Samir Mehta Case (2016)

Pollution

Pollution is the introduction of the contaminants into the natural environment which has harmful or poisonous effects that causes adverse changes.

Types of Pollution

Air Pollution

• When the air becomes contaminated with contaminants such as poisonous gases or particles, it can cause serious problems to human health. The most common causes of air pollution include partially combusted exhaust gases, poisonous gases which are a by-product of industry, including SO₂ and CO, and other carcinogenic gases released through the burning of plastic, rubber and wood.
• It works by slowly poisoning organisms which breathe it in, or by disturbing the atmosphere and mixing with their air and clouds to cause ‘acid rain’.

Water Pollution

• This type of pollution can be referred to as the contamination of bodies of water including groundwater.
• Universal causes of water pollution include industrial waste, run off of insecticides, pesticides, and fertilizers, detergents and oil spills.
• These contaminants work by killing off organisms through their toxicity (fertilizers, insecticides), or reducing the availability of oxygen in the water by blocking out sunlight.

Soil Pollution

• Soil can be uncovered of its nutrients by a number of chemical agents (.i.e. contaminants) causing the Soil to get polluted.
• Universal causes of soil pollution include pesticides, insecticides, agricultural chemicals, industrial waste, and radioactive waste.
• The heavy metals which get into the soil via chemical pollution also have a devastating effect on the ecosystem as they alter the metabolism of microorganisms and arthropods living in the soil.
• These heavy metals become more concentrated as they move up the food chain, often wiping out predator or consumer species at the apex of food pyramid (bio-magnification).

Noise Pollution

• Noise pollution refers to an excess of unpleasant sounds emanating from industry, infrastructure, heavy machinery, transportation, and even human occupations, being released into the environment.
• Noise pollution has a detrimental effect on both mental and physical health and has been linked to high stress levels, hearing loss, hypertension, depression, sleep disturbances and an increase in incidences of coronary artery disease.
• Noise pollution affects flora and fauna as it interferes with communication, making it difficult for animals to navigate, mate and detect prey.

Light Pollution

• Light pollution is defined as the alteration of natural light levels in both indoor and outdoor environments through human interference.
• Light pollution causes headaches, fatigue, stress and anxiety.
• Light pollution disrupts natural ecosystems by confusing navigation of animals, altering predator-prey relations, disrupting plant growth and pollination, and change competitor interactions.

Thermal

Pollution

• Many industries release heat energy as a by-product and this thermal energy is partially responsible for global warming.
• CO₂ prevents heat from escaping the atmosphere, so the heat from the sun, combined with the excess thermal energy which is a by-product of many industries as well as vehicles cannot escape and raises the temperature of the atmosphere.

Radioactive Pollution

• When radioactive metals disintegrate, they release beta rays which can cause a host of mutative diseases in living organisms, which is known as Radioactive Pollution.
• It is caused by nuclear power plants, either in the form of radioactive waste being dumped or improperly disposed of and then making its way into bodies of water, or from the accidental release of radioactive substances when a nuclear reactor is damaged.
• Once radioactive pollution is present in the environment, it can linger for decades, making enormous areas of land unfit for human occupation of any sort.