city pollution essay

Environmental Pollution: Causes and Consequences Essay

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Environmental pollution is the unwarranted discharge of mass or energy into the planet’s natural resource pools, such as land, air, or water, which detriments the environment’s ecological stability and the health of the living things that inhabit it. There is an intensified health risk and pollution in middle and low-income countries due to the increased use of pesticides, industrialization, the introduction of nitrogen-based fertilizers, forest fires, urbanization, and inadequate waste management (Appannagari, 2017). Air pollution, lead and chemicals exposure, hazardous waste exposure, and inappropriate e-waste disposal all result in unfavorable living conditions, fatal illnesses, and ecosystem destruction. The essay will provide an overview of pollution and proffer solutions to combating pollution for a sustainable environment and health.

In addition to hindering economic development and considerably accelerating climate change, pollution exacerbates poverty and inequality in urban and rural areas. The most pain is always experienced by the poor, who cannot afford to protect themselves against pollution’s harmful effects. The main environmental factor contributing to sickness and early mortality is pollution due to premature deaths resulting from pollution (Appannagari, 2017). Due to the unacceptably high cost to human capital and health, as well as the resulting GDP losses, pollution must be addressed. Through initiatives like reducing black carbon and methane emissions, which are responsible for air pollution and climate change, pollution management can also significantly contribute to climate change mitigation (Appannagari, 2017). Additionally, pollution control can promote competitiveness through, for instance, job growth, increased energy efficiency, better transportation, and sustainable urban and rural development. Below are the various approaches for solutions to health and pollution problems.

First, governments should evaluate pollution as a national and international priority and integrate it into the city and country planning process. Pollution affects the health and well-being of societies and, as such, cannot be solely viewed as an environmental issue (The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health, 2017). All levels of government should give pollution prevention a high priority, incorporate it into development planning, and tie it to commitments regarding climate change, SDGs, and the prevention of non-communicable diseases. Some options are both affordable and offer good returns on investment.

Secondly, governments should increase funding for pollution control and prioritize it by health impacts. There should be a significant increase in the financing for pollution management in low- and middle-income nations, both from national budgets and international development organizations (The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health, 2017). The most effective international support for pollution reduction is when it mobilizes additional actions and funding from others. Examples include helping towns and nations that are quickly industrializing concerning technical capacity building, regulatory and enforcement support, and support for direct actions to save lives. Monitoring financing initiatives are necessary to determine their cost-effectiveness and to raise accountability.

Thirdly, organizations should work to build multicultural partnerships for pollution control. Public-private partnerships and interagency cooperation can be powerful tools in creating clean technology and energy sources that will ultimately prevent pollution at its source (The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health, 2017). Collaborations between ministries that include the ministries of finance, energy, development, agriculture, and transport, as well as the ministries of health and the environment, are crucial in pollution control. Governments should promote monitoring systems that could identify and apportion pollution sources, measure pollution levels, guide enforcement, and assess progress toward goals. The use of new technology in pollution monitoring, such as data mining and satellite images, can boost effectiveness, broaden the monitoring area, and cut costs.

One of the main issues facing the world in the current period is pollution. Natural resources are depleting daily due to car emissions, new technologies, factories, and chemicals added to food. All of these factors seriously harm the world. However, the problems caused by pollution can be prevented by building multicultural partnerships, increasing funding for pollution control, integrating it into the country’s planning process, and adopting new technology for monitoring pollution. Preventing pollution lowers the cost to the environment and the economy.

Appannagari, R. R. (2017). Environmental pollution causes and consequences: A study . North Asian International Research Journal of Social Science and Humanities , 3 (8), 151-161. Web.

Excell High School. (2018). Environmental Science . Excel Education Systems, Inc. Web.

The Lancet Commission on Pollution and Health. (2017). Pollution and health: Six problems and six solutions. Knowledge, Evidence, and Learning for Development.

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Air Pollution in Cities

How it works

• 1 Background:
• 5 Analysis of Data:
• 6 Solutions:

Background:

Air pollution is particle matter in the earth’s atmosphere, and it gradually harms humans, animals, plants, and the earth itself. Air pollution arose side to side with the industrial revolution; the rise to modern manufacturing processes. Air pollution is a problem because eventually at this rate the air is being polluted, the sky will be filled with smog and completely black in only a matter of decades. This problem ties in with the needs and wants of society because we constantly purchase and use everyday items such as vehicles, plastic, burn fuel, and to buy those vehicles in the first place, they must be assembled at an industrial factory, which emit massive amounts of pollution.

Air pollution in cities is caused by a variety of reasons, both natural and caused by humans. Contributors to air pollution include fossil fuels (coal, oil, gasoline) being burned in industrial factories, cars, airplanes, helicopters, etc., crop-dusting and farming chemicals, household sprays like insect repellant, hair spray, and other chemical sprays, forest fires, volcanic eruption, and high quantity of decaying plant/animal matter are all examples of natural and unnatural air pollution causes.

There are various effects of air pollution. Air pollution effects humans, the biosphere, atmosphere, lithosphere, animals, and plants. In humans and animals, the particle matter and other harmful chemicals in the air can make it hard to breathe, and even damage the respiratory and circulatory system. Skies can be covered in thick smog, reducing sunlight in the area, reducing the vitamin D we absorb and the energy that plants absorb. Air pollution affects the lithosphere by causing plants to die, thus not being able to start photosynthesis.

Air pollution is a major problem in today’s society, contributed to by humans and nature itself.

Analysis of Data:

The graph above represents carbon dioxide levels in Mauna Loa from 1960 to 2010. The rise in carbon dioxide in this area is likely due to a mixture of mostly volcanic activity and humans inhabiting it with modern manufacturing, vehicles, etc..

Since burning fossil fuels are the main contributor to air pollution through carbon dioxide, switching cars to hybrid or electric would be the most obvious step. If more vehicles were hybrid or electric, significantly less exhaust fumes would enter the atmosphere, thus reducing the rate of air pollution.

Most industrial factories manufacture products while burning fossil fuels. Factories could be converted to electric, or reduce the amount of fumes they let out into the air entirely with a new bill.

Although forest fires are generally natural, they emit massive amounts of carbon dioxide. Working harder to prevent forest fires without use of chemicals which ALSO pollute the atmosphere would be detrimental to fight air pollution.

Chemical sprays are an overlooked but significant portion of air pollution. These include sprays for crop-dusting, any beauty product such as hair sprays, perfume, cologne, etc.. Humans should try and use these less, and instead use a natural replacement for such purposes, or using them less in general.

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Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Students are often asked to write an essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Introduction.

Urbanisation is the shift of population from rural to urban areas. It’s a sign of progress, but it also brings pollution.

Causes of Pollution

Urbanisation leads to increased vehicles, industries, and waste, causing air, water, and land pollution.

Effects of Pollution

Pollution harms our health, affects wildlife, and contributes to climate change.

While urbanisation is necessary, we must also focus on sustainable development to reduce pollution.

250 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Types of pollution.

Urbanisation primarily contributes to air, water, and noise pollution. Rapid industrialisation, increasing vehicles, and construction activities have intensified the release of harmful pollutants into the air. Water sources are contaminated by industrial effluents and domestic waste, while the incessant noise from vehicles and industries disrupts the tranquillity of urban areas.

Impact on Environment and Health

This pollution has far-reaching impacts on both the environment and human health. It leads to climate change, biodiversity loss, and degradation of natural resources. For humans, exposure to polluted air and water increases the risk of respiratory diseases, cardiovascular conditions, and other health problems.

Need for Sustainable Urbanisation

The current trend of urbanisation is unsustainable. There is an urgent need to adopt eco-friendly practices, promote green technologies, and improve waste management. Policymakers must also focus on creating urban spaces that balance development with environmental preservation.

Urbanisation is a double-edged sword. While it brings economic prosperity and societal advancement, it also leads to pollution and environmental degradation. The challenge is to harness the benefits of urbanisation while minimising its negative impacts, ensuring a sustainable future for all.

500 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Urbanisation, the process of transforming rural areas into urban spaces, has been a double-edged sword for humanity. On one hand, it has brought about economic growth, social development, and technological advancements. On the other hand, it has led to an unprecedented increase in pollution, posing a serious threat to the environment and human health.

The Impact of Urbanisation on Air Quality

Urbanisation and water pollution.

Urbanisation also significantly contributes to water pollution. Rapid urban growth often outpaces the development of necessary infrastructure, such as sewage and waste treatment facilities. As a result, untreated waste often finds its way into rivers and lakes, leading to the contamination of water bodies. This not only harms aquatic life but also poses risks to human health, as polluted water is a major source of diseases like cholera and dysentery.

The Role of Urbanisation in Soil and Noise Pollution

Soil pollution is another environmental issue exacerbated by urbanisation. The construction of buildings, roads, and other infrastructure often involves the removal of topsoil, leading to soil degradation. Additionally, the improper disposal of solid waste in urban areas can lead to soil contamination.

Urbanisation and the Heat Island Effect

Urbanisation also contributes to the phenomenon known as the urban heat island effect. This occurs when urban areas, due to their concrete structures and lack of green spaces, absorb and retain more heat than surrounding rural areas. This not only increases energy consumption for cooling but also exacerbates global warming.

In conclusion, while urbanisation brings about numerous benefits, it also contributes significantly to various forms of pollution. Therefore, it is crucial to adopt sustainable urban planning and development practices. This includes promoting energy-efficient technologies, improving waste management systems, and preserving green spaces. Only through such measures can we ensure that the process of urbanisation is in harmony with the environment, thus securing a healthier and more sustainable future for all.

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• Open access
• Published: 03 August 2021

Future global urban water scarcity and potential solutions

• Chunyang He   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8440-5536 1 , 2 ,
• Zhifeng Liu   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4087-0743 1 , 2 ,
• Jianguo Wu   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-1182-3024 1 , 2 , 3 ,
• Xinhao Pan 1 , 2 ,
• Zihang Fang 1 , 2 ,
• Jingwei Li 4 &
• Brett A. Bryan   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4834-5641 5  

Nature Communications volume  12 , Article number:  4667 ( 2021 ) Cite this article

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• Environmental sciences
• Water resources

Urbanization and climate change are together exacerbating water scarcity—where water demand exceeds availability—for the world’s cities. We quantify global urban water scarcity in 2016 and 2050 under four socioeconomic and climate change scenarios, and explored potential solutions. Here we show the global urban population facing water scarcity is projected to increase from 933 million (one third of global urban population) in 2016 to 1.693–2.373 billion people (one third to nearly half of global urban population) in 2050, with India projected to be most severely affected in terms of growth in water-scarce urban population (increase of 153–422 million people). The number of large cities exposed to water scarcity is projected to increase from 193 to 193–284, including 10–20 megacities. More than two thirds of water-scarce cities can relieve water scarcity by infrastructure investment, but the potentially significant environmental trade-offs associated with large-scale water scarcity solutions must be guarded against.

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Introduction.

The world is rapidly urbanizing. From 1950 to 2020, the global population living in cities increased from 0.8 billion (29.6%) to 4.4 billion (56.2%) and is projected to reach 6.7 billion (68.4%) by 2050 1 . Water scarcity—where demand exceeds availability—is a key determinant of water security and directly affects the health and wellbeing of urban residents, urban environmental quality, and socioeconomic development 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 . At present, many of the world’s urban populations face water scarcity 3 . Population growth, urbanization, and socioeconomic development are expected to increase urban industrial and domestic water demand by 50–80% over the next three decades 4 , 7 . In parallel, climate change will affect the spatial distribution and timing of water availability 8 , 9 . As a result, urban water scarcity is likely to become much more serious in the future 10 , 11 , 12 , potentially compromising the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) especially SDG11 Sustainable Cities and Communities and SDG6 Clean Water and Sanitation 13 , 14 .

Urban water scarcity has typically been addressed via engineering and infrastructure. Reservoirs are commonly used to store water during periods of excess availability and continuously supply water to cities to avoid water shortages during dry periods 15 . Desalination plants are increasingly used to solve water deficit problems for coastal cities 16 . For cities where local water resources cannot meet demand, inter-basin water transfer can also be an effective solution 17 (Supplementary Table  8 ). However, investment in water infrastructure is costly; requires substantial human, energy, and material resources; is limited by natural conditions such as geographic location and topography; and may have very significant environmental impacts 2 , 3 , 18 . Hence, a comprehensive understanding of water scarcity and the potential solutions for the world’s cities is urgently required to promote more sustainable and livable urban futures 7 , 18 , 19 .

Previous studies have evaluated urban water scarcity 2 , 3 , 7 , 19 (Supplementary Table  3 ). However, these studies have been limited in a number of ways including: assessing only a subset of the urban population (e.g., large cities only or regional in focus); considering only part of the water scarcity problem (i.e., availability but not withdrawal); or lacking a future perspective. For example, in assessing global urban water scarcity, Flörke et al. 7 considered 482 cities (accounting for just 26% of the global urban population) under a business-as-usual scenario, and while McDonald et al. 2 assessed a larger range of cities and scenarios, they considered water availability only, not withdrawals. As a result, significant uncertainty in estimates of current and future extent of urban water-scarcity remain, varying from 0.2 to 1 billion people affected in 2000 and from 0.5 to 4 billion in 2050 (Supplementary Table  4 ). A comprehensive assessment of global urban water scarcity is needed to identify cities at risk and provide better estimates of the number of people affected.

In addition, although many studies have discussed potential solutions to urban water scarcity, few have investigated the feasibility of these solutions for water-scarce cities at the global scale. Proposed solutions include groundwater exploitation, seawater desalination, increased water storage in reservoirs, inter-basin water transfer, improved water-use efficiency, and urban landscape management 2 , 3 , 14 , 19 . However, the potential effectiveness of these solutions for the world’s water-scarce cities depends on many factors including the severity of water scarcity, urban and regional geography and hydrogeology, socio-economic characteristics, and environmental carrying capacity 7 , 20 . Pairing the identification of water scarce cities with an evaluation of potential solutions is essential for guiding investment in future urban water security.

In this study, we comprehensively assessed global urban water scarcity in 2016 and 2050 and the feasibility of potential solutions for water-scarce cities. We first quantified the spatial patterns of the global urban population for 2016 at a grid-cell resolution of 1 km 2 by integrating spatial urban land-use and population data. We then identified water-scarce areas at the catchment scale by combining global water resource availability and demand data, and calculated the global urban population in water-scarce areas in 2016. We also quantified the global urban population in water-scarce areas for 2050 under four socioeconomic and climate change scenarios by combining modeled projections of global urban area, population, and water availability and demand. Finally, we evaluated the feasibility of seven major solutions for easing water scarcity for each affected city. We discuss the implications of the results for mitigating global urban water scarcity and improving the sustainability and livability of the world’s cities.

Current urban water scarcity

Globally, 933 million (32.5%) urban residents lived in water-scarce regions in 2016 (Table  1 , Fig.  1b ) with 359 million (12.5%) and 573 million (20.0%) experiencing perennial and seasonal water scarcity, respectively. India (222 million) and China (159 million) had the highest urban populations facing water scarcity (Table  1 , Fig.  1c ).

a spatial patterns of large cities in water-scarce areas (cities with population above 10 million in 2016 were labeled). b Water-scarce urban population at the global scale. c Water-scarce urban population at the national scale (10 countries with the largest values were listed). Please refer to Supplementary Data for urban water scarcity in each catchment.

Of the world’s 526 large cities (i.e., population >1 million), 193 (36.7%) were located in water-scarce regions (96 perennial, 97 seasonal) (Fig.  1a ). Of the 30 megacities (i.e., population >10 million), 9 (30.0%) were located in water-scarce regions (Table  2 ). Six of these, including Los Angeles, Moscow, Lahore, Delhi, Bangalore, and Beijing, were located in regions with perennial water scarcity and three (Mexico City, Istanbul, and Karachi) were seasonally water-scarce (Fig.  1a ).

Urban water scarcity in 2050

At the global scale, the urban population facing water scarcity was projected to increase rapidly, reaching 2.065 (1.693–2.373) billion people by 2050, a 121.3% (81.5–154.4%) increase from 2016 (Table  1 , Fig.  2a ). 840 (476–905) million people were projected to face perennial water scarcity and 1.225 (0.902–1.647) billion were projected to face seasonal water scarcity (Table  1 ). India’s urban population growth in water-scarce regions was projected to be much higher than other countries (Fig.  2b ), increasing from 222 million people to 550 (376–644) million people in 2050 and accounting for 26.7% (19.2%–31.2%) of the world’s urban population facing water scarcity (Table  1 ).

a Changes in water-scarce urban population at the global scale. Bars present the simulated results using the ensemble mean of runoff from GCMs, the total values (i.e., perennial and seasonal), and percentages are labeled. Crosses (gray/black) present the simulated results (total/perennial) using runoff from each GCM. b Changes in water-scarce urban population at the national scale (10 countries with the largest values were listed). Bars present the total values simulated using the ensemble mean of runoff from GCMs. Crosses present the total values simulated using runoff from each GCM. Please refer to Supplementary Data for urban water scarcity in each catchment.

Nearly half of the world’s large cities were projected to be located in water-scarce regions by 2050 (Fig.  3 , Supplementary Fig.  3 ). The number of large cities facing water scarcity under at least one scenario was projected to increase to 292 (55.5%) by 2050. The number of megacities facing water scarcity under at least one scenario was projected to increase to 19 (63.3%) including 10 new megacities (i.e., Cairo, Dhaka, Jakarta, Lima, Manila, Mumbai, New York, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, and Tianjin) (Table  2 ).

Only the water-scarce cities are listed. Cities with a population >10 million in 2016 are labeled.

Factors influencing urban water scarcity

Growth in urban population and water demand will be the main factor contributing to the increase in urban water scarcity (Fig.  4 ). From 2016 to 2050, population growth, urbanization, and socioeconomic development were projected to increase water demand and contribute to an additional 0.990 (0.829–1.135) billion people facing urban water scarcity, accounting for 87.5% (80.4–91.4%) of the total increase. Climate change was projected to alter water availability and increase the urban population subject to water scarcity by 52 (−72–229) million, accounting for 4.6% (−9.0–18.4%) of the total increase.

Bars present the simulated results using the ensemble mean of runoff from GCMs, crosses present the simulated results using runoff from each GCM.

Potential solutions to urban water scarcity

Water scarcity could be relieved for 276 (94.5%) large cities, including 17 (89.5%) megacities, via the measures assessed (Table  3 , Supplementary Table  5 ). Among these, 260 (89.0%) cities have the option of implementing two or more measures. For example, Los Angeles can adopt desalination, groundwater exploitation, inter-basin water transfer, and/or virtual water trade (Table  3 ). However, 16 large cities, including two megacities (i.e., Delhi and Lahore) in India and Pakistan, are restricted by geography and economic development levels, making it difficult to adopt any of the potential water scarcity solutions (Table  3 ).

Domestic virtual water trade was the most effective solution, which could alleviate water scarcity for 208 (71.2%) large cities (including 14 (73.7%) megacities). Inter-basin water transfer could be effective for 200 (68.5%) large cities (including 14 (73.7%) megacities). Groundwater exploitation could be effective for 192 (65.8%) large cities (including 11 (57.9%) megacities). International water transfer and virtual water trade showed potential for 190 (65.1%) large cities (including 10 (52.6%) megacities). Reservoir construction could relieve water scarcity for 151 (51.7%) large cities (including 10 (52.6%) megacities). Seawater desalination has the potential to relieve water scarcity for 146 (50.0%) large cities (including 12 (63.2%) megacities). In addition, water scarcity for 68 (23.3%) large cities, including five megacities (i.e., New York, Sao Paulo, Mumbai, Dhaka, and Jakarta), could be solved via the water-use efficiency improvements, slowed population growth rate, and climate change mitigation measures considered under SSP1&RCP2.6.

We have provided a comprehensive evaluation of current and future global urban water scarcity and the feasibility of potential solutions for water-scarce cities. We found that the global urban population facing water scarcity was projected to double from 933 million (33%) in 2016 to 1.693–2.373 billion (35–51%) in 2050, and the number of large cities facing water scarcity under at least one scenario was projected to increase from 193 (37%) to 292 (56%). Among these cities, 276 large cities (95%) can address water scarcity through improving water-use efficiency, limiting population growth, and mitigating climate change under SSP1&RCP2.6; or via seawater desalination, groundwater exploitation, reservoir construction, interbasin water transfer, or virtual water trade. However, no solutions were available to relieve water scarcity for 16 large cities (5%), including two megacities (i.e., Delhi and Lahore) in India and Pakistan.

Previous studies have estimated the global urban population facing water scarcity to be between 150 and 810 million people in 2000, between 320 and 650 million people in 2010, and increasing to 0.479–1.445 billion people by 2050 (Supplementary Table  4 ). Our estimates of 933 million people in 2016 facing urban water scarcity, increasing to 1.693–2.373 billion people by 2050, are substantially higher than previously reported (Supplementary Fig.  5a ). This difference is attributed to the fact that we evaluated the exposure of all urban dwellers rather than just those living in large cities (Supplementary Table  3 ). According to United Nations census data, 42% of the world’s urban population lives in small cities with a total population of <300,000 (Supplementary Fig.  4 ). Therefore, it is difficult to fully understand the global urban water scarcity only by evaluating the exposure of large cities. This study makes up for this deficiency and provides a comprehensive assessment of global urban water scarcity.

In addition, we used spatially corrected urban population data, newly released water demand/availability data, simulated runoff from GCMs in the most recent CMIP6 database, catchment-based estimation approach covering the upstream impacts on downstream water availability, and the new scenario framework combining socioeconomic development and climate change. Such data and methods can reduce the uncertainty in the spatial distribution of urban population and water demand/availability in the future, providing a more reliable assessment of global urban water scarcity.

Our projections suggest that global urban water scarcity will continue to intensify from 2016 to 2050 under all scenarios. By 2050, near half of the global urban population was projected to live in water-scarce regions (Figs.  2 ,  3 ). This will directly threaten the realization of SDG11 Sustainable Cities and Communities and SDG6 Clean Water and Sanitation . Although 95% of water-scarce cities can address the water crisis via improvement of water-use efficiency, seawater desalination, groundwater exploitation, reservoir construction, interbasin water transfer, or virtual water trade (Supplementary Table  5 ), these measures will not only have transformative impacts on society and the economy, but will also profoundly affect the natural environment. For example, the construction of reservoirs and inter-basin water transfer may cause irreversible damage to river ecosystems and hydrogeology and change the regional climate 4 , 15 , 17 , 21 , 22 . Desalination can have serious impacts on coastal zones and marine ecosystems 16 , 23 . Virtual water trade will affect regional economies, increase transport sector greenhouse gas emissions, and may exacerbate social inequality and affect the local environments where goods are produced 19 , 24 .

Water scarcity solutions may not be available to all cities. The improvement of water-use efficiency as well as other measures require the large-scale construction of water infrastructure, rapid development of new technologies, and large economic investment, which are difficult to achieve in low- and middle-income countries by 2050 14 . In addition, there will be 16 large cities, such as Delhi and Lahore, that cannot effectively solve the water scarcity problem via these measures (Supplementary Table  5 ). These cities also face several socioeconomic and environmental issues such as poverty, rapid population growth, and overextraction and pollution of groundwater 25 , 26 , which will further affect the achievement of SDG1 No Poverty , SDG3 Good Health and Well-being , SDG10 Reduced Inequalities , SDG14 Life below Water and SDG15 Life on Land .

To address global urban water scarcity and realize the SDGs, four directions are suggested. We need to:

Promote water conservation and reduce water demand. Our assessment provides evidence that the proposed water conservation efforts under SSP1&RCP2.6 are effective, which results in the least water-scarce urban population (34–241 million fewer compared to other SSPs&RCPs) at the global scale and can mitigate water scarcity for 68 (23.3%) large cities. The application of emerging water-saving technologies and the construction of sponge cities, smart cities, low-carbon cities, and resilient cities as well as the development of new theories and methods such as landscape sustainability science, watershed science, and geodesign will also play an important role for the further water demand reduction 5 , 6 , 27 , 28 , 29 . To implement these measures, the cooperation and efforts of scientists, policy makers and the public, as well as sufficient financial and material support are required. In addition, international cooperation must be strengthened in order to promote the development and dissemination of new technologies, assist in the construction of water infrastructure, and raise public awareness of water-savings, particularly in the Global South 30 .

Control population growth and urbanization in water-scarce regions by implementing relevant policies and regional planning. Urban population growth increases both water stress and the exposure of people, making it a key driver exacerbating global urban water scarcity 2 . Hence, the limitation of urban population growth in water-scarce areas can help to address this issue. According to our estimation, the control of urbanization under SSP3&RCP7.0, which has the lowest urbanization rate among four scenarios, can reduce the urban population subject to water scarcity by 93–207 million people compared with the business-as-usual scenario (SSP2&RCP4.5) and the rapid urbanization scenario (SSP5&RCP8.5), including 80–178 million people in India alone by 2050 (Fig.  2 ). To realize this pathway, policies that encourage family planning as well as tax incentives and regional planning for promoting population migration from water-scarce areas to other areas are needed 18 . In particular, for cities such as Delhi and Lahore that are both restricted by geography and socioeconomic disadvantage and have few options for dealing with water scarcity, there is an urgent need to control urban population growth and urbanization rates.

Mitigate climate change through energy efficiency and emissions abatement measures to avoid water resource impacts caused by the change in precipitation and the increase in evapotranspiration due to increased temperature. Our contribution analysis shows that the impacts of climate change on urban water scarcity is quite uncertain (ranging from a reduction of 72 million water-scarce urban people to an increase of 229 million) under different scenarios and GCMs (Fig.  4 ). On average, climate change under the business-as-usual scenario (SSP2&RCP4.5) will increase the global water-scarce urban population by 31 million in 2050. If the emissions reduction measures under SSP1&RCP2.6 are adopted, the increase in global water-scarce urban population due to climate change will be cut by half (16 million) in 2050. Thus, mitigating climate change is also important to reducing urban water scarcity. Considering that climate change in water-scarce areas would be affected by both internal and external impacts, mitigating climate change requires a global effort 31 .

Undertake integrated local sustainability assessment of water scarcity solutions. Our assessment reveals that 208 (71.2%) large cities may address water scarcity through seawater desalination, groundwater exploitation, reservoir construction, interbasin water transfer, and/or virtual water trade (Supplementary Table  5 ). While our results provide a guide at the global scale, city-level decisions about which measures to adopt to alleviate water scarcity involve very significant investments and should be supported by detailed local assessments of their relative effectiveness weighed against the potentially significant financial, environmental, and socio-economic costs. Integrated analyses are needed to quantify the effects of potential solutions on reducing water scarcity, their financial and resource requirements, and their potential impacts on socio-economic development for water-scarce cities and the sustainability of regional environments. To guard against the potential negative impacts of these measures, comprehensive impact assessments are required before implementing them, stringent regulatory oversight and continuous environmental monitoring are needed during and after their implementation, and policies and regulations should be established to achieve the sustainable supply and equitable distribution of water resources 24 , 32 .

Uncertainty is prevalent in our results due to limitations in the methodology and data used. First, constrained by data availability, in the evaluation of urban water scarcity in 2016 we used water demand/availability data for 2014 derived from the simulation results of the PCRGLOBWB 2 model, and only considered the inter-basin water transfers listed in City Water Map and the renewable groundwater simulated from the PCRGLOBWB 2 model instead of all available groundwater 3 , 33 . In the assessment of urban water scarcity and feasibility of potential solutions in 2050, we used water demand data derived from Hanasaki et al. 34 , in which irrigated area expansion, crop intensity change, and improvement in irrigation water efficiency were considered, but the change in irrigation to adapt to climate change as well as the impacts of energy systems (e.g., bio-energy production, mining, and fossil fuel extraction) on water demand were not fully considered 35 . Second, in order to maintain consistency and comparability of the water stress index (WSI) with the PCRGLOBWB 2 outputs 33 , environmental flow requirements were not considered. Following Mekonnen and Hoekstra 36 and Veldkamp et al. 37 (2017), we used an extreme threshold for WSI of 1.0 (where the entire water available is withdrawn for human use). If a more conservative threshold (e.g., WSI = 0.4 which is the threshold defining high water stress) was used, estimated global water scarcity and the urban population exposed to water stress would be much higher 7 .

In summary, global urban water scarcity is projected to intensify greatly from 2016 to 2050. By 2050, nearly half of the global urban population (1.693–2.373 billion) were projected to live in water-scarce regions, with about one quarter concentrated in India, and 19 (63%) global megacities are expected to face water scarcity. Increases in urban population and water demand drove this increase, while changes in water availability due to climate change compounded the problem. About 95% of all water-scarce cities could find at least one potential solution, but substantial investment is needed and solutions may have significant environmental and socioeconomic consequences. The aggravation of global urban water scarcity and the consequences of potential solutions will challenge the achievement of several SDGs. Therefore, there is an urgent need to further improve water-use efficiency, control urbanization in water-scarce areas, mitigate water availability decline due to climate change, and undertake integrated sustainability analyses of potential solutions to address urban water scarcity and promote sustainable development.

Description of scenarios used in this study

To assess future urban water scarcity, we used the scenario framework from the Scenario Model Intercomparison Project (ScenarioMIP), part of the International Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 6 (CMIP6) 38 . The scenarios have been developed to better link the Shared Socioeconomic Pathways (SSPs) and Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) to support comprehensive research in different fields to better understand global climatic and socioeconomic interactions 38 , 39 . We selected the four ScenarioMIP Tier 1 scenarios (i.e., SSP1&RCP2.6, SSP2&RCP4.5, SSP3&RCP7.0, and SSP5&RCP8.5) to evaluate future urban water scarcity. SSP1&RCP2.6 represents the sustainable development pathway of low radiative forcing level, low climate change mitigation challenges, and low social vulnerability. SSP2&RCP4.5 represents the business-as-usual pathway of moderate radiative forcing and social vulnerability. SSP3&RCP7.0 represents a higher level of radiative forcing and high social vulnerability. SSP5&RCP8.5 represents a rapid development pathway and very high radiative forcing 38 .

Estimation of urban water scarcity

To estimate urban water scarcity, we quantified the total urban population living in water-scarce areas 2 , 3 , 7 , 19 . Specifically, we first corrected the spatial distribution of the global urban population, then identified water-scarce areas around the world, and finally quantified the urban population in water-scarce areas at different scales (Supplementary Fig.  1 ).

Correcting the spatial distribution of global urban population

The existing global urban population data from the History Database of the Global Environment (HYDE) provided consistent information on historical and future population, but it has a coarse spatial resolution of 10 km (Supplementary Table  1 ) 40 , 41 . In addition, it was estimated using total population, urbanization levels, and urban population density, and does not align well with the actual distribution of urban land 42 . Hence, we allocated the HYDE global urban population data to high-resolution urban land data. We first obtained global urban land in 2016 from He et al. 42 . Since the scenarios used in existing urban land forecasts are now dated 43 , 44 , we simulated the spatial distribution of global urban land in 2050 under each SSP at a grid-cell resolution of 1km 2 using the zoned Land Use Scenario Dynamics-urban (LUSD-urban) model 45 , 46 , 47 (Supplementary Methods 1). The simulated urban expansion area in this study was significantly correlated with that in existing datasets (Supplementary Table  6 ). We then converted the global urban land raster layers for 2016 and 2050 into vector format to characterize the spatial extent of each city. The total population within each city was then summed and the remaining HYDE urban population cells located outside urban areas were allocated to the nearest city. Assuming that the population density within an urban area was homogeneous, we calculated the total population per square kilometer for all urban areas and converted this back to raster format at a spatial resolution of 1 km 2 . The new urban population data had much lower error than the original HYDE data (Supplementary Table  7 ).

Identification of global water-scarce areas

Annual and monthly WSI values were calculated at the catchment level in 2014 and 2050 as the ratio of water withdrawals (TWW) to availability (AWR) 33 . Due to limited data availability, we combined water-scarce areas in 2014 and the urban population in 2016 to estimate current urban water scarcity. WSI for catchment i for time t as:

For each catchment defined by Masutomi et al. 48 , the total water withdrawal (TWW t,i ) equalled the sum of water withdrawals (WW t , n , i ) for each sector n (irrigation, livestock, industrial, or domestic), while the water availability equalled the sum of available water resources for catchment i ( R t , i ), inflows/outflows of water resources due to interbasin water transfer ( \(\varDelta {{{{\mathrm{W{R}}}}}}_{t,i}\) ), and water resources from each upstream catchment j (WR t , i , j ):

The changes of water resources due to interbasin water transfer were calculated based on City Water Map produced by McDonald et al. 3 . The number of water resources from upstream catchment j was calculated based on its water availability (AWR t , i , j ) and water consumption for each sector n (WC t , n , i,j ) 49 :

For areas without upstream catchments, the number of available water resources was equal to the runoff. Following Mekonnen and Hoekstra 36 , and Hofste et al. 33 , we did not consider environmental flow requirements in calculating water availability.

Annual and monthly WSI for 2014 were calculated directly based on water withdrawal, water consumption, and runoff data from AQUEDUCT3.0 (Supplementary Table  1 ). The data from AQUEDUCT3.0 were selected because they are publicly available and the PCRaster Global Water Balance (PCRGLOBWB 2) model used in the AQUADUCT 3.0 can better represent groundwater flow and available water resources in comparison with other global hydrologic models (e.g., the Water Global Assessment and Prognosis (WaterGAP) model) 33 . The annual and monthly WSI for 2050 were calculated by combining the global water withdrawal data from 2000 to 2050 provided by the National Institute of Environmental Research of Japan (NIER) 34 and global runoff data from 2005 to 2050 from CMIP6 (Supplementary Table  1 ). Water withdrawal \({{{{{\mathrm{W{W}}}}}}}_{s,m,n,i}^{2050}\) in 2050 for each sector n (irrigation, industrial, or domestic), catchment i , and month m under scenario s was calculated based on water withdrawal in 2014 ( \({{{{{\mathrm{W{W}}}}}}}_{m,n,i}^{2014}\) ):

adjusted by the mean annual change in water withdrawal from 2000 to 2050 (WWR s , m , n , i ), calculated using the global water withdrawal for 2000 ( \({{{{{\mathrm{W{W}}}}}}}_{{{{{\mathrm{NIER}}}}},m,n,i}^{2000}\) ) and 2050 ( \({{{{{\mathrm{W{W}}}}}}}_{{{{{\mathrm{NIER}}}}},s,m,n,i}^{2050}\) ) provided by the NIER 34 :

Based on the assumption of a constant ratio of water consumption to water withdrawal in each catchment, water consumption in 2050 ( \({{{{{\mathrm{W{C}}}}}}}_{s,m,n,i}^{2050}\) ) was calculated as:

where \({{{{{\mathrm{W{C}}}}}}}_{m,n,i}^{2014}\) denotes water consumption in 2014. Due to a lack of data, we specified that water withdrawal for livestock remained constant between 2014 and 2050, and used water withdrawal simulation under SSP3&RCP6.0 provided by the National Institute of Environmental Research in Japan to approximate SSP3&RCP7.0.

To estimate water availability, we calculated available water resources ( \({R}_{s,m,i}^{2041-2050}\) ) for each catchment i and month m under scenario s for the period of 2041–2050 as:

based on the amount of available water resources with 10-year ordinary least square regression from 2005 to 2014 ( \({R}_{m,i}^{{{{{\mathrm{ols}}}}},\,2005-2014}\) ) from AQUEDUCT3.0 (Supplementary Table  1 ). \({\overline{R}}_{m,i}^{2005-2014}\) and \({\overline{R}}_{s,m,i}^{2041-2050}\) denote the multi-year average of runoff (i.e., surface and subsurface) from 2005 to 2014, and from 2041 to 2050, respectively, calculated using the average values of simulation results from 10 global climate models (GCMs) (Supplementary Table  2 ).

We then identified water-scarce catchments based on the WSI. Two thresholds of 0.4 and 1.0 have been used to identify water-scarce areas from WSI (Supplementary Table  4 ). While the 0.4 threshold indicates high water stress 49 , the threshold of 1.0 has a clearer physical meaning, i.e., that water demand is equal to the available water supply and environmental flow requirements are not met 36 , 37 . We adopted the value of 1.0 as a threshold representing extreme water stress to identify water-scarce areas. The catchments with annual WSI >1.0 were identified as perennial water-scarce catchments; the catchments with annual WSI equal to or <1.0 and WSI for at least one month >1.0 were identified as seasonal water-scarce catchments.

Estimation of global urban water scarcity

Based on the corrected global urban population data and the identified water-scarce areas, we evaluated urban water scarcity at the global and national scales via a spatial overlay analysis. The urban population exposed to water scarcity in a region (e.g., the whole world or a single country) is equal to the sum of the urban population in perennial water-scarce areas and that in seasonal water-scarce areas. Limited by data availability, we used water-scarce areas in 2014 and the urban population in 2016 to estimate current urban water scarcity. Projected water-scarce areas and urban population in 2050 under four scenarios were then used to estimate future urban water scarcity. In addition, we obtained the location information of large cities (with population >1 million in 2016) from the United Nations’ World Urbanization Prospects 1 (Supplementary Table  1 ) and identified those in perennial and seasonal water-scarce areas.

Uncertainty analysis

To evaluate the uncertainty across the 10 GCMs used in this study (Supplementary Table  2 ), we identified water-scarce areas and estimated urban water scarcity using the simulated runoff from each GCM under four scenarios. To perform the uncertainty analysis, the runoff in 2050 for each GCM was calculated using the following equation:

where \({R}_{s,g,m,i}^{2050}\) denotes the runoff of catchment i in month m in 2050 for GCM g under scenario s . \({R}_{g,m,i}^{2005-2014}\) and \({R}_{s,g,m,i}^{2041-2050}\) denote the multi-year average runoff from 2005 to 2014, and from 2041 to 2050, respectively, calculated using the simulation results from GCM g . Using the runoff for each GCM, the WSI in 2050 for each catchment was recalculated, water-scarce areas were identified, and the urban population exposed to water scarcity was estimated.

Contribution analysis

Based on the approach used by McDonald et al. 2 and Munia et al. 50 , we quantified the contribution of socioeconomic factors (i.e., water demand and urban population) and climatic factors (i.e., water availability) to the changes in global urban water scarcity from 2016 to 2050. To assess the contribution of socioeconomic factors ( \({{{{{\mathrm{Co{n}}}}}}}_{s,{{{{\mathrm{SE}}}}}}\) ), we calculated global urban water scarcity in 2050 while varying demand and population and holding catchment runoff constant ( \({{{{{\mathrm{UW{S}}}}}}}_{s,{{{{\mathrm{SE}}}}}}^{2050}\) ). Conversely, to assess the contribution of climate change ( \(Co{n}_{s,CC}\) ), we calculated scarcity while varying runoff and holding urban population and water demand constant ( \({{{{{\mathrm{UW{S}}}}}}}_{s,{{{{\mathrm{CC}}}}}}^{2050}\) ). Socioeconomic and climatic contributions were then calculated as:

Feasibility analysis of potential solutions to urban water scarcity

Potential solutions to urban water scarcity involve two aspects: increasing water availability and reducing water demand 2 . Approaches to increasing water availability include groundwater exploitation, seawater desalination, reservoir construction, and inter-basin water transfer; while approaches to reduce water demand include water-use efficiency measures (e.g., new cultivars for improving agricultural water productivity, sprinkler or drip irrigation for improving water-use efficiency, water-recycling facilities for improving domestic and industrial water-use intensity), limiting population growth, and virtual water trade 2 , 3 , 18 , 32 . To find the best ways to address urban water scarcity, we assessed the feasibility of these potential solutions for each large city (Supplementary Fig.  2 ).

First, we divided these solutions into seven groups according to scenario settings and the scale of implementation of each solution (Supplementary Fig.  2 ). Among the solutions assessed, water-use efficiency improvement, limiting population growth, and climate change mitigation were included in the simulation of water demand and water availability under the ScenarioMIP SSPs&RCPs simulations 34 . Here, we considered the measures within SSP1&RCP2.6 which included the lowest growth in population, irrigated area, crop intensity, and greenhouse gas emissions; and the largest improvements in irrigation, industrial, and municipal water-use efficiency 34 .

We then evaluated the feasibility of the seven groups of solutions according to the characteristics of water-scarce cities (Supplementary Fig.  2 ). Of the 526 large cities (with population >1 million in 2016 according to the United Nations’ World Urbanization Prospects), we identified those facing perennial or seasonal water scarcity under at least one scenario by 2050. We then selected the cities that no longer faced water scarcity under SSP1&RCP2.6 where the internal scenario assumptions around water-use efficiency, population growth, and climate change were sufficient to mitigate water scarcity. Following McDonald et al. 2 , 3 and Wada et al. 18 , we assumed that desalination can be a potential solution for coastal cities (distance from coastline <100 km) and groundwater exploitation can be feasible for cities where the groundwater table has not significantly declined. For cities in catchments facing seasonal water scarcity and with suitable topography, reservoir construction was identified as a potential solution. Inter-basin water transfer was identified as a potential solution for a city if nearby basins (i.e., in the same country, <1000 km away [the distance of the longest water transfer project in the world]) were not subject to water scarcity and had sufficient water resources to address the water scarcity for the city. Domestic virtual water trade was identified as a potential solution for a city if it was located in a country without national scale water scarcity. International water transfer or virtual water trade was identified as a feasible solution for cities in middle and high-income countries. Based on the above assumptions, we identified potential solutions to water scarcity in each city (see Supplementary Table  1 for the data used).

Data availability

All the data created in this study are openly available and the download information of supplementary data can be found in Github repositories with the identifier https://github.com/zfliu-bnu/Urban-water-scarcity . Other data are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Prof. N. Hanasaki (National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tsukuba, Japan) and Dr. Rutger W. Hofste (World Resources Institute, Washington, DC, USA) for providing global water demand/availability data. This work was supported by the Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program (Grant No. 2019QZKK0405) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41871185 & 41971270). It was also supported by the project from the State Key Laboratory of Earth Surface Processes and Resource Ecology, China.

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Chunyang He, Zhifeng Liu, Jianguo Wu, Xinhao Pan & Zihang Fang

School of Natural Resources, Faculty of Geographical Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China

School of Life Sciences and School of Sustainability, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA

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Centre for Integrative Ecology, Deakin University, Melbourne, Australia

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C.H., Z.L., J.W., and B.B. designed the study and planned the analysis. Z.L., X.P., Z.F., and J.L. did the data analysis. C.H., Z.L., and B.B. drafted the manuscript. All authors contributed to the interpretation of findings, provided revisions to the manuscript, and approved the final manuscript.

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He, C., Liu, Z., Wu, J. et al. Future global urban water scarcity and potential solutions. Nat Commun 12 , 4667 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25026-3

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Received : 30 October 2020

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-25026-3

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Tackling poor air quality: Lessons from three cities

Karin kemper, sameh wahba.

How can countries grow their economies and keep air pollution in check at the same time? A new World Bank report explores that tricky question, looking at the kinds of policies and actions three leading cities have taken to tackle poor local air quality, providing lessons for other cities. As we mark World Cities Day on October 31, this research seems more timely than ever.

Air pollution poses a major health risk globally, weighing on economies and people’s health. In 2017, an estimated 4.13 to 5.39 million people died from exposure to PM2.5 – one of the most harmful forms of air pollution.  That’s more than the total number of people who died from HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria combined. The cost associated with health impacts of outdoor PM2.5 air pollution is estimated to be US$5.7 trillion, equivalent to 4.8 percent of global GDP, according to World Bank research. The COVID-19 pandemic further highlights why addressing air pollution is so important, with early research pointing to links between air pollution, illness and death due to the virus.  On the flip side, the economic lockdowns caused by the pandemic, while devastating for communities, did result in some noticeable improvements in air quality but these improvements were inconsistent, particularly when it came to PM2.5. Improvements nonetheless show what is possible and provide new impetus for needed change.

“The COVID-19 pandemic further highlights why addressing air pollution is so important, with early research pointing to links between air pollution, illness and death due to the virus.”

Air pollution is especially high in some of the world’s fastest-growing urban areas, caused by a combination of more people, cars, fossil fuel and biomass burning, construction and poor disposal of waste, as well as rapid sprawl.   Agriculture is also an important source, underscoring the multi-faceted and transboundary nature of air pollution. How can cities overcome this issue? The latest World Bank report, Clearing the Air: A Tale of Three Cities , chose Beijing, New Delhi and Mexico City to assess how current and past efforts improved air quality.

In the early 1990s, Mexico City was known as the world’s most polluted city and while there are still challenges, air quality has vastly improved.  Daily concentration of SO2 – a contributor to PM2.5 concentrations – declined from 300 µg/m3 in the 1990s to less than 100 µg/m3 in 2018.  PM2.5 levels currently are well below the WHO interim target 1 (35 µg/m3).  More recently, Beijing was on a list of the world’s most polluted cities, but with targeted policies and programs, average PM2.5 levels fell from around 90 µg/m3 in 2013 to 58 µg/m3 in 2017.

New Delhi was successful in tackling poor air quality in the late 1990s, implementing an ambitious transportation fuel conversion program that provided some relief to its citizens. Unfortunately, air quality levels have deteriorated since then, leading the national and Delhi state governments to implement new action plans that address multiple sources of pollution. Early indications are that air quality is improving although pollution levels remain worrying high. For example, average PM2.5 levels in 2018 were an unhealthy 128 µg/m3.

From examining the trajectory of these cities, we identified three key elements for success:

Reliable, accessible and real-time information helps create momentum for reform

In Mexico City, careful analysis of the impacts of air pollution on children’s health galvanized public support for the city’s first air quality management strategy. India’s National Air Quality Index program put real time data on pollution levels in the hands of citizens, allowing them to take prevention measures and to demand change. And in Beijing, real time and public data from Continuous Emissions Monitors at industrial locations and power plants helped to hold plant operators and regulators accountable. 

Incentives to local governments, industry and households must be mainstreamed  

Federal governments need to proactively offer incentives to state and city governments to implement air quality management programs.   Failure to provide such incentives in India in the late 1990s resulted in the government developing plans but not implementing them. This led to India’s Supreme Court stepping in to force the government to implement policy measures. A recent government of India program to provide performance-based grants to cities to reward improvements in air quality is a step in the right direction.

Industry and households similarly need incentives. Beijing, for example, used national government funds to provide subsidies for end-of-pipe controls and boiler retrofits in power plants and factories, rebates for scrapping older vehicles and payments to households that replace coal-fired heating stoves for gas or electric systems. Mexico City gave direct subsidies to drivers of old taxis in exchange for retiring and scrapping inefficient vehicles, along with access to low-cost loans to renovate or buy more efficient vehicles. Fiscal incentives and exemptions from emergency restrictions that require industrial plants to curtail their production when air pollution reaches high levels were also introduced.  In the late 1990s, Delhi’s government provided financial incentives to enable 10,000 buses, 20,000 taxis, and 50,000 three-wheelers to convert to Compressed Natural Gas, which has lower emissions than other fossil fuels.

An integrated approach with effective institutions working across sectors and jurisdictions is critical

Air pollution knows no boundaries and requires an airshed-based management perspective. This in turn demands an approach that cuts across jurisdictions and authorities.  The Megalopolis Environment Commission in Mexico brought together federal authorities from the ministries of environment, health, and transport with local authorities from Mexico City and 224 municipalities from the neighboring states of Mexico, Hidalgo, Morelos, Puebla, and Tlaxcala. Together, they jointly defined an airshed for Mexico City, and took coordinated action to improve air quality. Poor air quality comes from many sources – households, rural and urban dwellers, the transport industry, the power sector and agriculture – and an institutional structure is needed that facilitates coordination across all these sectors. In China, the ministries of Environmental Protection (now the Ministry of Ecology and Environment), Industry and Information Technology, Finance, Housing and Rural Development, along with the National Development and Reform Commission and National Energy Administration, worked together to issue a five-year action plan for air pollution prevention and control for the entire Jing-Jin-Ji region that surrounds Beijing and includes the municipality of Beijing, municipality of Tianjin, the province of Hebei, and small parts of Henan, Shanxi, inner Mongolia, and Shandong.

What’s encouraging about this new work is that it shows that with the right policies, incentives and information, air quality can be improved substantially, particularly as countries work to grow back cleaner after the pandemic. There is no silver bullet though and tackling air pollution requires sustained political commitment through comprehensive programs and across sectors.  At the World Bank, we are committed to working with governments as they manage air pollution, providing analytical work, technical assistance and the lending required to support cities to move in the right direction.

Download Report: Clearing the Air: A Tale of Three Cities

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Clear the Air: 11 Solutions to Air Pollution in Cities

By Annie Granger Categories: Environment & Nature August 11, 2023, 3:21 PM

From small lifestyle changes to large-scale policy interventions, discover 11 actionable solutions to air pollution that can make a huge difference.

Air pollution in cities is a growing concern that poses a serious threat to both human health and the environment. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 90% of the global population is exposed to air pollution levels that exceed safe limits , and the situation is particularly dire in urban areas. Considering the many human activities that contribute to air pollution , solutions are seriously needed.

Exposure to air pollution has been linked to health problems like respiratory illness, heart disease and cancer. Furthermore, air pollution contributes to climate change and damages ecosystems. Fortunately, there are many simple remedies that individuals, communities and policymakers can implement to reduce air pollution in cities. From improving public transportation to creating urban forests and encouraging plant-based eating, embracing these 11 solutions to air pollution can reduce the pollutants in the air and create a cleaner, greener world for generations to come.

Learn more about different types of pollution and how to combat them:

• What Is Noise Pollution? 5 Examples and Solutions
• Drowning in Plastic: Ocean Pollution & How to Stop It
• What Is Light Pollution? Definition, Causes and Impact
• 10 Solutions to Water Pollution in Our Daily Lives
• The Top 5 Human Activities That Contribute to Air Pollution
• Thermal Pollution: What Is It and What’s the Damage?
• What Causes Ocean Acidification? Can It Be Reversed?

1. Bicycle-Friendly Infrastructure

The problem with traditional transportation methods — like cars — is that they rely on fossil fuels, releasing toxic fumes into the air. Bicycles, however, need nothing more than human power to get you from point A to point B. The wind in your hair, the sun on your face and the freedom of the open road are all yours to enjoy when you travel by bike . Learn how to bike in the winter  and the basics of cycling in the rain , and nothing will be able to stop you.

Trends show that more and more people are riding bicycles in cities . By encouraging bicycle-friendly infrastructure , cities can reduce air pollution and improve the health of their citizens. Bicycle-friendly infrastructure includes dedicated bike lanes, bike racks and other amenities, all of which make cycling a more appealing alternative to cars.

Real-life example: Portland, Oregon, has an extensive network of bike lanes and paths  and has implemented policies that promote cycling as a viable means of transportation. While more work is certainly needed, this city is a shining example of how a commitment to cycling can make a positive impact on air pollution and create a more liveable, sustainable city.

2. Green Spaces and Urban Forests: Natural Solutions to Air Pollution

In the middle of a bustling concrete jungle, green spaces and urban forests are havens of nature — places where trees, plants and other living things thrive. Additionally, green spaces and urban forests provide shade and create spaces for recreation and relaxation. They’re also great spots for urban camping .

But green spaces are more than just nice to look at. They also serve as a simple solution to air pollution in big cities. Trees and plants purify the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen. The more green spaces and urban forests a city has, the more these natural air purifiers work around the clock to clear smog.

For more information about the many benefits of woods and forests, check out: What Is a Forest? Describing Our Most Important Ecosystems .

Real-life example: New York City has implemented an ambitious program to increase the number of trees in the city by one million over the next decade . The city has also created a network of green spaces and parks, including the High Line, which repurposes an old elevated railway into a public park, and the Brooklyn Bridge Park, which features over 500 trees and other greenery.

3. Public Transportation

Promises of speed, convenience and freedom keep us attached to our cars. But the truth is that cars simply can’t live up to any of those promises. Among the many important reasons not to own a car is that they are leading contributors to air pollution. Public transportation is a simple solution . The fewer cars on the road, the less air pollution is created.

Public transportation eases traffic congestion, improves traffic flow and shortens commute times. Furthermore, public transit is more efficient in terms of carbon emissions per passenger and is a simple, inexpensive way to reduce your carbon footprint .

Real-life examples: Cities like New York, Chicago and LA have established public transportation systems that are heavily used by residents and visitors alike. In fact, New York’s famed public transport system is the largest in North America and one of the largest worldwide. Accessible and convenient public transportation is one of the most widely beneficial solutions to air pollution.

You might also enjoy: The 15-Minute-City: How Real Can It Be? and LA’s Public Transportation: How to Use It & 6 Cool Places to Go .

4. Carpooling and Ride-Sharing: Budget-Friendly Solutions to Air Pollution

If public transportation and cycling don’t work for you, join a carpool or ride-share to minimize your contribution to air pollution. Carpooling and sharing allow travelers to share a ride to a common destination.

Similar to other options for driving in the city, this approach reduces the number of cars on the roads and, thus, traffic congestion and idling time. Carpooling is also associated with many other social benefits , including tighter-knit communities, saving on fuel costs and reduced demand for parking infrastructure.

Real-life examples: New York City, San Francisco  and Seattle have implemented carpooling and sharing programs in efforts to find solutions to air pollution. These programs are fantastic for the environment and for our communities and pocketbooks.

The worst places to visit are those that are already inundated with tourists, putting a strain on locals and the…

5. Plant-based Eating

What we eat significantly affects our health and the environment. One significant source of pollution is the release of greenhouse gases like methane and carbon dioxide during the process of animal farming. These gases are produced during the digestion process of livestock and are released into the atmosphere through manure storage and application. Consuming more plant-based foods greatly reduces emissions , ultimately leading to cleaner air.

The production of meat and animal products also contributes to air pollution through energy consumption, chemical use and waste disposal.

Every journey begins with a single step, and every change starts with a single person. By adopting a plant-based diet or reducing your meat intake a bit and eating a flexitarian diet , you make a conscious decision to reduce your own carbon footprint and inspire others, creating a ripple effect of positive change. You can also support local farmers and businesses that prioritize sustainable practices, further lowering air pollution in your part of the world. Plus, who wants to support the horrors of factory farming ?

Try going vegan or looking into the many benefits of going vegetarian — as long as you’re mindful to eat a balanced diet with a variety of foods, your health and the Earth will thank you. Want to make an even bigger difference? Buy organic produce whenever time and money allow.

Real-life examples: The plant-based movement is gaining traction worldwide. Some cities, like San Francisco and New York , have started Meat-Free Monday programs, which ask residents to go meat-free for just one day a week. It’s not just about reducing emissions. A plant-based diet can also help people be happier and healthier. Change can grow into a movement that transforms the world, even if it starts with one person.

Precision fermentation may have the potential to transform our current food system. Could a new cellular agriculture really turn microbes…

6. Alternative Fuel Vehicles: Futuristic Solutions to Air Pollution

The transportation of the future is here now, and it is powered by electricity, hydrogen and other clean fuels . These vehicles produce less — or no — harmful emissions compared to traditional gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles. Learn about the pros and cons of electric vehicles in our guides, How Do Electric Cars Work? The Inner Workings Explained and E-Mobility Pros and Cons: The Benefits and Challenges of Electric Vehicles .

Using alternative fuel vehicles for personal and public transportation can significantly lower air pollution, harmful airborne particulates and smog.

Real-life examples: Several cities in the US have already taken steps to increase the number of alternative fuel vehicles on their roads. For example, California has set a goal of having 5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2030. As of 2021, California has the highest number of alternative fuel vehicles in the US, with over 700,000 electric and hybrid vehicles registered in the state.

7. Solar and Wind Energy

Cars and transportation aren’t the only culprits when it comes to air pollution and smog. According to the WHO, “unclean” energy sources , such as coal, gas and oil, are major contributors to air pollution in urban areas, releasing harmful pollutants like sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides and particulate matter when burned and creating toxic breathing conditions.

The sun’s rays and strong winds can be powerful sources of clean energy used to power our cities and homes. These renewable energy sources produce little to no harmful emissions, making them an excellent alternative to fossil fuels . By harnessing the power of the wind and sun, cities can reduce their dependence on fossil fuels and improve air quality, taking a step towards a sustainable future.

Real-life examples: Several cities in the US have made significant progress in promoting different types of renewable energies like solar and wind energy. Las Vegas has even set a goal to power the city entirely with renewable energy sources by 2050 and has already started installing solar panels to help it reach that goal. The many benefits of solar panels include the long-term generation of renewable energy and reduced reliance on fossil fuels.

Solar energy is a renewable form of energy. We’ll discuss the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy and how it…

8. Waste Reduction and Recycling: Easy Solutions to Air Pollution

Waste reduction and recycling can reduce air pollution in cities by lowering emissions from landfills, incineration, production and transportation. Do you know where your trash goes?

By reducing the amount of waste we produce, we can reduce the amount of air pollution created and help shape a cleaner, healthier environment. On an individual level, that means:

• learning what you can compost and what you can’t to reduce food waste
• avoiding basic recycling mistakes and using less plastic, or living a life without plastic
• implementing ways to be more sustainable and getting closer to a zero-waste lifestyle
• supporting local recycling programs, donating or reselling gently-used items and buying second-hand whenever possible — read 6 Great Places to Buy and Sell Second-hand Clothes Online for ideas on how to start

Real-life examples: Many cities in the United States have embraced this solution, implementing recycling programs and encouraging residents to reduce their waste. For instance, Seattle achieved their goal of recycling 70% of its waste by 2022 by implementing programs like composting and curbside recycling.

9. Sustainable Building Practices: Long-term Solutions to Air Pollution

The buildings we live in reflect our values and aspirations. Sustainable building practices and eco-friendly housing can create beautiful, efficient, clean cities. But how exactly can it provide solutions to air pollution?

The answer is simple. The need for power plants to burn fossil fuels to generate electricity can be reduced if we design and construct buildings to minimize their energy consumption and maximize their use of renewable energy sources and sustainable building materials . This leads to a reduction in the harmful pollutants getting released into the air.

Real-life examples: A number of cities have taken steps to reduce air pollution by implementing sustainable building practices. In San Francisco, all new buildings must meet strict environmental standards , including installing solar panels or green roofs. Meanwhile, in Seattle, the municipal government has established incentives for developers to build green buildings. The city also runs a program to recognize environmentally friendly buildings with certification.

Interested in green design? Take a look at these 12 Awesome Examples of Green Architecture in the US.

10. Green Roofs

Cities trap heat and pollutants in the air, leading to smog and health problems for their inhabitants. However, every roof is a potential oasis of clean air and greenery when they are covered with vegetation , grasses and even small trees to help mitigate the effects of urbanization.

Installing green roofs creates pockets of natural beauty that can help to reduce the urban heat island effect, which occurs when cities become significantly hotter than their surrounding rural areas due to the lack of greenery and overabundance of heat-absorbing material . Green roofs cool the surrounding air and provide natural insulation, subsequently also reducing the need for energy-intensive air conditioning.

Real-life examples: New York, Chicago and Portland have implemented green roofs as a solution to air pollution. As part of its sustainability efforts, New York has even mandated that certain new buildings must incorporate green roofs or solar panels.

11. Education and Awareness About the Environment

Education and awareness are crucial in the fight against air pollution and climate change. Education gives individuals and corporations the chance to act now to establish effective, long-term solutions to air pollution. While we need to be mindful to avoid supporting greenwashing , there are many companies and environmental organizations trying to make a difference — or at least avoid contributing to the problem.

Awareness campaigns encourage companies to adopt environmentally friendly business practices, such as investing in cleaner energy sources or reducing waste in their production processes. An informed public can also put pressure on their elected officials to enact laws and regulations that protect air quality.

Education and awareness won’t solve the problem of air pollution entirely. Still, they are a key part of the solution, inspiring individuals and companies to act and pushing governments to enact necessary laws and regulations.

Here are some resources to get you started:

• Environmental Activism: How to Get Involved
• The 16 Best Movies & Documentaries About Sustainability & the Environment
• 11 Educational YouTube Channels That Change Your Perspective
• The Top 16 Universities With Sustainability Programs
• The 8 Best Books About Climate Change

The world’s greenest cities can serve as examples for urban planners. As the climate crisis looms, it’s more important than…

Read more :

• 15 Everyday Ways to Prevent Climate Change
• Are You Guilty of Performative Activism?
• Renewable Energy Certificate: How ‘Green’ Are They, Really?

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Home — Essay Samples — Environment — Plastic Bags — Saving Our City: One Plastic Bag at a Time

Saving Our City: One Plastic Bag at a Time

• Categories: Plastic Bags Pollution

About this sample

Words: 592 |

Published: Sep 7, 2023

Words: 592 | Page: 1 | 3 min read

Table of contents

Introduction, the harmful effects of plastic pollution, the movement towards change, benefits of reducing plastic bag usage, individual responsibility and action, overcoming challenges and resistance, future prospects and sustainability.

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Air Pollution and Health in Cities

Population-weighted annual average pollutant concentrations and associated health burden in cities in 2019. Toggle to select pollutant type/health estimates.

Population-weighted annual average pollutant concentrations and associated health burden in cities, in 2019.

Cities are not only at the front line for air pollution impacts, but also for progress and interventions.

Cities are often hotspots for poor air quality. As rapid urbanization increases the number of people breathing dangerously polluted air, city-level data can help inform targeted efforts to curb urban air pollution and improve public health.

Explore air quality and health data for your city using our new interactive app here .

Read the full report:

POLLUTION PRIORITIES

Most cities have polluted air, but the type of pollution varies from place to place.

DIVERGENT TRENDS

Local policies have improved air quality in some cities, while pollution has worsened in others.

Some of the most polluted cities lack air quality monitoring stations and health data.

It’s a simple fact: Most urban residents around the world are breathing unhealthy levels of pollution. While there are many forms of air pollution, two main pollutants are particularly important in urban environments: ambient (outdoor) fine particle air pollution (PM 2.5 ) and nitrogen dioxide (NO 2 ).

Ambient PM 2.5 comes from vehicle emissions, coal-burning power plants, industrial emissions, and other sources. Because of their size – 2.5 micrograms or smaller – these tiny particles can easily get into the lungs, and in some cases, the bloodstream and impact our health in various ways . Nitrogen dioxide comes from many of these same sources, with vehicle traffic being a main source of NO 2 in urban areas.

Research suggests NO 2 exposure is not only linked to aggravation of asthma symptoms but is also linked to the development of asthma in children.

Comparing levels of these pollutants in cities around the world reveals strikingly different geographic patterns. PM 2.5 pollution tends to be highest in low- and middle-income countries, whereas NO 2 levels are high across countries of all income levels.

Population-weighted annual average pollutant concentrations in the five most populous cities in each region in 2019.

PM 2.5 exposures are highest in populous cities located in South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, West Sub-Saharan Africa, and Andean and Central Latin America. Cities in high-income regions see significantly lower levels of PM 2.5 pollution.

Almost all people living in large cities are breathing high levels of NO 2 .

• The most populous cities across all 21 regions (81 out of 103 cities) reported NO 2 exposures higher than the global average of 15.5 µg/m 3 ; the only exceptions were cities in Oceania, Australia, and Central and East sub-Saharan Africa.
• Four large cities — Beirut, Lebanon; Shenyang, China; Shanghai, China; and Moscow, Russia, collectively home to over 53 million people — had NO 2 levels that exceeded even the least stringent WHO guideline (40 µg/m 3 ).

Overall, many cities have seen persistently high — and even rising — levels of air pollution over the past decade. PM 2.5 exposures remained stagnant in many cities from 2010 to 2019. In 2019, 41% of the cities still experience PM 2.5 levels that exceed even the least-stringent WHO PM 2.5 interim target of 35 µg/m 3 , compared to 43% in 2010.

NO 2 exposures have been falling in many cities, particularly in high-income regions and in East Asia. Globally, NO 2 exposures are heading in an encouraging direction as 211 more cities met the WHO guideline of 10 µg/m 3 in 2019 compared to 2010. However, NO 2 pollution is worsening in some other regions.

Percentage of cities by population-weighted annual average pollutant concentration in 2010 and 2019.

However, interventions targeting pollution at the local scale have successfully improved air quality in some cities. For example,

• Beijing, China, reduced its PM 2.5 levels by 36% in just five years thanks to controls on power plant and industrial emissions along with new fuel quality and emission standards for vehicles. MORE
• London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone initiative delivered a 36% reduction in NO 2 in the first six months after its launch in 2019. MORE
• Promisingly, mayors from more than 45 cities around the world have signed the C40 Clean Air Accelerator and made a commitment to provide healthy air for everyone and implement substantive clean air policies by 2025. MORE

Essay on Pollution for Students and Children

500+ words essay on pollution.

Pollution is a term which even kids are aware of these days. It has become so common that almost everyone acknowledges the fact that pollution is rising continuously. The term ‘pollution’ means the manifestation of any unsolicited foreign substance in something. When we talk about pollution on earth, we refer to the contamination that is happening of the natural resources by various pollutants . All this is mainly caused by human activities which harm the environment in ways more than one. Therefore, an urgent need has arisen to tackle this issue straightaway. That is to say, pollution is damaging our earth severely and we need to realize its effects and prevent this damage. In this essay on pollution, we will see what are the effects of pollution and how to reduce it.

Effects of Pollution

Pollution affects the quality of life more than one can imagine. It works in mysterious ways, sometimes which cannot be seen by the naked eye. However, it is very much present in the environment. For instance, you might not be able to see the natural gases present in the air, but they are still there. Similarly, the pollutants which are messing up the air and increasing the levels of carbon dioxide is very dangerous for humans. Increased level of carbon dioxide will lead to global warming .

Further, the water is polluted in the name of industrial development, religious practices and more will cause a shortage of drinking water. Without water, human life is not possible. Moreover, the way waste is dumped on the land eventually ends up in the soil and turns toxic. If land pollution keeps on happening at this rate, we won’t have fertile soil to grow our crops on. Therefore, serious measures must be taken to reduce pollution to the core.

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Types of Pollution

• Air Pollution
• Water Pollution
• Soil Pollution

How to Reduce Pollution?

After learning the harmful effects of pollution, one must get on the task of preventing or reducing pollution as soon as possible. To reduce air pollution, people should take public transport or carpool to reduce vehicular smoke. While it may be hard, avoiding firecrackers at festivals and celebrations can also cut down on air and noise pollution. Above all, we must adopt the habit of recycling. All the used plastic ends up in the oceans and land, which pollutes them.

So, remember to not dispose of them off after use, rather reuse them as long as you can. We must also encourage everyone to plant more trees which will absorb the harmful gases and make the air cleaner. When talking on a bigger level, the government must limit the usage of fertilizers to maintain the soil’s fertility. In addition, industries must be banned from dumping their waste into oceans and rivers, causing water pollution.

To sum it up, all types of pollution is hazardous and comes with grave consequences. Everyone must take a step towards change ranging from individuals to the industries. As tackling this problem calls for a joint effort, so we must join hands now. Moreover, the innocent lives of animals are being lost because of such human activities. So, all of us must take a stand and become a voice for the unheard in order to make this earth pollution-free.

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FAQs on Pollution

Q.1 What are the effects of pollution?

A.1 Pollution essentially affects the quality of human life. It degrades almost everything from the water we drink to the air we breathe. It damages the natural resources needed for a healthy life.

Q.2 How can one reduce pollution?

A.2 We must take individual steps to reduce pollution. People should decompose their waster mindfully, they should plant more trees. Further, one must always recycle what they can and make the earth greener.

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Pollution In Our City (Essay Sample)

Pollution in our city.

Once upon a time, simple country farmers dreamed of a better life and, wealth and sophistication came through technological developments and expansion of commerce and trade.  Nowadays, we are living the dream of the past.  However, most urban city dwellers could only dream of having a day off from work to have time for nature trips and escapades, hiking up the mountains, diving pristine waters, trekking across vast green meadows, or even living in a farm, in their longing to escape the toxic city life and polluted environment.  And then, even these tourist spots for relaxation are becoming less and less lovely.  The waters turned dark and the air turned into poison.  In the future, when more cities multiply, sprawl, and reach heights, will there still be a place to breath and taste life’s goodness?

City life represents the desire to live more – more wealth, comfort, and erudition.  People always want more out of life.  To make more, we get more, often, without consideration about giving back to nature.  As more and more new products come out into market, the more we buy, waste and throw out.  Nature gives us good things, but we return the favors with ingratitude and harm.  Nature is designed for sharing to all living things, but we take it all as if the Earth all belongs to us.  We take its trees and oil deposits to fuel cars and to make plastics, we steal food from a wide host of animals and choke them to death with indigestible solid wastes and toxins.

Cities are areas of high population density.  A place needs to reach a certain number of residents to be declared as a city.  With high populations of people who have big desires, wants, and cravings, cities are areas of high wealth, high consumption and consequently, high output of wastes – so huge that it cannot be contained in the city and are rather thrown out into poorer areas and less populated zones.

The rich cities in rich developed countries can afford to throw their wastes as far into the other side of the world of developing countries.  They also locate their high waste producing factories to countries where there is cheap labor – exploiting both the human resources and natural resources of the cities of poorer countries.  The rich cities can afford advanced technology for processing waste but it takes about a decade before new technologies reach the lower ends of the market.

Environmental education and campaigns rise from here and there.  Science research and technological inventions and innovations somehow promise hope.  And yet, nobody still found the cure to the root of the problem – man’s desire to receive for the self alone – or maybe, there is already but mankind refuses to recover from its illness.

Would our fate really be like that of the yeasts in a flask, with a population growth curve that exponentially grows, reaches a peak and then declines into extinction, after they have used up the nutrients in the flask and their accumulated excreta poisoned them all?  Is it how things naturally happen after all or can there really exist such a thing as sustainable development?  Some people still dream of a greener planet, while some people dream of the red planet.  Some believe the Earth can be renewed, while some are on their way to go to Mars.

Development entails higher order, and by law of entropy, this creates disorder in the surroundings.  However, mankind’s thirst for and expression of creativity cannot be stopped.  Nevertheless, cities will wither and flourish as life learns to adapt to changes, and the Earth will go on turning.

Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Introduction.

We often consider urbanisation to be a positive phenomenon. To a large extent, it is rightly so. We know how remote areas get developed, and huge infrastructure is set up as part of urbanisation. This leads to the creation of many educational and job opportunities so that people can lead better lives. Well, urbanisation sounds really interesting, right? But we must also be aware of how it contributes to pollution, and this essay on pollution due to urbanisation will be helpful to know more about it.

Children are familiar with air pollution , water pollution, and land pollution. It is time that we teach them how urbanisation leads to pollution and causes harm to the environment. Like building schools, hospitals and factories, and roads are also developed as part of urbanisation, increasing the chances of pollution by air, water or land. This short essay on pollution due to urbanisation will delve more into this topic.

Negative Effects of Urbanisation

Due to urbanisation, factories and industries are springing up in different places, and the number of vehicles on the road is increasing. The air and gases emitted from factories and vehicles contaminate the atmosphere, thus leading to pollution. In this essay on pollution due to urbanisation, we will see how urbanisation is a major threat to the environment .

The air in cities has become toxic due to the harmful gases and smoke given out by automobiles and factories. Besides, household and industrial wastes are dumped into the water bodies, thus making them unsafe for consumption and use.

We will also see other ways in which urbanisation is causing pollution in the environment through this short essay on pollution due to urbanisation. Trees are cut down to build houses and buildings, and there is a significant rise in noise pollution and land pollution because of urbanisation. Eventually, people will struggle to get clean food and water for survival and suffer from many health issues. Moreover, our environment will deteriorate as all our natural resources will get depleted, resulting in phenomena like global warming , deforestation and acid rain, among others.

Ways to Reduce Pollution Due to Urbanisation

We dream of making every village a city by constructing schools, buildings, offices and roads. Urbanisation is seen as a sign of development, and hence, we believe it to be good for us. But it is equally important to address the issues of pollution to truly enjoy the benefits of urbanisation. This essay on pollution due to urbanisation will now discuss some effective measures to curb pollution by various means.

By fixing leaky pipes, segregating dry/wet and paper/plastic waste, reusing plastic bottles, and using biogas for cooking, we can limit the pollution from households. Besides, we can ensure proper disposal of industrial waste without dumping it in water or land. Industries must also take care to use non-toxic chemicals or materials and set up efficient machines. Thus, this short essay on pollution due to urbanisation emphasises taking active steps to reduce pollution.

Urbanisation is an important developmental measure for any country, but we must ensure that it takes place without damaging the environment. Let us also make our children aware of this problem through this essay on pollution due to urbanisation. You can check out more amazing essays, stories , GK questions, and worksheets for kids on our website.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is urbanisation.

Urbanisation is the process of turning rural villages and areas into modern cities by constructing roads, buildings, schools and offices.

Does urbanisation cause pollution?

Since urbanisation involves setting up factories and building roads, pollution is bound to happen through the air, water, soil, land, and noise.

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Essay on “Pollution in Cities” Complete Essay for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation and other classes.

                               Pollution in Cities                                               

One of the greatest menaces of modern time is pollution. Pollution may be of two types – Environment or air pollution and noise pollution.

Air pollution is caused by smoke coming out of chimneys of factories, mills, workshops etc. in industrial areas. It is a great danger to health and life. With rapid industrialization of major cities air pollution is increasing very rapidly and is of grave concern to us.

In cities a major cause of pollution is vehicular traffic. The emission from thousands of vehicles has made life of the people very difficult. The poisonous gasses emitted by vehicles are the cause of many types of diseases.

Because of large influx of population into cities the quantity of garbage is increasing. This is dumped into rivers thereby polluting water. This endangers aquatic life and also contaminates drinking water.

Noise pollution is caused by blowing of horns, rumblings from factories and running of vehicles, aeroplanes, trains, etc. loudspeakers are also becoming a major source of noise pollution in modern times.

The government should address the problem of pollution on a war footing. Various measures like using alternate non polluting fuels like CNG, allowing vehicles conforming to EURO II $ III norms only, phasing out of vehicles which are more than ten years old, cleaning of rivers, not allowing factories to dump garbage and wastes into rivers, banning of blowing of horns and encouraging public transport so as to reduce the number of private vehicles should be taken and strictly implemented. Strict penalties should be imposed on defaulters.

In primitive societies there was no such problem. People used to go on foot or travelled on bullock carts or horse drawn carriages. People did not have to live with pollution, they were happy and healthy. They hurry of life today and fast moving means of transport has enveloped man with pollution so much that the has no hope of enjoying free and pure air. In view of this grave situation it is our duty as responsible citizens to help our Government in reducing and controlling pollution.

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Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

Table of Contents

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization: Pollution is one of the biggest issues that we as a society face today. The everyday deteriorating environment is a big challenge for humans. The mixing of any harmful substance or pollutants in our natural environment is called pollution. It is due to human activity, many contaminators get introduced into the natural environment thereby polluting it to harmful levels. There are many reasons why pollution occurs and one of the major one is urbanization.

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Long and Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

In this section we have tried to cover all aspects of pollution due to urbanization in varying lengths to help you with the same in your exam. You can select any Pollution due to Urbanization essay as per your need:

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization – Essay 1 (200 words)

Our mother earth is choking and we are helpless. We face many challenges today and one of them is pollution. When any contaminating substance is added in our environment and pollutes our natural resources called pollution. There are many reasons of pollution and human beings are responsible for most of it. Our activities have depleted our natural resources and our natural habitat.

One of the main reasons of human pollution is urbanization. When human being started establishing cities and industrialization happened than the level of pollution started increasing. The harsh reality of urbanization is that many beautiful valleys, mountains, hills stations and forests have been converted into vessels of pollution. The needs of human beings kept on increasing day by day and to satisfy those needs we exploited our mother earth. Trees were cut down, rivers and lakes were contaminated and natural reserves were misused.

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The result today is that we live in highly polluted cities where day to day life is becoming increasingly tuff. We face many health issues due to this urban pollution and the worst part is that we do not even realize that. It is high time that we must now adopt ways to curb this pollution and create a better world for our future generations.

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in India – Essay 2 (300 words)

Introduction

The days are gone when kids would roam freely on streets and birds would fly in the sky. Such a nice scene has been very rare to see, nowadays. We should blame ourselves only! India was a land of villages; our culture arose from villages only. But than we did something so bad that we are paying the price of it even today. We have replaced the major part of earth with factories, mills and building causing pollution .

There are Various Levels at which Urban Pollution is happening like:

Types and Causes of Urban Pollution

• Air Pollution: The air in the urban areas is always polluted with harmful substances and it is becoming hazardous day by day to breathe. The air in the cities is choking. The smoke from automobiles, factories and power generators make the air unhealthy. There are other factors also like chemical spills and other toxic gases that contaminate the air.
• Water Pollution: As it is there are very less natural water sources in the urban areas and the ones that are there are getting increasingly polluted. There is a lot of disposal in the lakes and rivers like household & industrial disposal. A lot of waste gets mixed with rain and washed into the waters .
• Soil Pollution: The mixing of toxins in the soil is disturbing the eco-system.
• Noise Pollution: Urban areas are one of the noisiest ones. Various sources of noise pollution include traffic noises, loud-speakers and other unwanted noises cause many health issues .
• Radioactive Pollution: The accidental leakage by nuclear power plants poses a big threat.
• Visual Pollution: The over exposure of visuals in the cities in the form of signs, billboards, screens, high intensity lights etc. are also quite disturbing .
• Other than these there is also ‘Thermal pollution’ that is caused by excessive amount of heat trapped in earth’s atmosphere.

Conclusion:

The various means of pollution in urban areas can lead to many health issues in the people living in cities. We are everyday exposed to more than one of these health issues sources.

Essay about Problems Due To Urbanization – Essay 3 (400 words)

We achieved a big step when we urbanized our villages but it came with a price. We surely have a luxurious and a comfortable life in the modern day cities and towns but it has dent a big hole in the health of our environment. It has brought with it many problems that we face. The developing cities saw a rapid growth and this urbanization brought with it a web of difficulties and we seem to be stuck in them.

Problems Due to Urbanization

The need of free space to build roads, buildings and bridges etc made a massive deforestation happen. The trees were cut down, the fields were cleared and space was created to accommodate the ever rising population. It is a no-brainer that cutting of trees is a major reason of pollution. The high density of population created a lack of everything like space, natural resources like water, coal etc.

The interaction of urban population with environment caused some serious problems. The consumption patterns and the lifestyle of urban population changed the environment massively. The urban population consumes more food, energy and water. The air in urban areas is much more polluted than the rural ones. This is mainly because of the use of automobiles and building up of industries and factories that pollute the air at an increasing rate. Almost everything that we use works on electricity. The need for electricity in the cities is always rising and to meet that more power plants are build and that pollutes the air.

The lakes, rivers and any other water bodies in urban areas is always polluted by the dump of industrial waste and sewage. The marine life faces a lot of danger. We cannot ignore that noise pollution is one of the major causes of stress related issues in urban population. More and more trees are cut down to meet the needs of urban people and in exchange very less tress are planted. The use of plastic is another major reason of degradation of environment .

Studies show that urbanization is one of the major causes of depleting natural resources. We are constantly damaging our mother earth and the result is high pollution levels in the cities and towns. It is not possible to reverse the damage that we have already done but we can surely take some preventive measures and control the further damage. It is high time that we take some serious steps to save our planet and leave a better tomorrow .

Essay on Pollution Caused by Urbanization and Its Solutions – Essay 4 (500 words)

The advancement of technology and industrialization has caused the rapid growth in our lifestyle. Long back we started developing cities that are well equipped with all the facilities. The process of urbanization created a big dent in the health of our environment. The natural resources were depleted and this excessive use of technology and energy became a major source of pollution and today we live in a world that is highly polluted and unfit living .

Pollution Caused by Urbanization

There are various pollution that are caused by urbanization like air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution, thermal pollution, global warming, deforestation etc. It is high time that now we must adopt ways and means by which we can improve the health of the environment.

There is a Number of Solutions that we can apply and create a Better Tomorrow.

Solutions and Prevention of Urban Pollution

• Conserve Energy: The urban area’s people always use more energy than the rural area’s people. The consumption of energy causes various kinds of pollution. Saving energy wherever possible is one of the best ways to curb pollution. Turn off the electrical appliances when they are not being used. This small step can help in a big way.
• Use less water: We waste a lot of water daily and this can lead to bad consequences. We must try and use as less water as possible .
• Plant more trees: The urban areas are the ones that have less greeneries. Try to plant many trees and vegetation as much as possible in your surrounding areas. Kitchen garden and small lawn near home is a good idea .
• Green belts: Government can help and declare some areas in every city as green belts so that trees and other plants can be grown there without any obstruction .
• Use less loudspeakers: The minimum use of loud speakers can reduce the noise pollution a lot. Decreasing the volume of music at functions after a certain time is also a good move.
• Indoors: The indoors of the homes are also highly polluted in cities. We must have some plants inside the homes also, that can filter the indoor polluted air.
• Industrial waste: The factory owners must try and make possible that industrial waste is not dumped in the lakes or rivers. Government can also make laws for the same.
• Say no to plastic: Plastic is one of the most harmful substances that can pollute air, water and soil all together. We must try and minimize the use of plastic as much as possible. Use just cloth bags instead of plastic.
• Use Public transport: Avoid using cars and bikes for daily use. Try to use public transport, bicycle and car pools. This will not only curb air pollution but will also decrease the traffic on roads.
• Walk: Try to go to nearby areas on foot i.e. walking, this will reduce pollution and will also improve your health .
• Better garbage disposal: Use the structural methods of garbage disposal in cities.

A small step can help in a big way and contribution of every citizen will make the urban areas more livable. Following these simple steps and with a little help from the government, we can definitely reduce the city pollution a lot. If we do not wake up today and do not realize the worst condition of natural resources then after some time our future generations will not be able to survive, It’s far to enjoy the environment .

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization and Digital India – Essay 5 (600 words)

In order to create a better tomorrow we have created a difficult toady. We have urbanized our villages and made them into hi-tech cities that have all the modern facilities and everyday we are creating something or the other new. Today we all dream of a digital India. In a country every citizen uses technology for his/her betterment. We aim to create a world where everything is just a button push away. Everyday more and more Indians are using technology for making their day to day life easy. Today we have become the slaves of technology and cannot live without technology even for a minute. We need to be connected all the time. Even our government is trying to transform the nation into a digitally empowered society.

Digital India and Environmental Importance

We see a smart phone in the hands of everybody even a labor of these days. Everybody understands the power and the reach of the internet. We no more call, now video call our loved ones. Any information can reach to any corner of the world in seconds now. We cannot ignore the power of digitalization. But what is the important question here is that can digitization of the digital movement be ‘environmental substantial’. We must ask this question to the founding fathers of digital India; can they assure that through this digitization our precious environment will not be harmed? Is it possible to move forward with modernization without harming the natural resources and without disturbing the ecological balance?

The digital revolution is such thing which touches every aspect of our life as it connects us to the rest of the world all the time. We all know that the digital appliances have carbon emissions and that has harmful effects on our eco system. We are also aware that these appliances emit radiations that are very harmful for humans. It is also advised not to keep mobile phones very near to your head or heart at night.

So in short, these digital devices are more harmful than helpful. We are also consuming power at a rapid speed and soon all the power will be exhausted. We are creating new and more advanced devices day by and day and we forget that all these use power and more devices means more use of power. The consumption is increasing day by day but what we do not realize that natural resources are scarce. There will be a day when they will not be able to satisfy our power needs. Soon there will be a time when these devices will become uncontrollable and we will then suffer from the harmful effects.

The digital India comes with a cost. It can have effects on us at many levels like, it pollutes our environment, it degrades our ecosystem and most importantly it causes many harmful effects on our physical health. The radiations cause vision problems, headaches and many other such issues. What we lack are the tools of awareness that can tell us how to control these effects. Do we really need a digital India today that cannot promise a better tomorrow?

There is a strong need to create a mass concern effort that can bring awareness about these problems. Digitization is good but it must be in controlled levels so that we can move forward but also make sure that our environment is safe. It is our duty to leave a pollution free environment and safe world for our future generations.

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• Pollution Essay in English for Students

Essay on Pollution for Students

Being aware of pollution is quite mandatory for all the students these days. In order to become a responsible citizen of the world for future generations, every child should know how human activities are leaving an impact on the environment and nature. This topic is quite crucial. And, school children should learn how to write an interesting essay on ‘Pollution’ effortlessly. Take a glance below. 

A Few Things to Keep in Mind:

Never ever hurry to write the essay.

Think properly and jot down your thoughts before proceeding.

Divide your write-up into a few segments such as - introduction, main body - you can make a few points as per the topic and a conclusion.

Try writing short paragraphs. Short and crisp sentences are also a great way to avoid silly mistakes.

Adding factual data wherever required is important such as year, date etc.

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Essay on Pollution

Introduction.

Pollution has become a very common yet serious issue in today’s world. It has been there in different forms since a long time even before human evolution such as volcanic eruptions, wildfire which lead to various photochemical reactions in the atmosphere. The current concern is that it is rising day by day due to various resources of pollutants. And, one of the main pollutants are humans and man-made machines. It is right to say that pollution is damaging the mother earth severely and we, humans, should play our part to prevent it from happening.

What is Pollution?

Pollution sepsis is the presence of contaminants in the natural environment that causes harm and damage and therefore leads to adverse changes.

Kinds of Pollution

There are mainly three kinds of pollution - 1) Air Pollution, 2) Water Pollution, and 3) Soil Pollution. 

Air Pollution

Air Pollution occurs due to the presence of harmful gases and substances in the air. It is due to vehicle emission, dust and dirt, poisonous gasses from the factories etc. To reduce air pollution, we should use carpooling or public transport rather than using our private mode of transportation whose harmful gas emission only adds to the problem, we should also actively avoid burning trash or other materials etc.

Water Pollution

Water Pollution happens when toxic substances get mixed in various water bodies such as lakes, oceans, rivers etc. Here toxic substances refer to the Chemical fertilizer, Industrial waste, Sewage and wastewater, Mining activities, Marine dumping etc.

Soil Pollution

Soil pollution depicts the contamination of soil due to the presence of toxic substances due to Excessive use of fertilisers and pesticides, deforestation, industrial waste etc . To maintain the soil’s fertility, the government must limit the usage of fertilizers and plant more trees.

There are a few other pollutants causing pollution apart from the aforementioned ones, such as Radioactive pollution. This is one of the rarer types of pollution. It occurs due to the presence of radioactive substances such as the presence of nuclear waste in air, solids, liquids or any other place.

Effects of Pollution on Human Health

Pollution is increasingly having a major effect on the health of human lives. People are gettin g affected by different types of deadly diseases due to the various pollution in air, water and soil. Here are the different diseases humans face due to different pollution.

Due to Air Pollution

Air is an essential part of human life. Humans cannot live without breathing air. But, air pollution causes major damage to human lives. Here are some of the major diseases caused due to air pollution.

Lung cancer

Major coronary heart disease

Respiratory problems

Due to Water Pollution

Water is another source of life. Any living being cannot survive without drinking water. But the continuous degradation and pollution of major water bodies are also causing deadly diseases to humans and animals. It is also affecting marine life. Since water is consumed all the time, it’s pollution is causing a lot of deadly diseases. Some of the major diseases caused by water pollution are as follows:

Hepatitis A

Diarrhoea 

Due to Soil Pollution

Soil is an important part of our lives. The land on which we are walking or travelling is made with soil. Due to all the chemicals mixed with the soil and degradation due to the same, it is inevitable that many harmful chemicals come in contact with our body and cause many skin diseases or in forms of food crops that are planted on such polluted soil. Direct contact can cause a lot of problems for us humans. Some of the major diseases caused due to soil pollution are as follows:

Different types of cancer

Damage of the nervous system due to contact with lead present in the soil.

liver and kidney failure

What are the Different Methods to Reduce Pollution?

The degrading quality of all the important elements like air, water and soil is affecting the lives of many children, adults as well as animals. We need to keep our environment safe and use effective methods to reduce pollution. 

Methods to reduce Air Pollution

Some of the effective methods to reduce air pollution are as follows:

Regulation of air through chimneys: The industries should disintegrate the harmful gas from the air prior to its release from the chimneys. They should check and avoid using harmful gases, which are the major causes of air pollution.

Use of public transport or cycle: If you are travelling to distant places, it is recommended to take public transport. Or if you are going to any shops or buying any garment, it is always better to use your cycle. Public transport can take you to different places along with other people; this will help reduce air pollution. If you can cycle, it will reduce air pollution and another added benefit is that it will keep your health in check.

Reduction of fires and smokes: In the dry season, many people burn plastic, papers, dry leaves, which creates a big fire and smoke that creates a harmful layer of fog suspended in the atmosphere. It is better if you stop burning plastic to reduce smoke.

Methods to Reduce Water Pollution

Some of the effective methods to reduce water pollution are as follows:

Avoid disposing of plastic and waste materials: To keep the water free from any pollution, the first thing is to avoid disposing of any sort of plastics or food waste water material in water. The waste materials get dissolved in the water and harm the aquatic life along with those who drink the water. 

Reduce use of chemicals: you should avoid purchasing harmful chemical products that can get mixed with the water and pollute it. The biggest examples are pesticides and insecticides, which causes a major effect on marine life.

Reduce use of detergents: Detergents have many strong chemicals which can cause the leather to water and wash your clothes. If these detergents get mixed with water, they can pollute the soil.

Methods to Reduce Soil Pollution 

Some of the methods to reduce soil pollution are as follows:

Avoid disposing of harmful chemicals: The industries should avoid disposing of harmful chemicals in the soil. It can change the structure and components of the soil making it an unusable surface of land for vegetation. 

Eat food in biodegradable containers: As you dispose of the food containers in dustbins, it is good to use biodegradable food containers despite using plastic containers, which are harmful to the soil.

Plant more trees: The structure of the soil can be improved by planting more trees. Trees help to hold the soil together and improve the soil quality. Hence we should plant more trees.

How to Reduce Pollution Gradually?

Upon learning about the harmful effects of pollution, it is everyone’s responsibility to take some steps towards prevention. We should be aware of all the possible preventive measures to help reduce every kind of pollution such as to curb air pollution, we should avoid bursting crackers during any festival or using public transport or carpool to reduce air pollution or cutting down the usage of loud loudspeaker, and public honking would help in noise pollution. We should always be aware of this situation and take measures accordingly. It’s us who should be cautious in the beginning and make everyone else surrounding us conscious as well. We should take eco-friendly steps like planting more trees, reducing the usage of plastic, using more sustainable products in the household etc. while talking about the pollution of the entire world, you should always remember that every small step will lead to a bigger impact one day.

In a nutshell, every kind of pollution leaves a huge negative impact on our environment, human lives, animals etc. We, as responsible citizens, must take steps towards a better tomorrow. We must join hands to take various initiatives and fight against this problem. A lot of innocent lives are put in danger due to pollution every day. If we don’t do anything from now on or take a stand to make the earth pollution-free, then the doomsday will be upon us very soon.

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Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment. These harmful materials are called pollutants.

Biology, Ecology, Health, Earth Science, Geography

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Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment . These harmful materials are called pollutants . Pollutants can be natural, such as volcanic ash . They can also be created by human activity, such as trash or runoff produced by factories. Pollutants damage the quality of air, water, and land. Many things that are useful to people produce pollution. Cars spew pollutants from their exhaust pipes. Burning coal to create electricity pollutes the air. Industries and homes generate garbage and sewage that can pollute the land and water. Pesticides —chemical poisons used to kill weeds and insects— seep into waterways and harm wildlife . All living things—from one-celled microbes to blue whales—depend on Earth ’s supply of air and water. When these resources are polluted, all forms of life are threatened. Pollution is a global problem. Although urban areas are usually more polluted than the countryside, pollution can spread to remote places where no people live. For example, pesticides and other chemicals have been found in the Antarctic ice sheet . In the middle of the northern Pacific Ocean, a huge collection of microscopic plastic particles forms what is known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch . Air and water currents carry pollution. Ocean currents and migrating fish carry marine pollutants far and wide. Winds can pick up radioactive material accidentally released from a nuclear reactor and scatter it around the world. Smoke from a factory in one country drifts into another country. In the past, visitors to Big Bend National Park in the U.S. state of Texas could see 290 kilometers (180 miles) across the vast landscape . Now, coal-burning power plants in Texas and the neighboring state of Chihuahua, Mexico have spewed so much pollution into the air that visitors to Big Bend can sometimes see only 50 kilometers (30 miles). The three major types of pollution are air pollution , water pollution , and land pollution . Air Pollution Sometimes, air pollution is visible . A person can see dark smoke pour from the exhaust pipes of large trucks or factories, for example. More often, however, air pollution is invisible . Polluted air can be dangerous, even if the pollutants are invisible. It can make people’s eyes burn and make them have difficulty breathing. It can also increase the risk of lung cancer . Sometimes, air pollution kills quickly. In 1984, an accident at a pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, released a deadly gas into the air. At least 8,000 people died within days. Hundreds of thou sands more were permanently injured. Natural disasters can also cause air pollution to increase quickly. When volcanoes erupt , they eject volcanic ash and gases into the atmosphere . Volcanic ash can discolor the sky for months. After the eruption of the Indonesian volcano of Krakatoa in 1883, ash darkened the sky around the world. The dimmer sky caused fewer crops to be harvested as far away as Europe and North America. For years, meteorologists tracked what was known as the “equatorial smoke stream .” In fact, this smoke stream was a jet stream , a wind high in Earth’s atmosphere that Krakatoa’s air pollution made visible. Volcanic gases , such as sulfur dioxide , can kill nearby residents and make the soil infertile for years. Mount Vesuvius, a volcano in Italy, famously erupted in 79, killing hundreds of residents of the nearby towns of Pompeii and Herculaneum. Most victims of Vesuvius were not killed by lava or landslides caused by the eruption. They were choked, or asphyxiated , by deadly volcanic gases. In 1986, a toxic cloud developed over Lake Nyos, Cameroon. Lake Nyos sits in the crater of a volcano. Though the volcano did not erupt, it did eject volcanic gases into the lake. The heated gases passed through the water of the lake and collected as a cloud that descended the slopes of the volcano and into nearby valleys . As the toxic cloud moved across the landscape, it killed birds and other organisms in their natural habitat . This air pollution also killed thousands of cattle and as many as 1,700 people. Most air pollution is not natural, however. It comes from burning fossil fuels —coal, oil , and natural gas . When gasoline is burned to power cars and trucks, it produces carbon monoxide , a colorless, odorless gas. The gas is harmful in high concentrations , or amounts. City traffic produces highly concentrated carbon monoxide. Cars and factories produce other common pollutants, including nitrogen oxide , sulfur dioxide, and hydrocarbons . These chemicals react with sunlight to produce smog , a thick fog or haze of air pollution. The smog is so thick in Linfen, China, that people can seldom see the sun. Smog can be brown or grayish blue, depending on which pollutants are in it. Smog makes breathing difficult, especially for children and older adults. Some cities that suffer from extreme smog issue air pollution warnings. The government of Hong Kong, for example, will warn people not to go outside or engage in strenuous physical activity (such as running or swimming) when smog is very thick.

When air pollutants such as nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide mix with moisture, they change into acids . They then fall back to earth as acid rain . Wind often carries acid rain far from the pollution source. Pollutants produced by factories and power plants in Spain can fall as acid rain in Norway. Acid rain can kill all the trees in a forest . It can also devastate lakes, streams, and other waterways. When lakes become acidic, fish can’t survive . In Sweden, acid rain created thousands of “ dead lakes ,” where fish no longer live. Acid rain also wears away marble and other kinds of stone . It has erased the words on gravestones and damaged many historic buildings and monuments . The Taj Mahal , in Agra, India, was once gleaming white. Years of exposure to acid rain has left it pale. Governments have tried to prevent acid rain by limiting the amount of pollutants released into the air. In Europe and North America, they have had some success, but acid rain remains a major problem in the developing world , especially Asia. Greenhouse gases are another source of air pollution. Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane occur naturally in the atmosphere. In fact, they are necessary for life on Earth. They absorb sunlight reflected from Earth, preventing it from escaping into space. By trapping heat in the atmosphere, they keep Earth warm enough for people to live. This is called the greenhouse effect . But human activities such as burning fossil fuels and destroying forests have increased the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This has increased the greenhouse effect, and average temperatures across the globe are rising. The decade that began in the year 2000 was the warmest on record. This increase in worldwide average temperatures, caused in part by human activity, is called global warming . Global warming is causing ice sheets and glaciers to melt. The melting ice is causing sea levels to rise at a rate of two millimeters (0.09 inches) per year. The rising seas will eventually flood low-lying coastal regions . Entire nations, such as the islands of Maldives, are threatened by this climate change . Global warming also contributes to the phenomenon of ocean acidification . Ocean acidification is the process of ocean waters absorbing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Fewer organisms can survive in warmer, less salty waters. The ocean food web is threatened as plants and animals such as coral fail to adapt to more acidic oceans. Scientists have predicted that global warming will cause an increase in severe storms . It will also cause more droughts in some regions and more flooding in others. The change in average temperatures is already shrinking some habitats, the regions where plants and animals naturally live. Polar bears hunt seals from sea ice in the Arctic. The melting ice is forcing polar bears to travel farther to find food , and their numbers are shrinking. People and governments can respond quickly and effectively to reduce air pollution. Chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are a dangerous form of air pollution that governments worked to reduce in the 1980s and 1990s. CFCs are found in gases that cool refrigerators, in foam products, and in aerosol cans . CFCs damage the ozone layer , a region in Earth’s upper atmosphere. The ozone layer protects Earth by absorbing much of the sun’s harmful ultraviolet radiation . When people are exposed to more ultraviolet radiation, they are more likely to develop skin cancer, eye diseases, and other illnesses. In the 1980s, scientists noticed that the ozone layer over Antarctica was thinning. This is often called the “ ozone hole .” No one lives permanently in Antarctica. But Australia, the home of more than 22 million people, lies at the edge of the hole. In the 1990s, the Australian government began an effort to warn people of the dangers of too much sun. Many countries, including the United States, now severely limit the production of CFCs. Water Pollution Some polluted water looks muddy, smells bad, and has garbage floating in it. Some polluted water looks clean, but is filled with harmful chemicals you can’t see or smell. Polluted water is unsafe for drinking and swimming. Some people who drink polluted water are exposed to hazardous chemicals that may make them sick years later. Others consume bacteria and other tiny aquatic organisms that cause disease. The United Nations estimates that 4,000 children die every day from drinking dirty water. Sometimes, polluted water harms people indirectly. They get sick because the fish that live in polluted water are unsafe to eat. They have too many pollutants in their flesh. There are some natural sources of water pollution. Oil and natural gas, for example, can leak into oceans and lakes from natural underground sources. These sites are called petroleum seeps . The world’s largest petroleum seep is the Coal Oil Point Seep, off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The Coal Oil Point Seep releases so much oil that tar balls wash up on nearby beaches . Tar balls are small, sticky pieces of pollution that eventually decompose in the ocean.

Human activity also contributes to water pollution. Chemicals and oils from factories are sometimes dumped or seep into waterways. These chemicals are called runoff. Chemicals in runoff can create a toxic environment for aquatic life. Runoff can also help create a fertile environment for cyanobacteria , also called blue-green algae . Cyanobacteria reproduce rapidly, creating a harmful algal bloom (HAB) . Harmful algal blooms prevent organisms such as plants and fish from living in the ocean. They are associated with “ dead zones ” in the world’s lakes and rivers, places where little life exists below surface water. Mining and drilling can also contribute to water pollution. Acid mine drainage (AMD) is a major contributor to pollution of rivers and streams near coal mines . Acid helps miners remove coal from the surrounding rocks . The acid is washed into streams and rivers, where it reacts with rocks and sand. It releases chemical sulfur from the rocks and sand, creating a river rich in sulfuric acid . Sulfuric acid is toxic to plants, fish, and other aquatic organisms. Sulfuric acid is also toxic to people, making rivers polluted by AMD dangerous sources of water for drinking and hygiene . Oil spills are another source of water pollution. In April 2010, the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico, causing oil to gush from the ocean floor. In the following months, hundreds of millions of gallons of oil spewed into the gulf waters. The spill produced large plumes of oil under the sea and an oil slick on the surface as large as 24,000 square kilometers (9,100 square miles). The oil slick coated wetlands in the U.S. states of Louisiana and Mississippi, killing marsh plants and aquatic organisms such as crabs and fish. Birds, such as pelicans , became coated in oil and were unable to fly or access food. More than two million animals died as a result of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Buried chemical waste can also pollute water supplies. For many years, people disposed of chemical wastes carelessly, not realizing its dangers. In the 1970s, people living in the Love Canal area in Niagara Falls, New York, suffered from extremely high rates of cancer and birth defects . It was discovered that a chemical waste dump had poisoned the area’s water. In 1978, 800 families living in Love Canal had to a bandon their homes. If not disposed of properly, radioactive waste from nuclear power plants can escape into the environment. Radioactive waste can harm living things and pollute the water. Sewage that has not been properly treated is a common source of water pollution. Many cities around the world have poor sewage systems and sewage treatment plants. Delhi, the capital of India, is home to more than 21 million people. More than half the sewage and other waste produced in the city are dumped into the Yamuna River. This pollution makes the river dangerous to use as a source of water for drinking or hygiene. It also reduces the river’s fishery , resulting in less food for the local community. A major source of water pollution is fertilizer used in agriculture . Fertilizer is material added to soil to make plants grow larger and faster. Fertilizers usually contain large amounts of the elements nitrogen and phosphorus , which help plants grow. Rainwater washes fertilizer into streams and lakes. There, the nitrogen and phosphorus cause cyanobacteria to form harmful algal blooms. Rain washes other pollutants into streams and lakes. It picks up animal waste from cattle ranches. Cars drip oil onto the street, and rain carries it into storm drains , which lead to waterways such as rivers and seas. Rain sometimes washes chemical pesticides off of plants and into streams. Pesticides can also seep into groundwater , the water beneath the surface of the Earth. Heat can pollute water. Power plants, for example, produce a huge amount of heat. Power plants are often located on rivers so they can use the water as a coolant . Cool water circulates through the plant, absorbing heat. The heated water is then returned to the river. Aquatic creatures are sensitive to changes in temperature. Some fish, for example, can only live in cold water. Warmer river temperatures prevent fish eggs from hatching. Warmer river water also contributes to harmful algal blooms. Another type of water pollution is simple garbage. The Citarum River in Indonesia, for example, has so much garbage floating in it that you cannot see the water. Floating trash makes the river difficult to fish in. Aquatic animals such as fish and turtles mistake trash, such as plastic bags, for food. Plastic bags and twine can kill many ocean creatures. Chemical pollutants in trash can also pollute the water, making it toxic for fish and people who use the river as a source of drinking water. The fish that are caught in a polluted river often have high levels of chemical toxins in their flesh. People absorb these toxins as they eat the fish. Garbage also fouls the ocean. Many plastic bottles and other pieces of trash are thrown overboard from boats. The wind blows trash out to sea. Ocean currents carry plastics and other floating trash to certain places on the globe, where it cannot escape. The largest of these areas, called the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, is in a remote part of the Pacific Ocean. According to some estimates, this garbage patch is the size of Texas. The trash is a threat to fish and seabirds, which mistake the plastic for food. Many of the plastics are covered with chemical pollutants. Land Pollution Many of the same pollutants that foul the water also harm the land. Mining sometimes leaves the soil contaminated with dangerous chemicals. Pesticides and fertilizers from agricultural fields are blown by the wind. They can harm plants, animals, and sometimes people. Some fruits and vegetables absorb the pesticides that help them grow. When people consume the fruits and vegetables, the pesticides enter their bodies. Some pesticides can cause cancer and other diseases. A pesticide called DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) was once commonly used to kill insects, especially mosquitoes. In many parts of the world, mosquitoes carry a disease called malaria , which kills a million people every year. Swiss chemist Paul Hermann Muller was awarded the Nobel Prize for his understanding of how DDT can control insects and other pests. DDT is responsible for reducing malaria in places such as Taiwan and Sri Lanka. In 1962, American biologist Rachel Carson wrote a book called Silent Spring , which discussed the dangers of DDT. She argued that it could contribute to cancer in humans. She also explained how it was destroying bird eggs, which caused the number of bald eagles, brown pelicans, and ospreys to drop. In 1972, the United States banned the use of DDT. Many other countries also banned it. But DDT didn’t disappear entirely. Today, many governments support the use of DDT because it remains the most effective way to combat malaria. Trash is another form of land pollution. Around the world, paper, cans, glass jars, plastic products, and junked cars and appliances mar the landscape. Litter makes it difficult for plants and other producers in the food web to create nutrients . Animals can die if they mistakenly eat plastic. Garbage often contains dangerous pollutants such as oils, chemicals, and ink. These pollutants can leech into the soil and harm plants, animals, and people. Inefficient garbage collection systems contribute to land pollution. Often, the garbage is picked up and brought to a dump, or landfill . Garbage is buried in landfills. Sometimes, communities produce so much garbage that their landfills are filling up. They are running out of places to dump their trash. A massive landfill near Quezon City, Philippines, was the site of a land pollution tragedy in 2000. Hundreds of people lived on the slopes of the Quezon City landfill. These people made their living from recycling and selling items found in the landfill. However, the landfill was not secure. Heavy rains caused a trash landslide, killing 218 people. Sometimes, landfills are not completely sealed off from the land around them. Pollutants from the landfill leak into the earth in which they are buried. Plants that grow in the earth may be contaminated, and the herbivores that eat the plants also become contaminated. So do the predators that consume the herbivores. This process, where a chemical builds up in each level of the food web, is called bioaccumulation . Pollutants leaked from landfills also leak into local groundwater supplies. There, the aquatic food web (from microscopic algae to fish to predators such as sharks or eagles) can suffer from bioaccumulation of toxic chemicals. Some communities do not have adequate garbage collection systems, and trash lines the side of roads. In other places, garbage washes up on beaches. Kamilo Beach, in the U.S. state of Hawai'i, is littered with plastic bags and bottles carried in by the tide . The trash is dangerous to ocean life and reduces economic activity in the area. Tourism is Hawai'i’s largest industry . Polluted beaches discourage tourists from investing in the area’s hotels, restaurants, and recreational activities. Some cities incinerate , or burn, their garbage. Incinerating trash gets rid of it, but it can release dangerous heavy metals and chemicals into the air. So while trash incinerators can help with the problem of land pollution, they sometimes add to the problem of air pollution. Reducing Pollution Around the world, people and governments are making efforts to combat pollution. Recycling, for instance, is becoming more common. In recycling, trash is processed so its useful materials can be used again. Glass, aluminum cans, and many types of plastic can be melted and reused . Paper can be broken down and turned into new paper. Recycling reduces the amount of garbage that ends up in landfills, incinerators, and waterways. Austria and Switzerland have the highest recycling rates. These nations recycle between 50 and 60 percent of their garbage. The United States recycles about 30 percent of its garbage. Governments can combat pollution by passing laws that limit the amount and types of chemicals factories and agribusinesses are allowed to use. The smoke from coal-burning power plants can be filtered. People and businesses that illegally dump pollutants into the land, water, and air can be fined for millions of dollars. Some government programs, such as the Superfund program in the United States, can force polluters to clean up the sites they polluted. International agreements can also reduce pollution. The Kyoto Protocol , a United Nations agreement to limit the emission of greenhouse gases, has been signed by 191 countries. The United States, the world’s second-largest producer of greenhouse gases, did not sign the agreement. Other countries, such as China, the world’s largest producer of greenhouse gases, have not met their goals. Still, many gains have been made. In 1969, the Cuyahoga River, in the U.S. state of Ohio, was so clogged with oil and trash that it caught on fire. The fire helped spur the Clean Water Act of 1972. This law limited what pollutants could be released into water and set standards for how clean water should be. Today, the Cuyahoga River is much cleaner. Fish have returned to regions of the river where they once could not survive. But even as some rivers are becoming cleaner, others are becoming more polluted. As countries around the world become wealthier, some forms of pollution increase. Countries with growing economies usually need more power plants, which produce more pollutants. Reducing pollution requires environmental, political, and economic leadership. Developed nations must work to reduce and recycle their materials, while developing nations must work to strengthen their economies without destroying the environment. Developed and developing countries must work together toward the common goal of protecting the environment for future use.

How Long Does It Last? Different materials decompose at different rates. How long does it take for these common types of trash to break down?

• Paper: 2-4 weeks
• Orange peel: 6 months
• Milk carton: 5 years
• Plastic bag: 15 years
• Tin can: 100 years
• Plastic bottle: 450 years
• Glass bottle: 500 years
• Styrofoam: Never

Indoor Air Pollution The air inside your house can be polluted. Air and carpet cleaners, insect sprays, and cigarettes are all sources of indoor air pollution.

Light Pollution Light pollution is the excess amount of light in the night sky. Light pollution, also called photopollution, is almost always found in urban areas. Light pollution can disrupt ecosystems by confusing the distinction between night and day. Nocturnal animals, those that are active at night, may venture out during the day, while diurnal animals, which are active during daylight hours, may remain active well into the night. Feeding and sleep patterns may be confused. Light pollution also indicates an excess use of energy. The dark-sky movement is a campaign by people to reduce light pollution. This would reduce energy use, allow ecosystems to function more normally, and allow scientists and stargazers to observe the atmosphere.

Noise Pollution Noise pollution is the constant presence of loud, disruptive noises in an area. Usually, noise pollution is caused by construction or nearby transportation facilities, such as airports. Noise pollution is unpleasant, and can be dangerous. Some songbirds, such as robins, are unable to communicate or find food in the presence of heavy noise pollution. The sound waves produced by some noise pollutants can disrupt the sonar used by marine animals to communicate or locate food.

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The Big City Is Vibrant. Birds There Might Be Getting Less So.

Recent studies show that certain feather pigments can help neutralize toxic pollution. It means darker, duller birds could have a survival advantage.

By Marta Zaraska

Some popular city dwellers appear to be losing their colorful allure, and not just the dirty birds.

According to a study published this summer in the journal Landscape and Planning that looked at 547 bird species in China, birds that live in cities are duller and darker on average than their rural counterparts. A similar conclusion emerged from an analysis of 59 studies published in March in Biological Reviews : Urban feathers are not as bright, with yellow, orange and red feathers affected most.

Often, city birds are covered in grime. But even if you could give them all a good bird bath, chances are their brightness still wouldn’t match that of their country cousins. That’s because of the way pollution, and heavy metals in particular, can interact with melanin, a pigment that makes feathers black, brown and gray.

Studies show that melanin can bind to heavy metals like lead. That means toxic chemicals may be more likely to be stored in plumage in darker and duller birds. And that, in turn, can confer a survival advantage.

“The more melanin you accumulate, the better able you are to sequester these harmful compounds in feathers,” said Kevin McGraw, a biologist at Michigan State University who studies the colors of animals to understand the costs, benefits and evolution of visual signals.

Urban pollution affects avian colors in other ways, too. Research shows that, compared with rural plants, city trees store fewer natural pigments called carotenoids. And pollution is the likely reason. Carotenoids are produced by plants, algae and fungi. They’re what makes red peppers red and carrots orange.

When leaves are low on these pigments, the effects go up the food chain: Leaf-munching caterpillars become deficient in carotenoids, and so do caterpillar-munching birds.

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