This document discusses various types of pollution caused by human activities, including point source pollution which comes from identifiable sources like factories, and non-point source pollution which comes from dispersed sources like vehicle emissions. It describes primary and secondary pollutants, as well as persistent organic pollutants. The document also covers topics like acute vs chronic pollution, methods of pollution detection and monitoring, and some actions that can be taken to address pollution problems.

1. 1.5 Humans and pollution

2. Key Terms
• Pollution: The addition of any substance (solid, liquid or gas) or any
form of energy (such as heat, sound, light or radioactivity) to the
environment at the rate faster than it can be dispersed, diluted,
decomposed, recycled or stored in some harmless form and which
has an appreciable effect on the organisms within it.
• Point source: The release from a single clearly identifiable site
E.g. a factory chimney, outlet pipes, slurry pits on farms, pipe of swage.
(easier to identify and manage)
• Non-po

3. Pollutants
released by human activities and may be:
• Matter (gases, liquids or solids) which is organic (contains carbon atoms) or
inorganic.
• Energy (sound, light, heat, radioactivity).
• Living organisms (invasive species or biological agents).
Primary pollutants: active upon emissions e.g. carbon monoxide
Secondary pollutants: changes after emissions e.g. sulphuric acid
Biodegradable pollutants: do not persist in the environment and break
down quickly
(!) photochemical smog is a mixture of primary and secondary pollutants

4. Major sources of pollutants

5. Point source and non-point source pollutants
Point source pollutants Non-point source pollutants
Def: The release from a single clearly identifiable site. Def: The release of pollutants from numerous, widely
dispersed origins.
 Easier to identify.  Impossible to detect exactly where it is coming
from.
 Easier to manage.  Air pollution can be blown hundreds of km.
E.g. a factory chimney, outlet pipes, slurry pits on
farms, pipe of swage…
E.g. vehicle emissions, chemicals spread on fields…

6. TLAs
POPs  Persistent Organic Pollutants
 Manufactured as pesticides in the past.
 Resistant to breaking down and remain active in
the environment for a long time.
 Can cause significant harm.
E.g. DDT Stockolm, 2004 “the dirty dozen” (9 more
were added in 2010)
PANs  Peroxy AcylNitrates
E.g. Photochemical Smogs
PCBs  Polychlorinated Biphenyls
DDT  Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane
VOCs  Volatile Organic Compo
• High molecular weight
• Not very soluble in water
• Highly soluble in fats and lipids –
can pass through cell membranes
• Halogenated molecules, often
with chlorine.

7. Organic
Organisms are vital in the composting of fields and organic farming
• Has become associated with sustainability – as in ‘organic farming’.
• When used in terms of pollutants we mean carbon chemistry
organochlorides, organophosphates, plastics, petroleum derivatives.

8. Acute and chronic pollution
Acute Chronic
 When large amounts of a pollutant are released,
causing a lot of harm. Swift acting.
 Results from the long-term release of a pollutant
but in small amounts (over-time)
 Often goes undetected for a long time
 It often spreads widely
E.g.
 Bhopal disaster, India 1984
 Aluminium Sulphate Camel ford in Cornwall 1998
E.g.
 Minimata methylmercury accumulation in food
chains
 Air pollution in cities – Beijing 2014
 Asbestos dust

9. Detection and monitoring
Direct measurements of air
pollution include measuring:
Direct measurements of water or
soil pollution include measuring:
Indirect measurements record
changes in an abiotic or abiotic
factor
The acidity of rainwater. Nitrates and phosphates. Measuring abiotic factors that
change as a result of the pollutant.
e.g. content of oxygen in the water
Amount of gas, for example carbon
dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen
oxides in the atmosphere.
Amount of organic matter or
bacteria.
Recording the presence or absence
of indicator species.
e.g. polluted conditions – rat-tailed
maggot in water) unpolluted
conditions – leafy lichens on trees
Amount of particles emitted by a
diesel engine.
Heavy metal concentrations.
Amount of lead in the atmosphere.

10. Actions?
1. CHANGE the activity that produces pollution.
2. Pass LAW that bans pollutants.
3. Clean up - REMEDIATION

11. The great debate over DDT
• Banned in the 70’s following claims in most MEDCs.
Silent spring, over bioaccumulation resulting in eggshell thinning in
birds of prey.
• However, it is cheap, and very effective at deterring and killing
Anopheles – the Malaria mosquito, Female Anopheles carry the
plasmodium parasite which infects red blood cells causing malaria.
• Malaria probably does not receive enough funding for research as it is
mostly a disease of the poor.