CHAPTER 5:THE AIR AROUND US

TOPIC:AIR POLLUTION

NAME:AMRIT KAUR GILL

CLASS:1 DIAMOND
SCHOOL:S.M.K.SERI GARING
SUBJECT:SCIENCE
TEACHER:MISS NAGATHEVI
MARKS:BAND 6

CONTENTS

NUM
CONTENTS
.
1. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
2. AIR POLLUTION
3. EXAMPLES OF AIR POLLUTANTS
AND THEIR SOURCE
4. THE EFFECTS OF AIR
POLLUTION
5. STEPS TO PREVENT AND
CONTROL AIR POLLUTION
6. WAYS TO KEEP OUR AIR CLEAN
7. REFRENCE
8. THE END

PAGE
1
2
3-8
9-10
11-13
14
15
16

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I, Amrit Kaur Gill from 1 Diamond hereby

acknowledge my parents for helping me
prepare this scrap book on Air Pollution.Even
thanks to my Science teacher, Miss Nagathevi
for giving us the opportunity to do our Band
Six although most of us didnt pass our
previous bands.Despite only having one week
to complete this scrap book, Ive done it
properly and nicely.I also thank all my friends
for giving me the amazing ideas to complete
this scrap book.The last thing I hope is to get
chosen for this band and to continue doing
the next assignment.I wont say much any
more.Thank you,Miss Nagathevi.
Sincerely yours,
Amrit Kaur Gill

[AMRIT KAUR GILL]

AIR POLLUTION

Air is made up of nitrogen,oxygen,carbon

dioxide,inert gases and water vapour.Air
pollution occurs when air contains
pollutants.Pollutants damage the
environment unsuitable for living
organisms.Dust, carbon particles and toxic
gases are examples of air pollutants.Air
pollution is mainly caused by Man
himself.One of the main causes of air
pollution is the the combustion of fuels and
rubbish.Factories and motor vehical engines
release smoke such as sulphur
dioxide,nitrogen dioxide carbon monoxide
and other dangerous gases.

Examples of air pollutants and their

source

Smoke,soot,and smog
SOURCE:
-burning of waste from rice stalks,coconut
husks and fuel by factories,power generating
stations and vehicals
-forest fires
-cigarette smoke
-exhaust smoke from vehicles
EFFECT:

-dirties buildings and the environment

-slows down photosynthesis
-damages the respiratory system and causes
respiratory problems
-damages the liver and causes cancer

Dust
SOURCE:
-quarries
-cement,timber,and asbestos factories
EFFECT:
-dirties the environment and buildings
-damages the lungs
-may cause lung cancer
Carbon dioxide
SOURCE:

-burning of rubbish and fuel

EFFECT:
-causes greenhouse effect (temperature of
Earth increases)
Sulphur dioxide
SOURCE:
-burning of coal and petroleum in factories
and in power generating stations
EFFECT:
-damages the respiratory system
-causes acid rain
Carbon monoxide
SOURCE:
-burning of hydrocarbons
-exhaust smoke from vehicles
-cigarette smoke
EFFECT:

-causes dizziness and headaches

-causes death if a large quantity is inhaled
Nitrogen oxide
SOURCE:
-burning of fuel from factories
-smoke from vehical exhaust
EFFECT:
-causes acid rain
-causes respiratory diseases
Lead
SOURCE:
-exhaust fumes from vehicles
EFFECT:
-damages the nervous system
-causes brain damage to small kids and
unborn babies

Chlorofluorocarbon(CFC)
SOURCE:
-aerosol cans,refrigerators,and air
conditioners
-electronic factories
EFFECT:
-destroys the ozone layer in Earths
atmosphere
-ultraviolet light causes cataracts and skin
cancer

Nicotine and tobacco tar

SOURCE:
-cigarette smoke
EFFECT:

-nicotine discolours teeths,causes

bronchitis,lung and throat cancer
-tobacco tar damages the lungs and the
nervous system,causes heart disease and
lung cancer
Chemicals such as pesticides D.D.T
SOURCE:
-spraying D.D.T. to kill mosquitoes
-agricultural activities
EFFECT:
-causes birth effect in pregnancies
-poisons food
-damages the liver

The effects of air pollutions

1] Health problems
Though soot and dust are not poisonous, they
pollute the air.Thus they affect the respiratory
system.Asbestos dust causes lung cancer.Carbon
monoxide, sulphur dioxide, and nitrogen dioxide
are toxic gases.They may cause death if it is
inhaled in a large quantity.

2] Acid rain
Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide dissolve in
rainwater and form acid rain.As a result, the water
in ponds become very acidic.This in turn kills
aquatic animals.Plants will also die if the soil
becomes more acidic. Acid rain speeds up the
rusting of objects made from iron.Acid rain will
also corrode and damage buildings.

3] Greenhouse effect
Trapped carbon dioxide in the Earths atmosphere
prevents heat from escaping into space.This
causes the temperature on Earths surface to
rise.This is known as greenhouse effect.The

increase in temperature causes the changes in the

climate.

4] Thinning of ozone layer

The ozone layer prevents ultraviolet rays from the
Sun from entering the Earths surface.Ultaviolet
rays are dangerous and overexposure to
ultraviolet rays can result in skin cancer and
cataracts.The ozone layer becomes thin as a
result of the presence of free CFCs in the air.

STEPS TO PREVENT AND CONTROL AIR

POLLUTION
1)ROLE OF SOCIETY
a)Avoid using fuel that release a lot of
smoke,smog and soot.Encourage the use of liquid
petroleum gas and electrical equipments.
b)Educate the public about the effects of air
pollution and the ways to reduce air pollution.
c)Avoid open burning of rubbish.Impose a heavy
fine on anyone carrying out open burning.
d)Incinerators should be used for burning rubbish
and wastes.Energy released can be used to
generate electricity.
d)Create awareness through anti-smoking
campaigns about the harmful effects of smoking.

2)MOTOR VEHICALS

a)Fit a cataylic converter to the exhaust pipe

to convert harmful exhaust gases into carbon
dioxide,nitrogen and water which are nontoxic.
b)Use unleaded petrol to prevent the release
of lead particles into the atmosphere.
c)Encourage the use of liquid petroleum gas
as fuel in motor vehicles.
d)Encourage the use of public transport such
as the commuter trains,LRT and buses.This
will not only reduce petrol consumption but
also the release of toxic gases into the air.
e)Use efficient engine systems that
completely burn fuels and release less carbon
monoxide.
f)Walk or cycle whenever possible.
3)INDUSTRIAL FACTORIES
a)Fit a filter on the smoke duct of the
chimney in the factory to trap pollutants
before smoke is released into the air.

b)Use wind and solar energy and

hydroelectric power as alternatives to fuels
such as coal and petroleum.
c)Do not allow construction of factories that
produce pollutants near housing areas.
d)Process waste chemicals into non-toxic
forms before they flow out from factories.
4)AGRICULTURE
a)Control the use of fertilisers and pesticides
in increasing agricultural yield and killing
pests.
b)Encourage farmers to use biological control
methods which is the use of natural predators
to control pests.
5)ENFORCING LAWS
a)Legal actions must be taken against owners
of factories or vehicles which pollute the
environment.

b)Enforcement checks must be carried out

regularly.

Ways to keep our air clean

1] Recycle paper,bottles and cans.This
reduces waste and conserves resources.
2] Avoid using products that releases CFCs
into the environment.
3] Use unleaded petrol to reduce the amount
of lead particles into the air.
4] Use public transport such as the
community trains,the LRT and buses.
5] Car-pool whenever possible.
6] Walk or cycle whenever possible.

7] Install catalytic converters on vehicles

which convert harmful gases into less harmful
substances.
8] Use less electricity.Saving electricity
means less pollutants will be released as less
electricity needs to be generated.

THE END