#ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

 

ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

                                                           By – Dr Sudhakar Pattanaik

Our environment refers to the air, water, sun light and their utilization for the living world. In the process of evolution our scientific knowledge could find how the living world started.

The first living cells were the ameba which gradually modified and developed the animal world. 

Monkeys were supposed to be the final state of animal world. But then appears a group of monkeys whose intelligence center accompanied with an additional new neural center – the cognitive center - which had extra brilliant intelligence. These monkeys came down from trees, developed erect position and their front legs were utilized as their hands.

When there occurs forest fire the monkeys and other animal run to long distances for safety but the new bipods run to a limited distance and observed the fire extinguished (in rain or so). Then they came there and find roasted meat and vegetables, those are with more flavors to eat. They also found different metals – effect of heat on ores of metals in the ground there. They found different metals more useful to prepare sharp and strong instruments and other materials useful for different needs like farming or industrial needs.

Thus began the entry of human selfishness, supremacy and their atrocious activities with maximum utilization of nature for their own selfish need without care to destruction of flora, fauna, animals and aquatic creatures beyond proportion to their natural regeneration. ‘THUS APPEARED THE PROBLEM OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION’ 

From the forest dwelling the men started living in plains and river banks. They cut  trees to create clean and smooth fields for their comfortable living – building houses, constructing land to cultivate food grains, erecting industrial complexes and spread  roads, rails and airdromes for moving long distances.

All these made the civilization run rapid. Mankind developed articulated sounds designing letters with their vocal cords, tongue and lips that could produce meaningful sound - the voice. Reading, writing, speeches or singing songs and play music were then the rapid outcome for exchange of ideas among themselves.    

 

  Earlier men lived in small areas of limited place like village which expanded to smaller towns. Gradually the population of men increased lips and bound. The process of civilizations caused greed for acquiring property and power in society. This started tussle, quarrel, group fighting and devastating wars.

 The fighting ending in war earlier was not destructive of more living world. Now it is advancing to annihilating entire living world. 

 Man’s increased number put pressure on the nature. They cut tree, excavate mines and prey forest and aquatic animals in excess. They started business in foods grains, fruits, flowers, timbers and metals. They produce chemicals, insecticides, medicines without consideration to their immunity and natural resistances. Plastic products are now produced beyond necessity and so over used that threat the environment beyond tolerance.

 Man’s living becomes grossly modified. Palatial buildings at the cost of soil brunt to bricks and minerals to design rising sky high buildings and mile after miles of metal roads at the cost of land for green plants and imbibitions of rain water to keep the subsoil water at it safe level.  

We are using miles and miles of distance to cover by railway track, roads and aerodromes limiting space for green and seeping of rain water to sub-soil for plants. We put million of machines and factories to supply our daily house hold and other needs without care for our atmosphere and our water sources.

 

The different materials causing pollution of air, water and others mediums

Air Pollution – Industrial emission, road dust, industrial gas from chimneys, sound and exhaust-from vehicles, more noisy funfairs, vehicular horns and their engines, or use of loud speakers, gas from putrefied organic materials, chemicals exhaust from engines and foul smell from animal excreta are the source of air pollution.

 Irregular and excesses uses of plastic and other unnatural fabrics are a dangerous ultra modern problem of environment now a day.     

Sound/Noise Pollution – Sound emitted by thunder, volcanic eruptions are damaging our ear and mind but they being natural and occasional are of not considered as pollutants. But presently instrumentals sound as by loud speakers, industrials sound of machines, vehicular sounds and blowers and DJ sound are harmful for people living nearby.

Students can’t concentrate on study; teachers can’t teach well, literary personalities fail to compose advance literature. All such activities like enjoying speeches or hearing melody, speeches of learned authorities are hampered when high sounding prayer, music, drama, mass prayer is done with the idea of enjoyment or purifying mind from wicked and disturbing thoughts.

Frequent use of loud speakers damages our hearing and the function of vestibule – that maintains our balance and equilibrium. We get head reeling experience that prevents us from standing erect; unnatural sound (tinnitus) in ears and concentrating our attention to solve problems.

New problems of cell phone and its easy availability is felt a blessing to human society. But it has its bad effects on mental health. Amorous considerations and mischievous illegal activities in societies are frequent outcome. Similarly robot, artificial intelligence (A.I), robotic activities etc which are thought to be of advantages for smoother go of human life may cause hazards in sooth go of one’s life.

Water Pollution – water we use from rivers, streams, ponds and wells. In past days these were maintained naturally cleaned with U-V ray from sun, sedimentation process and filtration by sandy surfaces.   But now river, streams and ponds are used by people for bathing, washing clothes and wash up of cow and other house hold dirt.

Alarming pollution of water sources due to house-hold wash ups, poisonous chemical wash-ups of big and small industries are a menace now days. More ever catching aquatic animal and water plants in excess in commercial practice are the main factors of water pollution. Our excess use of insecticides, chemical manures, rodent killing chemicals and fumes against mosquitoes and bed bugs are harmful and we use it rampant.

Special information: –

DELHI POLLUTION: - 

(Delhi Smoke Pollution)    

         

Delhi is the capital of India. The most intelligent and top personalities, shaping the destiny of Indians, are leaving hear. So its environment is expected to be of high concern.

(Mountain of Garbage at Ghazipur)

But it is the most dangerously polluted city of India. It maintains – hillocks of debris collected from house hold and streets of the city since days beyond record. These form three garbage mountains at Bhalswa, Ghazipur and Okhla. During rain the water streams and at ordinary times foul smelling air blows from these garbage mountains into Delhi city.

The small pools of foul smelling drain water at frequent sites, denuded areas of metal topped roads make street walkers feeling of walking in hilly areas and those in vehicles feel driving during earthquake.

The human and animal excreta, vegetable waste and other such putrefying materials are found frequent in road sides. Instead of collecting them and producing bio-manure they are left to make the city’s air poisonous and foul smelling.

 It may be imagined how Delhi air may be sweet smelling if flower plants be made compulsory to grow on roof tops or terraces of all buildings and only electric vehicle be allowed in Delhi roads. 

(Stubble burning)

 

A most dangerously harmful poisonous environment occurs during stubble burning periods in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.

The stubble burning is practiced on a wrong impression that the soil gets enriched with ashes and get-rid of the rodents and other destructive parasites. But exactly any bio-manure that produced due to putrefying of partially burnt stubble are beneficial and give wholesome and natural nutrients to the plants and food grains. But the farmers feel to produce more quantity of grains by using chemical manures. In fact with bio-manure the grains become more palatable and wholesome then that produced by the crops with chemical manures.

‘The farm fire should start as usual but should be extinguished after 15 to 20 minutes by sprinkling water. After few days the land is ploughed to let the half burnt stubbles go underground and ferment to organic manure.

Less environment pollution, supply more natural manure to soil, less requirement of chemical manures, more yield and more wholesome and tasty cereals’.

This is suggested by this author since more than a decade’s but it falls in deaf ears of our leaders of administration and agriculture.

  

(Yamuna River with poisons foam)

 

Now coming to water pollution we are fooled by finding bright white foam in Yamuna River, thinking it as a white layer of ice foam. But it is the poisonous out flow of discarded industrial water. Also in addition of the foam of solid matter there occurs dissolved poisonous material in Yamuna water.    It is this water people get from settling tanks collecting Yamuna water for drinking purpose, up-course with addition of water purifying chemicals.

What a catastrophe will it bring to Delhi People in the long run?

Millions of rupees are embezzled by politicians and we spend almost the same amount to prove their guilt. But Delhi people (Indian people) are the innocent onlookers to face the possibilities of gradually losing their vitality and intelligence.  

 Delhi pollution reaching 427 AQI (AQI Air Quality Index normal 0-50 range) is dangerous for humanity but during stubble burring, for near about a month occurs in Delhi this reduces lifespan of individuals. It is better to suggest shifting our capital to some other place.                     

         

 

PLASTIC POLUTION: -

 

Plastic is a synthetic substance that can be shaped to various forms of objects – thin sheets which can be shaped to thin carry bags, various useful house hold or kitchen potteries – like cups, glasses, plates and other storing and packing materials. It is now used as instruments or vehicular parts, and even dress or packing materials, decorative items, parts of machines and so many necessities. The final fate of all of these is disposal as debris – the pollution.    

Humanity used cotton or jut bags or various leaves to carry liquid or powdered eatables or other useful objects. When we go to market we used to take bags or napkins to bring our food or other house hold products. But now we go in empty hand and purchases various rations and vegetables in different thin but weight carrying bags and immediately after use we through it as discarded west of household.

In commercial practice a packing by dazzling materials attract the attention of purchaser to buy it. These beatifying packing materials are discarded immediately after collecting the useful object in it – an addition to pollution.      

These discarded materials are never disintegrated in soil, waters and other things and cause environmental pollution.

It clogs our drains, dirty our roads.  Animals swallow it when it has left over of eatable things. It is not digestible in their intestinal track. If it is small it comes out as faeces but if not! It causes intestinal obstruction and death of the animal. 

Since plastic is not dissolved in water it floats in surface of water as covering solid pads on rivers, lakes and oceans.

 A scientific way of disposal of discarded plastic material by tripling its cost and buy back its throw awes on paying its one third of its original cost and using it for other materials like rods and tiles and other such materials may prevent the huge problems of its pollution. This was originally suggested by the author but it fell in deaf ears of our destiny makers.

POPULATION POLUTION:-

The rapid increase of the number of human beings, in geometric proportion, is beyond conception, by us, the present human species. This can be considered with much importance than other pollutants threatening the living world.

In earlier period of human creation the control of humanity’s number was controlled by nature. The natural catastrophes (deluges) like earth quake, forest fire, storms come to eliminate population. Similar are the epidemic diseases like cholera, small pox, malaria, plague and many other many incurable diseases.  But these are almost eliminated completely now. 

The civilization make humanity search for more easy and comfortable living without care for nature and natural provisions. 

  

-o-