Environmental Economics — Economics STD 12 — Question

Causes of Air Pollution:
(I) Vehicle exhaust smoke:

1. Vehicles smoke happens to release high amounts of Carbon monoxide.
2. Millions of vehicles are operated every day in cities, each one leaving behind its own carbon footprint on the environment.

(II) Fossil fuel based power plants:

1. Fossil fuels also present a wider scale problem when they are burned for energy in power plants.
2. Chemicals like sulphur dioxide are released during the burning process, which travel straight into the atmosphere.
3. These types of pollutants react with water molecules to yield something known as acid rain.

(III) Exhaust from Industrial Plants and Factories:
Heavy machineries located inside big factories and industrial plants also emit pollutants into the air.
-(IV) Construction and Agricultural activities:

1. Potential impacts arising from the construction debris would include dust particles and gaseous emissions from the construction sites.
2. Likewise, using of ammonia for agriculture is a frequent byproduct that happens to be one of the most dangerous gases affecting air.

(V) Natural Causes:

1. Earth is one of the biggest polluters itself, through volcanoes, forest fires, and dust storms.
2. They are nature-borne events that dump massive amounts of air pollution into the atmosphere.

(VI) Household activities:
Household activities like cooking, heating and lighting, use of various forms of mosquito repellents, pesticides and chemicals for cleaning at home and use of artificial fragrances are some of the sources that contribute to air pollution.