Pollution can hurt our world.
It can be in the air or water. It can be trash on the ground. This can make people sick. We must keep our Earth clean.
Can you help keep the Earth clean?
Pollution happens when things get into nature and cause harm.
It can be in the air we breathe. It can be in the water we drink. It can even be loud noise.
Most pollution comes from people. Factories and cars make it. Farms can make it too. Even trash on the ground is a kind of pollution.
Sometimes nature causes it. A volcano can blow smoke into the air. Wildfires can make the air dirty too. These things can make people and animals sick.
Many countries work to stop it. They make rules to keep air and water clean. This helps keep our whole world safe.
Pollution happens when harmful things enter our world. These things are called pollutants. They can be solids, liquids, or gases.
Pollution can also come from energy like heat or loud noise.
Most pollution comes from human activities. Factories and cars are big sources. Farms can also cause pollution. Some pollution comes from one specific place, like a factory. This is called point source pollution. Other pollution comes from many places at once. This is called nonpoint source pollution.
Nature can cause pollution too. Volcanoes release gases into the air. Wildfires also make the air dirty with smoke.
Pollution can be very bad for health. In 2019, it killed about nine million people. Most of those deaths came from air pollution.
Because of this, many countries make rules. They want to keep our air and water clean for everyone.
Pollution happens when harmful things enter our natural world. These things are called pollutants. They can be solids, liquids, or gases. Pollution can also be energy, like heat, light, or sound.
Some pollutants are foreign substances brought in by people. Other pollutants are things that happen naturally. Pollution can change how a place looks, smells, or tastes. It can even make a natural resource less useful.
There are different ways that pollution moves through our world. Some pollution comes from a single, specific spot. This is called point source pollution. A factory or a mine might be a point source. Other pollution comes from many spread-out places at once. This is called nonpoint source pollution.
An example is agricultural runoff from many different farms. Microplastics in the ocean are also a type of nonpoint source. Even natural events like volcanoes can cause pollution. Volcanoes release gases like sulfur dioxide into the air.
People have been dealing with pollution for a long time. Before the 1860s, the word was used differently. It used to mean something that was sacred was being disrespected. During the 19th and 20th centuries, industries grew very fast. Many of these industries were not regulated by rules. People used to call air pollution "the smoke nuisance." They even called it "the smoke plague."
Later, in the second half of the 20th century, new laws began to appear.
Pollution affects many different parts of our planet. Air pollution comes from chemicals and dust in the sky. Water pollution happens when waste enters our rivers and oceans.
Soil contamination occurs when chemicals leak into the ground. There is also light pollution from bright city lights. In 2019, pollution killed about nine million people worldwide. This was about one in six deaths that year. Most of those deaths, about three-quarters, were from air pollution.
Many groups work hard to fix these problems. Countries create rules to keep air and water clean. National agencies supervise these rules in many lands. The UN Environmental Program helps coordinate efforts around the world.
Some people fight for environmental justice. This movement helps people in communities that face more pollution. This is often seen in the Global South. Reducing pollution is a major goal for the whole world. We want to protect ecosystems and all living things.
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that cause harm. These contaminants, known as pollutants, can be physical substances or forms of energy. Substances can exist as solids, liquids, or gases. Energy-based pollution includes radioactivity, heat, sound, or light.
While natural events can cause pollution, the term usually implies human sources. These sources often include manufacturing, transportation, agriculture, or poor waste management. Pollution can degrade the quality of an environment. It can also offend the senses of sight, taste, or smell.
Scientists and agencies categorize pollution by how it enters an ecosystem. Point source pollution comes from a highly concentrated, specific site. Examples include a factory, a mine, or a construction site. Nonpoint source pollution comes from widespread, distributed sources. This includes microplastics or agricultural runoff that spreads across large areas.
Some pollutants are also persistent. This means they remain in the environment long after the source has stopped. These are often called legacy pollution. They can stay at sites where polluting industries once operated.
There are many distinct types of pollution affecting the planet. Air pollution involves releasing chemicals and particulates into the atmosphere. Common gases include carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides. Photochemical ozone and smog form when nitrogen oxides react with sunlight.
Water pollution occurs when industrial wastewater, untreated sewage, or chemical runoff enters surface waters. Soil contamination happens when chemicals like heavy metals or pesticides leak into the ground.
Other types include noise pollution, light pollution, and thermal pollution. Thermal pollution is a temperature change in water caused by human influence, such as using water as a coolant in a power plant.
Historically, the concept of pollution has changed significantly. Before the 1860s, the term was rarely used in an environmental sense. It often referred to the desecration of something sacred. During the 19th and 20th centuries, industrialization led to unregulated emissions. People often called air pollution "the smoke nuisance" or "the smoke plague."
It was not until the later half of the 20th century that environmental regulation and pollution policy emerged to manage these issues.
Pollution has massive global significance for health and the economy. In 2019, pollution killed approximately nine million people worldwide. This accounted for about one in six deaths that year. Roughly three-quarters of these deaths were caused by air pollution.
Furthermore, a 2022 review found that human-made chemical pollution has exceeded planetary boundaries. This means it now threatens entire ecosystems around the world. One specific concern involves per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS. These are often called "forever chemicals" because of their persistence.
Certain populations face much higher risks from these contaminants. Vulnerable groups include children, the elderly, and marginalized communities. This happens because polluting industries and toxic waste sites are often located near people with less economic or political power.
This inequality is a core reason for the environmental justice movement. This movement focuses on the disproportionate impact of pollution on these communities. It remains a central element of environmental conflicts, particularly in the Global South.
Managing pollution requires cooperation at many levels of society. Local, national, and international policies work to regulate various pollutants. This leads to higher standards for air and water quality. Regional and national policies are usually supervised by environmental agencies or ministries. On a global scale, the UN Environmental Program helps coordinate international efforts. Reducing pollution is also a key part of the Sustainable Development Goals.
By regulating waste streams and emissions, society works to protect the natural world.
Where will your curiosity go next?
🖼️ Images & Media (13)
+ 1 more
More to explore
✨ What else?
Related topics you might enjoy
🔬 Go deeper
More advanced topics to explore
🪜 Step back
Simpler topics to build understanding
What is Nepedia?
A free, ad-free encyclopedia for children. Every article is written at five reading levels, so the same page works for a five-year-old and a fifteen-year-old — use the level switcher above to see this one change. No account needed to read.