ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION – OUR CONCERN
Environmental pollution is a cause for concern, not only for us but also for mankind as a whole. The last century has seen the rise of this menace assume gigantic proportions, so much so that it has cast its gloomy shadow on nature itself. The diminishing ozone ionosphere leading to global warming and the unpredictable seasonal variation, are some of the adverse effects of pollution that are threatening the environment in which we live.
Pollution is a by-product of the unprecedented industrial revolution that we have seen in the last few decades. The establishment of large scale factories belching out smoke, fumes and chemically hazardous waste, has now started having a telling effect on the environment. This couples with the unprecedented growth of automobiles and the ever-increasing human population are some of the factors that are making environmental pollution a cause for concern.
The effects of pollution are all pervasive – affecting mother earth, animals, birds and man. An immediate fallout being the reduction in the oxygen content in the atmosphere, presence of potentially harmful gases causing diseases asthma and lung cancer which are sometimes fatal. The large-scale release of chemical wastes into the rivers and streams are the cause of dwindling aquatic life in the river and oceans. This also adversely affects the soil where the river water is used for irrigation purposes. Every now and then we see in the news that fish and other aquatic washed ashore dead in large numbers. Some gases like chlorofluorocarbons (CFC ) used in air conditioners and refrigerators, have been known to cause reduction of the protective ozone in the atmosphere. We have before us the devastating consequences of the Union Carbide gas leak in Bhopal, that led to the wanton destruction of life. One of the worst industrial