Air pollution is the presence of toxic chemicals or compounds in the air (including those of biological origin) at levels damaging to human health.
- Air pollution generally refers to the presence of chemicals or compounds in the air that are not ordinarily present and decrease the air’s quality.
- Air pollution is one of the most important environmental issues affecting our civilization today. Human activities such as mining, construction, transportation, industrial operations, agriculture, smelting, and others frequently cause air pollution.
- Natural processes such as volcanic eruptions and wildfires can pollute the air, but they are uncommon and usually have a limited impact, unlike human activities, which are omnipresent sources. We contribute to global air pollution by releasing pollutants into the atmosphere daily.
What is the Standard of Air Quality?
Government agencies employ an Air Quality Index (AQI) to inform the public about how filthy the air is and how dirty it is expected to grow. As the AQI grows, so do the threats to public health. Air quality indices differ by country and correspond to national air quality standards. The Air Quality Health Index (Canada), the Air Pollution Index (Malaysia), and the Pollutant Standards Index (Singapore) are only a few of them.
A new National Air Quality Index (AQI) was established in October 2014 to offer information on air quality to the general public in an easily understandable format. PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO, O3, NH3, and Pb are the eight pollutants for which short-term (up to 24-hourly averaging period) National Ambient Air Quality Standards are set, and the worst reading in these pollutants reflects the AQI for that city.
According to the new guidelines, annual average PM2.5 concentrations should not exceed 5 g/m3, and 24-hour average exposures should not exceed 15 g/m3 for more than 3 – 4 days per year.
Interim targets have been set to aid in planning incremental milestones toward cleaner air, especially for cities, regions, and countries with high pollution levels. The annual mean for PM2.5 is 35 g/m3, while the 24-hour mean is 75 g/m3.
- The annual mean is 25 g/m3, and the 24-hour mean is 50 g/m3.
- The yearly mean is 15 g/m3, and the 24-hour mean is 37.5 g/m3.
- The annual mean is 10 g/m3, and the 24-hour mean is 25 g/m3.
- For the remaining significant pollutants, the new suggested guideline values are:
PM10 concentrations of 15 g/m3 yearly mean, 45 g/m3 24-hour mean (particulate matter having a diameter of 10 microns or smaller).
How does Air Pollution affect the environment?
◆ Respiratory and heart problems –
The consequences of air pollution are grave. They are a threat to human health. They have been linked to a variety of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, including asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, heart attacks, and strokes, as well as cancer. Several million people are thought to have died as a result of air pollution, either directly or indirectly.
◆ Child health problems-
- Premature delivery, autism, asthma, and spectrum disorder in early children are all caused by exposure to high amounts of air pollution during pregnancy.
- It also has the potential to harm a child’s early brain development and cause pneumonia, which kills almost a million children under the age of five. Children are more likely to develop short-term respiratory infections and pulmonary illnesses in regions where air pollution is present.
◆ Global Warming-
Another direct result of global warming is the current changes that the planet is experiencing.
Increased global temperatures, rising sea levels due to melting ice from colder places and icebergs, relocation, and habitat loss have already foreshadowed an oncoming crisis if preservation and normalization measures are not done quickly.
◆ Acid Rain-
Harmful substances such as nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides are released into the environment when fossil fuels are burned. When it rains, water droplets mix with impurities in the air, causing them to become acidic and fall to the ground as acid rain. Humans, animals, and agriculture are all at risk from acid rain.
◆ Eutrophication-
Eutrophication is a phenomenon in which a large amount of nitrogen in some pollutants accumulates on the sea surface and transforms into algae, causing harm to fish, plants, and animals.
The presence of this chemical is solely responsible for the prevalence of green-colored algae in lakes and ponds.
◆ Effect on wildlife-
Animals, like humans, are subjected to the harmful effects of air pollution. Toxic substances in the air can compel wildlife species to relocate and modify their environment. Toxic contaminants settle on the water’s surface, threatening sea life.
◆ Depletion of the Ozone layer-
Ozone is found in the stratosphere of the Earth and protects humans from harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. However, chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons in the atmosphere are degrading the ozone layer.
As the ozone layer thins, damaging rays are emitted back to Earth, potentially causing skin and eye problems. UV rays have the power to harm crops as well.
Air Pollution Map
What are the Air Pollution guidelines?
The WHO Air Quality Guidelines: Global Update 2021 assesses the health consequences of air pollution and pollution levels that are detrimental to human health.
- In 2019, 99% of the world’s population lived in areas where the WHO air quality standards were not reached.
- In 2016, ambient (outside air pollution) was projected to cause 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide in cities and rural areas.
- Low- and middle-income countries accounted for 91 percent of the premature deaths, with the WHO South-East Asia and Western Pacific areas accounting for the majority.
- Cleaner transportation, energy-efficient houses, electricity generation, industry, and better municipal waste management policies and investments will minimize the primary sources of outdoor air pollution.
- Indoor smoke and outside air pollution are a severe health danger for the 2.6 billion people who use biomass, kerosene, and coal to cook and heat their houses.
Air Pollution and Greenhouse Effect:
Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide are examples of air pollution.
Mechanism – Greenhouse gases capture heat from the Sun in the Earth’s atmosphere, causing the temperature to warm. Although greenhouse gases are a natural component of the Earth’s atmosphere, their rising levels in our atmosphere since the early 1900s have caused the temperature to warm.
- Vehicle exhaust, pollutants discharged from smokestacks at companies and power plants, agricultural emissions, and other sources all contribute to the rise. According to scientists, the Earth will warm faster this century than it did in the previous century.
- According to a NASA study, ozone pollution, or smog, is triggering warming in the Arctic areas.
- Ozone in the troposphere is both a greenhouse gas and a health threat. During the winter and spring months, ozone pollution produced in the Northern Hemisphere is transferred to the Arctic, causing warming.
- The region where ozone pollution originates has the most influence. Thus, certain areas are warming more than others.
- The Arctic is warming faster than any other portion of the globe, partly due to ozone pollution and positive feedback loops in which heat melts snow and ice, modifying the Earth’s surface and leading to even more warming.
Air Pollution and Climate Change
- The most significant source of CO2 emissions – the exploitation and burning of fossil fuels – is also a substantial source of air pollution, contributing to climate change.
- Furthermore, many air pollutants influence the amount of incoming sunlight reflected or absorbed by the atmosphere, with some pollutants warming the Earth and others cooling it, contributing to climate change.
- Methane, black carbon, ground-level ozone, and sulfate aerosols are short-lived climate-forcing pollutants (SLCPs).
- They significantly impact the climate: black carbon and methane are two of the most significant contributions to global warming after CO2.
- Rapid CO2 emission reductions are required but insufficient to meet the Paris Agreement objective of reducing global warming to 1.5 (or even 2) degrees Celsius.
- According to the IPCC special report on the implications of global warming of 1.5 degrees Celsius, deep reductions in emissions of non-CO2 climate forcers, mainly the air pollutants methane and black carbon, are also critical.
- While decarbonizing the economy will cut CO2 and air pollution emissions in general, pursuing the phaseout of fossil fuels is insufficient for both air quality and climate.
Air pollution and climate change are intricately related.
How to avoid air pollution at home?
- Open the windows, like your grandparents did, to increase ventilation. They use the extractor fan when cooking, which is vital because nitrogen dioxide levels can exceed those found on the most polluted highways.
- Don’t smoke or use candles indoors. If you have a wood-burning fireplace, ensure it is properly installed and used. Carbon monoxide detectors should also be installed.
- Use a doormat to keep dirt out of your house and encourage visitors to remove their shoes when they see you.
- Reduce your usage of cleaning products and air fresheners that include limonene, especially those that contain it (which gives the lemon citrus smell).
- Purchase some houseplants. NASA and the University of York, both for the BBC, revealed that plants could lower formaldehyde levels in the house.
- Choose a floor with a hard surface. Carpets are easy to clean, allowing dirt and pet hair to escape into the air.
- Open the windows, like your grandparents did, to increase ventilation. They use the extractor fan when cooking, which is vital because nitrogen dioxide levels can exceed those found on the most polluted highways.
- Don’t smoke or use candles indoors. If you have a wood-burning fireplace, ensure it is properly installed and used. Carbon monoxide detectors should also be installed.
- Use a doormat to keep dirt out of your house and encourage visitors to remove their shoes when they see you.
- Reduce your usage of cleaning products and air fresheners that include limonene, especially those that contain it (which gives the lemon citrus smell).
- Purchase some houseplants. NASA and the University of York, both for the BBC, revealed that plants could lower formaldehyde levels in the house.
- Choose a floor with a hard surface. Carpets are easy to clean, allowing dirt and pet hair to escape into the air.
Maintain a 30% to 50% humidity level in your home and ensure moist areas, such as bathrooms, are correctly ventilated. This aids in the prevention of mold, which has been linked to upper respiratory issues. Babies and children, the elderly, and individuals with respiratory problems such as allergies and asthma are all more sensitive than others.
How to control Air Pollution-
Pollutants in the air must be controlled for the sake of human health and the ecosystem. Poor air quality has a negative impact on human health, particularly the respiratory and cardiovascular system
- Pollution control devices can be used by industries to eliminate pollutants by absorbing, filtering, diluting, or spreading them.
- Licensing and regulation by the government are effective approaches to reduce industrial emissions.
- A variety of physical procedures can be used to remove airborne particles from a polluted airstream.
- Cyclones, scrubbers, electrostatic precipitators, and baghouse filters are all common forms of fine particulate collection equipment.
- Particulates stick together once they’ve been gathered, forming agglomerates that can be easily removed from the equipment and disposed of, usually in a landfill.
The three fundamental approaches for controlling gaseous criterion pollutants, as well as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other gaseous air toxics, are absorption, adsorption, and incineration (or combustion).
- In the context of air pollution control, absorption is the transfer of a gaseous pollutant from the air into a contacting liquid, such as water. The liquid must be able to either act as a pollutant’s solvent or capture it through a chemical reaction.
- Adsorption is a surface phenomenon. Gas molecules are sorbed (attracted to and held) on a solid’s surface. Gas adsorption methods are used in several chemical manufacturing and food processing facilities and for the recovery of various volatile chemicals.
- VOCs and other gaseous hydrocarbon pollutants can be converted to carbon dioxide and water via incineration or combustion (chemically, fast oxidation). VOCs and hydrocarbon vapors usually are incinerated in a special incinerator known as an afterburner. The afterburner must generate enough turbulence and burning time and maintain a high enough temperature to achieve complete combustion. Because it minimizes the needed burning time and temperature, sufficient turbulence, or mixing, is a vital element in combustion. Direct flame incineration is a method that can be employed.
How to Reduce Air Pollution:
✅ Public transit, which uses less gasoline and electricity, is a surefire way to help reduce air pollution; even carpools can assist. Public transit can save you money while reducing the amount of fuel and gas discharged into the atmosphere.
✅ Turn off the lights when not in use: Reduced power usage can help save energy because the energy used by lighting adds to air pollution.
✅ Reuse and recycle: Recycling and Reuse are beneficial to the environment since they not only help to save resources and use them wisely, but they also help to minimise pollution emissions.
✅ Plastic bags are not allowed: Plastic objects may be detrimental to the environment because of their oil-based nature, which takes a long time to disintegrate. Paper bags, on the other hand, are a better option because they decompose fast and are recyclable.
✅ Forest fires and smoking: Smoking leads to air pollution and deterioration of air quality, as well as affecting one’s health, and is a major source of waste collection and setting it ablaze in dry seasons, or dry leaves catching flames.
✅ When it comes to chimneys, use filters: The gas emitted by fireplaces in homes and businesses is very harmful to the environment and has a substantial detrimental influence on air quality. Filters should be employed if consumption cannot be reduced, as this will help to limit the effect of harmful gases absorbed in the air.
✅ Stay away from crackers: Unfortunately, the use of crackers at festivals and weddings is one of the leading causes of air pollution, resulting in a haze that is hazardous to one’s health. As a result, crackers are not advised to be used.
✅ Stay away from chemical-based products. For example, Paints and Perfumes could be used less.
✅ Make afforestation a priority: Finally, make a concerted effort to plant and care for as many trees as possible. Planting trees provides a number of environmental advantages and aids in the release of oxygen.