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Fuss 1 Sarah Fuss Ashley Rea Enc 2135 18 March 16 Is There a Solution to Pollution?

After contemplating the things I care most passionately about, I’ve decided that the effects of pollution and the importance of preventing it’s catastrophes’ deserves the most exploratory research. Although Environmental pollution has existed for many centuries, it only became truly significant after the industrial revolution during the 19th century. Pollution is defined as something that occurs “when the natural environment cannot destroy an element without creating harm or damage to itself.” This can take the form of both energy and chemical substances (Causes and Effects of Environmental Pollution). These types of harmful elements are not produced by nature, so the tedious process of destroying this pollution can take up to thousands of years. This got me wondering, what are some of the biggest causes of environmental pollution? Are there many forms of pollution present today? What would the negative effects of these pollutants be? There must be a better way to decompose it, either by bettering our practices of conservation and technology. I intend to uncover the truths behind pollution’s appalling destruction by devoting time to the research. This will enable me to learn the effects of pollution as well as the steps we can take to prevent it. It is exceptionally important that research be done on environmental pollution to understand the seriousness of it’s nature, because the negative effects that are unleashed on our natural elements can, and will, put the future of mankind in danger. We need these natural elements to aid our

2 existence on earth, because with out a clean supply of water, air, and plants, we have no way to survive. Cities, countries, and even continents have to come together and be mindful in order to conserve our resources. If we choose to continue on this road of pollution and destruction, our planet will be killed in just a matter of time.

One of the biggest producers of pollutants, as stated by “Causes and Effects of Environmental Pollution,” is the fossil fuels that are produced by big industries. In order to stop pollution from being produced, the sources need to become common knowledge.

Since the 19th century, coal has been used to make industry machines work faster and more efficiently in comparison to man. Production is significantly more efficient from the coal-generated technology in comparison to before, but that does not mean we can overlook the horrible role it’s pollutants play in our ecosystem. The pollution from industries like so do not only causes air pollution from the heavy smoke, but also soil and water contaminants from accidental incidents such as leaking pipelines. The ruining of our clean resources should not be the price for fast production, which is why we need to find an alternative source of energy. The creation of fuel-powered transportation like automobiles in the late 1800’s is also an example of how technological advances has led to more prevalent environmental pollution. Up until the recent creation of environmentally friendly cars, the levels of pollution caused by transportation have only increased over time. Unfortunately, not many people are taking advantage of this new technology. As of now, the efficient vehicles are not as popular in the eyes of the consumer because they tend to be much smaller than the average gas guzzler, and do not necessarily offer the same convenience and comfort features (Tapscott). If these are the

Fuss 3 only barriers standing between drivers and environmental friendly cars, new ideas and designs should be made in order to eliminate consumer’s disinterest.

Planet earth is negatively effected by daily practices that one generally doesn’t even think twice about. Even the production of our healthiest foods can hurt our environment. Agricultural practices that farmers use to grow our fruits and vegetables are mainly responsible for contaminating our planet’s soil and water. This is because the use of many pesticides poisons the resources around us. Pesticides are extremely harmful because they are primarily made of chemical substances, originally meant to keep away threatening animals and diseases from the goods. This problem has only increased due to the growth of our world’s population. The more people that inhabit the earth are more people that need to be fed by these crops. This means that ecosystems have to be completely destroyed in order to make room for more crops. Unfortunately, there seems to be a chain reaction of pollution through out the rest of the crop’s journey. The exchange of crops, and really all other goods, are packaged in plastic materials for transport, producing more fossil fuels, polluting our environment further (ConserveEnergyFuture).

There is an unsettling amount of pollution that takes place every day because of our routine life styles. I have read up on forms of pollution in the article “Pollution Fact & Types of Pollution,” and have found the most prominent forms of pollution along with the particular contaminants present in it. Many forms of pollution that were listed in the article would familiar to a common individual, like air pollution, littering, soil contamination, and plastic pollution. However, there were many forms of pollution that I had never really thought of or even heard before. I found many types like light pollution,

4 noise pollution, and visual pollution, these of which need to be more acknowledged by the world’s population (Bradford).

From my studies, I learned that light pollution is when over-illumination takes place, creating problems like astronomical interferences. For example, the night sky is brightened up by man-made resources, like streetlights, and has a disruptive effect on natural cycles. Ecosystems are disrupted by light pollution because nocturnal wildlife is threatened, serving as a negative effect on animal and plant physiologically (Globe at Night). After a light pollution survey took place in Hong Kong, it was learned that urban night skies were on average one hundred times brighter than at the darkest rural sites (Pun). Can you imagine how disruptive this must be to plants and animals living in these areas?

At first glance, noise pollution did not look like a form with a serious nature. By definition, noise pollution is something that occurs when large amounts of sound or an unpleasant noise causes disruption to the earth’s natural balance. Although I know loud, unpleasant noises can be annoying, I wondered how that could possibly hinder humankind physically? Well, the unfortunate noises that come from industrialization, social events, construction, and even transportation, can cause health issues for those extremely affected. As humans, we can suffer from hearing problems after our ears take on a damaging range of sounds, we can form sleeping disorders from loud noises interrupting our normal sleeping patterns, and we can form cardiovascular issues from rising blood pressure and stress caused by high intensity sounds. Unfortunately, wildlife suffers even more from noise pollution than we do. They are much more dependent on sound, and physiologically have a better sense of hearing since their survival pretty much

Fuss 5 depends on it. Animals can lose their hearing from noise pollution, making them inefficient hunters, thus disturbing the balance in our eco-system. Mating calls may also not be heard, resulting in a decline of populations (Causes and Effects of Noise Pollution). Similarly, I was surprised to read that there was such a thing as “visual pollution,” a type of pollution that impacts and impairs someone’s ability to enjoy a view.

This not only pertains to littered trash, but also elements like smog (Stapleton).

You might be wondering, what exactly are the negative effects of environmental pollution? Not only are plants and ecosystem significantly damaged from our past carelessness, but our own lives and those of animals are also taken into account. Humans are physically affected by pollution through our health, primarily causing problems with our respiratory systems. This may come in the form of asthma, allergies, respiratory infections, or even irritation of the eyes and nasal passages. Environmental pollution has also been proven to contribute to the developments of cancer. These pollutants can enter our bodies in a number of ways, some of which include eating reminiscences of pollution in processed food, or ingesting pesticides from crops. Other, more rare, diseases include typhoid affections, hepatitis, diarrhea and hormonal disruptions. According to the New York Times, air pollution is found to be linked to 1.2 million premature deaths in China, which is about 40% of our earth’s total. Health Effects Institute has presented these studies to show the seriousness that is present in air pollution. Overall, air pollution has been ranked number seven on the worldwide list of risk factors, with a total of 3.2 million deaths in the year 2010 (Wong). Environmental pollution also causes harm to animals by destroying their living environments. This is done by either making their homes too toxic for them to survive in, or chopping down their living spaces all together. In the case of

6 acid rains, rivers and seas become toxic for fishes, and cause overgrowth of toxic algae, preventing other species to run their normal course. Eventually, all the harm that takes it’s toll on microorganisms will kill the first layers of the primary food chain, unless we take initiative and stop pollution in it’s tracks. Plants in our ecosystems can be destroyed by acid rains that block plant respiration, and are absorbed by soil and water. Overall, human activities create a plethora of environmental pollution, negatively affecting our ecosystem, destroying lower and upper layers of the earth’s ozone (Causes and Effects of Environmental Pollution).

In order to preserve our plane’s very existence, all of it’s inhabitants must reduce the waste that is filling the landfills now. The best way to decompose trash that we throw out is to not throw it away in the first place. Of course there are some materials that cannot effectively be recycled, but should we really use these unrecyclable materials to manufacture things in the first place? Reducing, reusing, and recycling are so important in order to effectively reduce the waste entering landfills. These landfills serve as a very problematic practice in today’s economy, considering that the trash put in these areas take thousands of years to decompose, and acres of areas used as landfills become virtually useless. There are quite a few useful steps that we can take to ensure fewer trips to the landfill each day. By donating clothes, we can get rid of the things we no longer wear, and also send it to a place where people in need could have it, instead of throwing the material away. Another way to reduce trash is to stop carelessly throwing our uneaten food away. We can make much better use of it by donating it, or putting it in a garden composter to improve plant health and growth. This would work best if we focused on buying healthier foods because it is better for the plants and they don’t require as much

Fuss 7 plastic packaging. Most of all, humankind needs to recycle everything that we possibly can, so it is simply reused instead of wasted after one use (15 Easy Ways To Reduce Landfill Waste).

The article, “Global Warming Can Be Stopped, World Climate Experts Say,” by John Roach explains that there are in fact ways to stop pollution from accumulating in it’s tracks. The “experts” referred to in the title are a group of scientists, economists, and policymakers sent from all over to come up with this report. After a weeklong meeting, the experts came to the conclusion that in order for human life to continue, we need to change our lifestyles as a society. This report includes outlines that communities can practice, like using more renewable energy sources, planting trees, and using efficient light bulbs. Although all of these practices are extremely helpful, the commitment needs to be taken a step further, and incentives need to be used to increase the development of energy-efficient technologies. There are setbacks, unfortunately, like the worldwide fear of cutting down greenhouse gases, because it could slow down economic growth.

However, this is a small cost to pay in order to save the planet. The earth’s inhabitants need to stop using coal and encourage the ample biofuel and wind resources, or “clean fuel” that is available to us. Switching from dirty fuel to clean fuel would not be that difficult, and in the end would be more than worth it. If these changes are failed to be met, the planet will be essentially doomed (Roach).

After conducting the research needed to answer my exploratory question regarding pollution and it’s prevention, I have found that it will not be easy to reverse our former carelessness, but nonetheless it is not impossible. We need to come together as a planet and identify the changes needed in order to protect our earth. The negative effects

8 that pollution creates will not come to an end all on it’s own. The proper technology needs to be put in to effect as soon as possible, even if it’s as simple as switching coal out for wind-powered energy. It is our responsibility to make these needed changes happen, and to also carry on the preservation practices we know such as recycling. If we do not start protecting what is left of our Earth now, it might be too late to save.

Fuss 9 Works Cited Bradford, Alina. "Pollution Facts & Types of Pollution." LiveScience. TechMedia Network, 10 Mar. 2015. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

"Globe at Night - What Is Light Pollution?" Globe at Night - What Is Light Pollution?

N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Kukreja, Rinkesh. "Causes and Effects of Environmental Pollution - Conserve Energy Future." ConserveEnergyFuture. N.p., 22 June 2015. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Kukreja, Rinkesh. "Causes and Effects of Noise Pollution - Conserve Energy Future."

ConserveEnergyFuture. N.p., 04 July 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Pun, Chun Shing Jason, and Chu Wing So. "Night-Sky Brightness Monitoring in Hong Kong: A City-Wide Light Pollution Assessment." Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 184.4 (2012;2011;): 2537-57. Web. Roach, John. "Global Warming Can Be Stopped, World Climate Experts Say." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Stapleton, Richard M. "Pollution Issues." Visual Pollution. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

Tapscott, Mark. "Car Views: Why Aren't People Buying More Fuel-efficient Vehicles?"

Examiner.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Mar. 2016.

Wong, Edward. "Air Pollution Linked to 1.2 Million Premature Deaths in China." The New York Times. The New York Times, 01 Apr. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

"15 Easy Ways To Reduce Landfill Waste - Conserve Energy Future."

ConserveEnergyFuture. N.p., 27 May 2014. Web. 28 Feb. 2016.

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