Air pollution is one of the most concerning environmental issues, which has negative impact on planet. Not only atmosphere’s high quality is crucial for every aspect of biosphere, but air also is capable of transporting big masses of pollution worldwide resulting in other types of pollution and being impossible to localize. The main reason behind air pollution is the burning of fossil fuels, which deals irreparable damage to the atmosphere.
Fossil fuel combustion is the main air pollutant, which has a major effect on both environment and human health. The main environmental issue caused by burning of the fossil fuels is global warming and climate change. Rapidly increasing emissions of carbon dioxide result in the growths of greenhouse effect, which raises the average temperature and may cause glacier melting, floods and significant climate change in general (Golomb 2021). Also, fossil fuels burning may cause damage to plants as it may prevent photosynthesis, making the process of air purification even slower. Acid rains and toxic emissions, which cause water and land pollution, are other consequences of fossil fuel combustion. Moreover, production and transportation of fossil fuels also represent a list of environmental threats.
Burning fossil fuels leads to the emergence of microscopic particles, which is small enough to penetrate lungs harming both human and animal health. Such particles may cause or increase the risk of a list of disorders, including asthma aggravation, lung cancer and heart diseases. There are several methods of decreasing the amount of air pollution, including bioremediation. The main bioremediation technique leading to the reduction of air pollution is biofiltration, which is achieved by pulling air through replaceable culture medium containing micro-organisms. The micro-organisms reduce the amount of harmful substances created by fossil fuel combustion, such as carbon dioxide. Even though the abovementioned methods may decrease air pollution, it is crucial to replace fossil fuel with alternative energy sources to prevent further damage to the environment and possible health issues.
Work Cited
Golomb, Dan. “Fossil Fuel Combustion: Air Pollution and Global Warming.” Managing Air Quality and Energy Systems, edited by Brian Fath et al., 2nd ed., CRC Press, 2021, pp. 177–190.