Air pollution remains a serious problem in many countries all over the world – also in Europe. What are its most common types, and what causes them?
Climate change and rising ecological consciousness have enforced some changes in the approach to energy and openness towards sustainable, renewable solutions. The tempo of the implementation of these changes depends on the country. Some, like Scandinavian ones, are building their energy systems around renewable sources, such as sun and wind, while others tend to remain focused on fossil fuels.
In most cases, the second category applies to the countries that have been building their economy in the mining industry for decades. However, even they will most likely change their focus in the following decades, as the market is becoming more and more open to renewable solutions and the consumers become interested in them. That trend will probably contribute not only to the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions but also all types of pollution due to the usage of clean energy sources and the replacement of gasoline with electric fuel.
However, before it happens, there is still a long way ahead of us. Pollutionkillshundreds of thousands of people each year. According to the report published in 2018 by HealthEffectsInstituteAir of Global Air, the highest rates of air pollution-related deaths belong to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. However, pollution also kills the inhabitants of the United States, Russia, Germany, or Poland. And in case it doesn’t cause death, it can also influence the health and pregnancies negatively. It is important to know your enemy. That is why we have prepared a compilation of the most common ones.
The types of air pollution
Therearetwocategories of air pollution: gas and dust. The criteria of this division are based on the structure of the particles. Because of this difference, they can influence health on a different level and spread to a different extent. In the case of both categories, sources of air pollution can vary.
Variouspollutingparticlescan is emitted into the atmosphere. Among the most common ones there is:
- sulfur dioxide
- ozone
- nitrogen oxides
- carbon oxides and dioxides.
All these types of air pollution can be harmful to human health. The inhabitants of the cities, especially ones that often deal with the problem of smog, are exposed to most of these articles every day.
Coaldust and lead are examples of air pollution from the dust category. Other heavy metals that can be found in the air are cadmium and arson.
You can find a detailed list of the types and sources of air pollution on Airly.org.
What are the main sources of air pollution?
The fuel and energy industry is the mainemittent of air pollution all over the world. That is why switching to renewable energy can be favorable not only for the Planet itself but also for ourhealth. However, other sources of air pollution are also to blame. The firstis the metallurgical industry, and the second – the transport sector. The transformations of this sector could result in lowering the level of pollution which could have a significant influence on the world’shealth.
