air pollution, and the greenhouse effect. These phenomena negatively affect the lives of people on the planet, destroying the habitat of animals. Existing control measures are not effective enough to radically change the situation. Solving environmental problems and curbing the rate of pollution is the task of the entire world community; only together will it be possible to achieve a positive effect.
References
Bashir, I., Lone, F.A., Bhat, R.A., Mir, S.A., Dar, Z.A., Dar, S.A. (2020). Concerns and threats of contamination on aquatic ecosystems. In: Hakeem, K., Bhat, R., Qadri, H. (eds) Bioremediation and Biotechnology. Springer, Cham.
London Assembly (2021). Record-breaking growth in Londons cycle network continues. London City Hall.
Kweku, D. W., Bismark, O., Maxwell, A., Desmond, K. A., Danso, K. B., Oti-Mensah, E. A., Quachie, A.T., & Adormaa, B. B. (2018). Greenhouse effect: Greenhouse gases and their impact on global warming. Journal of Scientific research and reports, 17(6), 1-9.
Langematz, U. (2019). Stratospheric ozone: Down and up through the anthropocene. ChemTexts, 5(2), 1-12.
Ramachandran, S. (2018). Aerosols and climate change: Present understanding, challenges, and future outlook. In Land-Atmospheric Research Applications in South and Southeast Asia, pp. 341-378. Springer, Cham.
UN Environment Program. (2021). These five cities are taking aim at air pollution. UNEP.
Van der Mheen, M., Pattiaratchi, C., & van Sebille, E. (2019). Role of Indian Ocean dynamics on accumulation of buoyant debris. Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, 124(4), 2571-2590.
Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?
We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.
You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)
NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.
NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.