Sources of pollution

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Point sources are identifiable points or places that you can easily
locate.
• An example is a diesel truck that produces visible black exhaust fumes
from its tailpipe.
• Liquid waste released from a pipe into a river is another example.
A non-point source is one where it is difficult to identify the exact
origin of the pollution.
• A good example is floodwater that washes all types of waste from the
land (possibly including faecal matter) into a river.
• In this situation you cannot identify the individual or household or
establishment that has caused the water pollution
Domestic sources
• Domestic sources of pollution include toilets, latrines and wastewater
from kitchens and bathrooms.
• If these wastes are properly contained and prevented from getting into
the environment, they will not cause pollution.
• Open defecation obviously releases human waste into the
environment, which can then be washed into rivers and other surface
waters.
• Around 2.4 billion people worldwide (around a third of the global
population) cook using open fires or inefficient stoves fuelled by
kerosene, and biomass (wood, animal dung, and crop waste), which
generates harmful household air pollution.
• Household air pollution was responsible for an estimated 3.2 million
deaths per year in 2020, including over 237,000 deaths of children
under the age of 5.
• Domestic pollution is the degradation of the environment caused by
human activity in the home.
• Wastewater from the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry facilities is the
most common type.
• Waste is generated during meal preparation, washing dishes, waste
disposal, latrine, baths, showers, and drains, among other things.
• Sewage is a term that refers to wastewater that contains faeces, urine,
and laundry waste, among other things.
• Wastewater that has not been cleaned and is being used in regions
without access to sanitation can contaminate water, resulting in the
transmission of diseases.
• It is also very likely that domestic sewage will contain disease-causing
bacteria that can travel on any waste product.
• As a result of the harmful chemicals contained in the various cleaning
products we use to keep our homes clean, they contribute to water
pollution.
• Phosphates are found in several detergents and washing powders, and
they are used to soften water, among other things, to clean clothes.
• Washing powders contain a variety of chemicals that are harmful to all
aquatic life, including fish and other aquatic organisms.
• Other Examples of Domestic Waste
• Wastage of food, paper, plastic materials, textile products, and other
household waste are examples of domestic waste.
• Plant and animal waste, like vegetables, fruit peels, bone and meat
waste, as well as chicken and fish waste, constitute a significant
portion of household waste, which is classified as wet waste by the
EPA.
• Another significant portion of the waste consists of paper and
cardboard, as well as old newspapers, books, notebooks, and wrapping
paper, among other things.
• Plastic materials, consumable dishes, toys, as well as metal and glass
cans, are all included in the category of household waste.
Industry
• Pollution from the industrial sector has been on the rise, posing a serious problem to the
environment.
• Many industrial processes produce polluting waste substances that are discharged to the
environment, frequently through chimneys (to the air) or through pipes (to surface
water).
• Among the most polluting industries are food processing, tanneries and textiles and
factories that produce liquid waste which are discharged into rivers, often without
treatment
• In practice, rivers frequently receive polluting discharges from many different sources
all at the same time.
• Industrial process emits huge amounts of organic compounds carbon monoxide,
hydrocarbons, and chemicals into the air.
• A high quantity of carbon dioxide is the reasons for the greenhouse effect in the air.
Agriculture
• Like industry, agricultural activities are also increasing, and changing
too.
• Nowadays, agricultural activities use more pesticides and fertilizers.
• Agriculture is also responsible for gaseous pollutants in the form of
methane produced by livestock and solid pollutants from crop
residues, packaging materials, and other wastes similar to those
produced domestically.

• Animals also contribute to waste products and potential pollutants

with their excrement.

• All of that farm animal waste needs to go somewhere.

• Manure using beyond the limit – crop usage

• Similar problems arise with poultry waste, which is mostly dry

litter—a combination of the birds’ bedding materials, their feces, and
loose feathers.

• Manure emits ammonia that then combines with other air pollutants,
like nitrogen oxides and sulfates, to create tiny—and deadly—solid
particles. We humans inhale these particles, which can cause heart
and lung diseases and are said to account for at least 3.3 million
deaths each year globally

• Manure can give foul-smelling - toxic air pollutants

Nitrogen-Based Fertilizers

• Fertilizer has serious downsides for our water supplies and climate.

• Nitrogen is a primary building block for plants, and healthy soil uses nitrogen efficiently.

• Under monocropping, the soil becomes depleted of nutrients, requiring farmers to try to regenerate the soil
through practices like planting cover crops or to move on to more arable land. The invention of synthetic
nitrogen in the 20th century (and then, quickly, its skyrocketing use) removed this limiting factor and allowed
for a boom in chemical-intensive, industrial farming practices.

• Synthetic forms of nitrogen are different in some key ways from the nitrogen occurring naturally in our
atmosphere.

• Naturally occurring nitrogen, known as N2, is more difficult for plants to use, requiring specific bacteria to
help make it bioavailable. But synthetic fertilizer is made up of a nitrogen-and-hydrogen-based ammonia
(NH3) that can be used by plants directly.

• Transforming N2 into NH3 through chemical processes is resource-intensive, and this form of nitrogen is also
more prone to reacting with other things in the environment, not just plants.
• When excess nitrogen makes its way into the atmosphere (as it often
does when fertilizer is applied at high volumes), it can become nitrous
oxide, a potent greenhouse gas, or nitrogen oxide, which contributes to
ground-level smog.
• Most plants cannot tolerate synthetic fertilizers or high levels of
nitrogen.
Nutrient Runoff

• Runoff occurs when nutrient-rich material like fertilizer or manure, full of nitrogen and
phosphorus, makes its way into nearby rivers, oceans, and lakes, damaging our freshwater and
marine ecosystems.

• Heavy rains can trigger runoff, as can soil erosion. Here’s how it works: An excess of nutrients in a
water system causes an overgrowth of algae. As algae die off, aerobic bacteria decompose them,
consuming oxygen in the process and starving other marine life.

• Algae overgrowth can also block sunlight, disrupting the ecosystem below the water surface that
relies on the sun for energy.

• Pollution via runoff (known as agricultural nonpoint source pollution) is the leading source of harm
to water quality

• About 80 percent of marine pollution comes from the land.

• Farmers can significantly reduce nutrient runoff by following fertilizer best practices, as well as
adopting regenerative agriculture strategies, such as improving soil health through planting cover
crops
Chemical Pesticides
• Farmers routinely use pesticides—herbicides, insecticides, rodenticides, and fungicides—to keep away any
unwanted weeds, insects, rodents, and fungi.

• But these toxic chemicals have serious side effects. These chemicals can cause many chronic diseases such as
endocrine (hormone) and neurological disorders and cancer.

• children are especially vulnerable to exposure and face the worst health impacts.

• Some of the most toxic pesticides, like chlorpyrifos, have been linked to developmental delays, lower IQs,
and learning disabilities.

• Since becoming widespread in the past century, pesticides are routinely detected in 88 percent of our streams
and rivers.

• Rural residents in general may be exposed to contaminated water, air, and food.

• Bad for pollinators. The populations of insects, such as the iconic monarch butterfly and native bees like the
rusty-patched bumble bee
Transport
• Do you live in a city or have you visited a city close to where you live?
• If so you will no doubt be familiar with the variety of vehicles on our roads.
• Some are small cars, others are heavy motor trucks.
• These vehicles differ not only in their size, but also by using different types of fuel such as petrol, diesel, and
blended fuel (10% ethanol and petrol).
• If you observe the tailpipe of diesel engine vehicles, you will have seen the black exhaust gas produced,
makes the air smoky and causes coughs and eye irritation.
Pathways of pollution
• We said earlier that pollution always has a source and a recipient.

• The pathway of pollution is the way the pollutant moves from the source, enters into the environment, and finally
how it reaches the human body or other recipient.

• The pathway between source and recipient can take several different forms depending on the type of pollutant.

• Primary recipients for pollution are water, air, and soil. Pollutants usually reach humans through the consumption of
contaminated and polluted water and food, and breathing polluted air.

• Once released into the environment, the worst effects of many pollutants are reduced by one or more of the
following processes:
• Dispersion – smoke disperses into the air and is no longer noticeable away from the source.

• Dilution – soluble pollutants are diluted in the water of a river or lake.

• Degradation – some substances break down (degrade) by natural processes into different, simpler substances that are not polluting.