 Pollution is an undesirable change in the chemical, physical

or biological characteristics of the natural environment. The

environment is polluted with harmful substances or
pollutants.
 Pollutant is any substance that is present in an excessive
amount in the environment as a result of human activities. It
has damaging effects on living organism.
 Pollutants may be toxic substances such as pesticides or
natural constituents of the atmosphere, such as carbon
dioxide. They may affect the soil, rivers, seas or the
atmosphere.
 There are four types of pollution:

Air
pollution

Types
Water Noise
of
pollution pollutions pollution

Thermal
pollution
 1. AIR POLLUTION
 Air pollution occurs when pollutants such as smoke, dirt, dust
and poisonous gases are released into the air endangering
human lives and other living organisms.
 Most air pollutants come from burning of fossil fuels from
motor vehicles.
 Examples of air pollutants are carbon monoxide (CO), carbon
dioxide (CO2), nitrogen oxide (NO) and sulphur dioxide
(SO2).
Pollutant Sources Effects
Carbon monoxide  Incomplete combustion Health
(CO) of fossil fuels.  Combines with haemoglobin to form
 Odourless, colourless  Combustion sources carboxyhaemoglobin which reduces the ability of the
and toxic gas. such as motor vehicle blood to transport oxygen.
exhaust, smoke from  Early symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning are
fires, engine fumes. headaches, nausea and fatigue.
 Prolonged exposure can lead to brain damage and
even death.
Carbon dioxide (CO2)  Combustion of fossil Health
 Odourless, fuels.  Causes emphysema.
colourless gas.  Affects respiration.
Building
 Contributes to acid rain which damages buildings.
Climate
 Contributes to greenhouse effect and global
warming.
Nitrogen monoxide  Combustion of fossil Health
(NO) and nitrogen fuels.  Damages lung tissues.
dioxide(NO2)  Motor vehicle exhaust  May cause bronchitis.
 NO-odourless,
 Irritates the eyes.
colourless gas.
 Lowers the body’s defence against flu.
 NO2-browmish gas
Agriculture
 Contributes to acid rain which reduces the pH of
soil, lakes and rivers.
Building
 Contributes to acid rain which destroys buildings.
Climate
 Contributes to acid rain.
Sulphur dioxide (SO2)  Combustion of fossil Health
 Colourless, pungent fuels which contain  Irritates and damages the lining of the eyes, air
 and acidic gas. sulphur. passages and lungs.
 Dissolves in water.  Industries.  Causes coughing and wheezing.
 Combines with rainwater to form acid rain that may
cause skin diseases.
Agriculture
 Reduces the growth of plants.
 Damages the leaves and may kill the plants.
 Contributes to acid rain which lowers the pH of soil,
lakes and rivers.
Buildings
 Contributes to acid rain which corrodes iron, copper,
steel, aluminium and stonework, thereby destroying
buildings.
Climate
 Causes acid rain.
Fine particular  Combustion of fossil Health
matter. (Includes fuels from motor  Irritates the eyes and respiratory tract.
smoke, fumes, dust, ash vehicles, agricultural  Contributes to haze which can cause asthma attack,
and pollen) burning and industries. conjunctivitis, sore throat, bronchitis and reduced
 Tiny and invisible  Forest fire visibility.
 The composition of  Quarries and asbestos Agriculture
particulate matter factories  Deposits on leaves and darkens vegetation.
varies with place,  Blocks stomata, thus lowering the rate of
season and whether photosynthesis. The crop yield is reduced.
conditions. Buildings
 Soot can darken building.
Climate
 Contributes to formation of haze and smog which
can reduce light intensity.
Lead  Combustion of fossil Health
fuels  Reduces the sensitivity of the hands and feet
coordination.
 Retards mental development in children.
 Disrupts body’s ability to produce new cell.
Hydrocarbon  Combustion of fossil Health
fuels from motor  Affects growth
vehicles  Causes cancer

 Other than that, air pollution also causes acid rains.

 Acid rain only occurs when the pH of the rain is less than
5.0(natural rain water has a pH of about 5.4)
 Combustion of fossil fuels releases sulphur dioxide and
oxides of nitrogen which contribute to acid rain.
 Sulphur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen form acidic
solutions when dissolves in water.
 Sulphur dioxide combines with water vapour to form
sulphuric acid.

2SO2(g) + O2(g) + 2H2O(l)  2H2SO4(aq)

 Oxides of nitrogen combine with water vapour to form

nitric acid.
 Then, these acid will fall back as acid rain.
 Carbon dioxide in the air also contributes to acid rain. It
dissolves in water to form carbonic acid.
 The effect of acid rain is shown below:
 Corrodes metals,
marble, rubber,
plastics,
stonework and
other materials
Increases the acidity
of aquatic
Destroyed plant
ecosystems leading
to the killing of tissues and
planktons and damages plant
aquatic organism roots

Effects of acid
rain

Leaching of
minerals from the Reduces the pH
soil such as value of the soil
calcium, causing making it unsuitable
infertile soil for farming

Releases ions of
heavy metals such
as lead which may
contaminate the
water
  The air quality is measure by Air Pollution Index (API)
 It is normally includes the major pollutants which could
cause potential harm to human health.
 In Malaysia, the air pollutants included are ozone,
carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide
and suspended particulate matter.
 This index is calculate by using the concentrations of
major air pollutants, but it is developed in easily understood
ranges of values as shown below
API Status Level of pollution
0-50 Good Low, no ill effects on health
51-100 Moderate Moderate pollution, no ill effects on health
101-200 Unhealthy Mild aggravation of symptoms among high risk group
201-300 Very unhealthy Significant aggravation of symptoms and decreased exercise
tolerance among high risk groups
301-500 Hazardous Severe aggravation of symptoms and a danger to health
Above 500 Emergency Severe aggravation of symptoms and a danger to health
 This index helps us to take precautionary measures by
drinking more water, staying indoors and wearing
masks when the air pollution index exceeds 200.

2. Water pollution.
 Water pollution occurs when people discharging agriculture
wastes, industrial waste, domestic waste and sewage into rivers.
 The sources of water pollution and the effects of water pollution
are shown below.

Non-
biodegradable
rubbish
Suspended
solids
Rubbish
Oil

Fertilisers and
pesticide from
farms Oil spills
Nitrates Grease
Phosphates Oil
Pesticides
Herbicides

Sources and
pollutants of
water pollution

Effluent from Sewage

factories effluent
Heavy metals Detergent
Chemicals Faeces
Oil Nitrates
Grease
 Effects of water
pollution

Animals and plants

Human health
Untreated water contains pathogen
such as Vibrio bacteria which
causes cholera.
Pesticides and herbicides passed to
humans through the food chain are
harmful.
Heavy metals such as mercury
cause nervous disorders, blindness,
paralysis and even death
Excess nitrates and phosphates
lead to eutrophication.
Rubbish and oil reduce light
penetration and diffusion of
oxygen into water. Aquatic
organisms may die due to lack of
light and oxygen.
Oil covers the gills of fishes
affecting their respiration.
Decomposition of decayed
materials by saprophytic bacteria
reduces the oxygen content in the
water
 Eutrophication is a natural process whereby an aquatic
ecosystem becomes enriched with nutrients causing an
excessive growth of aquatic plants

Eutrophication

Excess of the organic and inorganic wastes

Eutr that enter a river or a lake enrich the water
oph with nutrients
i cat
ion

Photosynthesizing organisms particularly

algae that grow rapidly, result in population
Causing the death explosion known as algal bloom
of other aerobic
organisms such as
fish, prawns etc. High diversity of algae reduces the light
intensity hence lead to the death of other
photosynthetic organisms
The aerobic
bacteria use-up
oxygen faster then The decomposition of these dead organisms
it replenished; by aerobic bacteria causes severe depletion
BOD increase of water dissolved oxygen,
 Nutrients can come from many sources such as
a. Fertiliser(especially nitrates and phosphate)
from agriculture fields
b. Sewage treatment plant discharges
c. Run-off of animal waste
 The increased nutrients promote rapid growth of algae when
they are deposited in rivers, lakes and streams.
 This excessive growth of algae is often called an algae bloom

 Algae blooms endanger the ecosystem in two main ways.

 1.The densely populated algae cover the water surface and
block sunglight. Unable to carry out photosynthesis, the
aquatic plants die.
 When these plants die, aquatic animals lose their food
sources and habitats. As a result, the food chains and
ecosystem change.
 Algae also reduce the level of dissolved oxygen in the water.
 2. When the algae die, decomposing organisms especially
saprophytic bacteria use up oxygen for its activities
 This reduces the oxygen content in the water.
 A depletion in oxygen results in an increases in biochemical
oxygen demand (BOD)
 Eutrophication increases the BOD value in the water.
 BOD refers to the amount of oxygen utilised by microorganisms
to oxidise all organic matter in one litre of water
 The higher the BOD value, the more polluted the water as the
dissolved oxygen level decreases.
3. Thermal Pollution
Thermal pollution is the degradation of water quality by any process that changes
ambient water temperature.

A common cause of thermal pollution is the use of water as a coolant by power plants
and industrial manufacturers. When water used as a coolant is returned to the natural
environment at a higher temperature, the change in temperature (a) decreases oxygen
supply, and (b) affects ecosystem composition. Urban runoff--stormwater discharged to
surface waters from roads and parking lots--can also be a source of elevated water
temperatures.

When a power plant first opens or shuts down for repair or other causes, fish and other
organisms adapted to particular temperature range can be killed by the abrupt rise in
water temperature known as 'thermal shock'.

An increase in temperature of water will cause the following:

a) It reduces the level of dissolved oxygen in water. This affects the life of
aerobic aquatic organisms
b) It causes some aquatic organisms to die because they only survive at
suitable temperatures. Some organisms also move away. This affects the
food chain and also the entire ecosystem.
c) It encourages some algae to grow rapidly which can lead to a higher BOD
value.
4. Noise Pollution
 Noise pollution disturbs our health and behavior in a
number of ways including deafness causing lack of
sleep, irritability, indigestion, heartburn, high blood
pressure, ulcers, and heart disease. Just one noise
explosion from a passing truck drastically alters
ourendocrinal, neurological, and cardiovascular
functions in many individuals. If this is prolonged or
frequent, the physiological disturbances become
chronic and contribute to mental illness.
 Sometimes, even low levels of noise are irritating and
can be frustrating, and high volumes can be annoying.
Natural sounds are less irritating than those we find
uncontrollable but intermittent sounds such as a tap
dripping water can be more irritating than the sound of
falling rain.
 Noise more than 50dB can be very difficult to hear and
interpret and cause problems such as partial deafness.
 Increased nose levels gives rise to al ack of
concentration and accuracy at work, and reduce one’s
productivity and performance. Difficult tasks can be
impaired, and instructions or warnings difficult to be.

Noise more than 50dB can be very difficult to hear and

interpret and cause problems such as partial deafness.

 Increased noise levels gives rise to a lack of

concentration and accuracy at work, and reduce one’s
productivity and performance. Difficult tasks can be heard
and interpreted, causing accidents.