Case study On

pollution

What is pollution:

Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause adverse change.Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light. Pollutants, the components of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring contaminants.

Waterpollution

Air pollution

Noise pollution

Soil pollution

Themalpollution

River water pollution:Water pollution can be defined as alteration in physical, chemical or biological

characteristics of water making it unsuitable for designated use in its natural state.Pollution in the Ganga river:The Ganges suffers from extreme pollution levels, which affect the 400 million people who live close to the river.Sewage from many cities along the river's course, industrial waste and religious offerings wrapped in non-degradable plastics add large amounts of pollutants to the river as it flows through densely populated areas. Varanasi, a city of one million people that many pilgrims visit to take a "holy dip" in the Ganges, releases around 200 million litres of untreated human sewage into the river each day.

Pollution in the Yamuna River:In 1909 the waters of the Yamuna were distinguishable as "clear blue", as compared to the silt-laden yellow of the Ganges.However, due to high density population growth and rapid industrialization today Yamuna is one of the most polluted rivers in the world, especially around New Delhi, the capital of India, which dumps about 58% of its waste into the river.

Air pollution:Air pollution consists of gaseous, liquid, or solid substances that, when present in sufficient concentration, for a sufficient time, and under certain conditions, tend to interfere with human comfort, health or welfare, and cause environmental damage. Air pollution causes acid rain, ozone depletion, photochemical smog, and other such

phenomena.Critical [PM10 > 90 μg/m3]Guwahati, Patna, Raipur, Delhi, Faridabad, Dhanbad, Nagpur,Bhopal, Indore, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Jaipur, Howrah, Kolkata.High [PM10 61 - 90 μg/m3]Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Panjim, Shimla, Bangalore,Mumbai, Pune, Bhubanshwar.Moderate [PM10 31 - 60 μg/m3]Kochi, Shillong, Chennai.Low [PM10 up to 30 μg/m3]Aizwal.

Increases prevalence of upper respiratory symptoms

Air pollution adversely affects lung function

Air pollution can also occur by vechicals by producing carbon monoxide(co). The average trip speed on many Indian city roads is less than 20 kilometers per hour; a 10 kilometer trip can take 30 minutes, or more. At such speeds, vehicles in India emit air pollutants 4 to 8 times more than they would with less traffic congestionIn cities like Bangalore, around 50% of children suffer from asthma

Noise Pollution:Noise is a prominent feature of the environment including noise from transport, industry and neighbourhood. An important part of noise assessment is the actual measurement of the noise levels. Continuous Leq measurement during day time (10.00–18.00 hr) was carried out in residential areas. The results show that the noise pollution at the places of measurements is wide spread throughout most of the time. The noise in this area is composite in nature. Public participation, education, traffic management, and structural design play a major role in noise management. The results show that the noise pollution at the places of measurements is wide spread throughout most of the time. The noise in this area is composite in nature.The perception of sounds in day-to-day life is of major importance for human well-being. Communication through speech, sounds from playing children, music, natural sounds in parklands, parks and gardens are all examples of sounds essential for satisfaction in everyday life.

Study Area:The selected for study purpose lies within Chennai Corporation under Sholinganallur constituency. The corridor is fully developed with IT companies, change in land use, clustered developmental works related to residential zones and 3 industrial estates. The sampling locations were toll plaza at Perungudi and an intersection namely SPR tools.

Equipment:An important part of noise assessment is the actual measurement of the noise levels. The ‘A’ weighted network was used as it corresponds very closely to a person’s hearing sensitivity. The noise level at two locations were measured with the help of HTC make Sound Level Meter (3241 – c type II data logger) on a digital display type. The noise levels were recorded from morning 10.00AM to 18.00PM at an interval of 10 s from Monday through Saturday at both locations.

PARAMETERS CALCULATED FROM PRIMARY SURVEY:The following noise parameters such as Noise equivalent level, noise pollution level and noise index were calculated. These are presented in figure

MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

TOLL PLAZA LeqSRP TOOLS LeqCPCB LCPCB

decibel level

Sl. No ZONE

NOISE LEVEL IN dBA

DAY TIME NIGHT TIME

1 INDUSTRIAL 75 70

2 COMMERCIAL 65 55

3 RESIDENTIAL 55 45

4 SILENCE 50 40

City name Silent zone Residential zone Commercial zone Industrial zone

Vishakapatnam8 43.0-60 45-77 70-90

Ambur9 47.2-80.4 30.6-83.6 40-96.4

Lucknow10 67.7-78.9 74.8-84.2

Burdwan11 60-90 69-110

Melmaruvathur12 36.5-92.6 51.4-102.4 42.6-102.4 40.2-99.2

Bolpur- Santiniketan14 20.5-78.5 25-80.5 42-98

Gwalior15 45.5-69.3 51.7-77.2 64.5-119.2

Dehradun17 55.6-104.8 55.3-107.6 59.6-118.2 74.8-104.3

Mangalore18 43.2-97.2 50.6-97 56-99 51-91.80

OMR19 44- 105

Permissible noise levels Comparison of noise levels with other studies in India

Road traffic is a major source of noise in urban areas with far-reaching and wide ranging effects to human. India as a developing country, traffic noise pollution occurs seriously in its urban and suburban areas.

Soil pollution:Soil is the upper layer of the earth crust which is formed by weathering of rocks.Organic matter in the soil makes it suitable for living organisms.Dumping of various types of materials especially domestic and industrial wastes causes soil pollution. Domestic wastes include garbage,rubbish material like glass, plastics, metallic cans, paper, fibres, cloth rags, containers, paints, varnishes etc. Leachates from dumping sites and sewage tanks are harmful and toxic, which pollute the soil.Industrial wastes are the effluents discharged from chemical industries, paper and pulp mills, tanneries, textile mills, steel industries,distilleries, refineries, pesticides and fertilizer industries, pharmaceutical industries, food processing industries, cement industries, thermal and nuclear power plants, mining industries etc.

Six years after Coca-Cola’s bottling plant shut down in India’s southern state of Kerala, the company continues to face allegations claiming it caused the depletion of groundwater and polluted the water resources.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Kerala, India:

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Kerala, India:"In Kerala, where ground water levels have certainly decreased, the rainfall has been well below average for several years," the company says. "The Kerala State Ground Water Department has said that any depletion in ground water was due to poor rainfall and could not be attributed to the plant." But community leaders argue that Plachimada is situated in the heart of Kerala's water belt and once had large underground water deposits that Coca-Cola has drained.Demanding that the state government also charge Coca-Cola with criminal offenses. The campaign against Coca-Cola in Plachimada has also enjoyed tremendous international support, with colleges and universities in the US, UK, Canada and Norway taking action against Coca-Cola.

Control of Soil Pollution:(i) Effluents should be properly treated before discharging them on the soil.(ii) Solid wastes should be properly collected and disposed off by appropriate method.(iii) From the wastes, recovery of useful products should be done.

Thermal pollution:Thermal pollution can be defined as presence of waste heat in the water which can cause undesirable changes in the natural environment.

The Bentley Manufacturing Company:The Bentley Manufacturing Corporation maintains a small scrap metal processing plant located on the bank of the Loop River Power Canal. The canal was built 65 years ago to provide water for a hydroelectric power plant, which provides electricity for the region.The Loop River Canal draws water from the Loop River several miles up stream from the Bentley plant. The power plant is three miles below the Bentley plant just below a small storage lake.Over the years the canal has become an important freshwater estuary. Several species of catfish, perch, bluegill, and freshwater drum inhabit the canal. It has been a popular area for sport fishermen. A variety of ducks live in the marshes and seepage ponds that are found next to the canal.The Bentley Processing Plant was began operations seven years ago. Its operations have grown over the years and its demands for water have increased substantially. The company has been very profitable and has also been a good neighbor in the community.But all is not well for the company. Biologists have reported a steady decline in the fish population in the canal.

Many observers have blamed the discharge of hot water from the Bentley plant for the problem. Bentley is equally concerned because it would like to expand its operations, but will not be able to do so until the problem is resolved. Many people have maintained that the demise of the fish population in the Loop Canal is the result of Bentley's thermal pollution of the water. Bentley's management feels that the declining fish populations are due to increased concentrations of fertilizers and other agricultural chemicals, which drain into the canal.Because Bentley would like to expand its facilities to meet increasing business and it faces a potential challenge from the State Department of Fisheries as well as the community

Causes of thermal pollution:

Heat producing industries i.e.,thermal power plants, nuclear power plants, refineries, steel mills etc.are the major sources of thermal pollution. Power plants utilize only 1/3 of the energy provided by fossil fuels for their operations. Remaining 2/3 is generally lost in the form of heat to the water used for cooling.Cold water, generally, is drawn from some nearby water-body, passed through the plant and returned to the same water body, with temperature 10-16°C higher than the initial temperature. Excess of heat reaching such water bodies causes thermal pollution of water

Effects of Thermal Pollution:(i) The dissolved oxygen content of water is decreased as the solubility of oxygen in

water is decreased at high temperature.(ii) High temperature becomes a barrier for oxygen penetration into deep cold waters.(iii) Toxicity of pesticides, detergents and chemicals in the effluents increases with increase in

temperature.