Part of a series on
Pollution
Air pollution from a factory
Air Air quality index Atmospheric dispersion modeling Chlorofluorocarbon Combustion Exhaust gas Haze Global dimming Global distillation Indoor air quality Ozone depletion Particulates Persistent organic pollutant Smog Soot Volatile organic compound Waste
Biological Biological hazard Genetic Introduced species Invasive species
Digital Information
Electromagnetic Light Ecological Overillumination Radio spectrum
Natural Ozone Radium and radon in the environment Volcanic ash Wildfire
Noise Transportation Marine mammals and sonar Noise control
Radiation Actinides Bioremediation Depleted uranium Nuclear fission Nuclear fallout Plutonium Poisoning Radioactivity Uranium Radioactive waste
Soil Agricultural Land degradation Bioremediation Defecation Electrical resistance heating Soil guideline values Phytoremediation
Solid waste Advertising mail Biodegradable waste Brown waste Electronic waste Foam food container Food waste Green waste Hazardous waste Industrial waste Litter Mining Municipal solid waste Nanomaterials Plastic Packaging waste Post-consumer waste Waste management
Space Space debris
Thermal Urban heat island
Visual Air travel Advertising clutter Overhead power lines Traffic signs Vandalism
War Chemical warfare Herbicidal warfare Agent Orange Nuclear holocaust Nuclear fallout Nuclear famine Nuclear winter Scorched earth Unexploded ordnance War and environmental law
Water Agricultural wastewater Biosolids Diseases Eutrophication Firewater Freshwater Groundwater Hypoxia Industrial wastewater Marine Monitoring Nonpoint source Nutrient Ocean acidification Oil spill Pharmaceuticals Freshwater salinization Septic tanks Sewage Shipping Sludge Stagnation Sulfur water Surface runoff Turbidity Urban runoff Water quality Wastewater
Topics History Pollutants Heavy metals Paint
Misc Area source Debris Dust Garbology Legacy Midden Point source Waste Lists Diseases Law by country Most polluted cities Least polluted cities by PM2.5 Treaties Categories By country
Environment portal  Ecology portal
v t e

Part of a series on
Weather
Temperate and polar seasons Winter Spring Summer Autumn
Tropical seasons Dry season Harmattan Wet season
Storms Cloud Cumulonimbus cloud Arcus cloud Downburst Microburst Heat burst Derecho Lightning Volcanic lightning Thunderstorm Air-mass thunderstorm Thundersnow Dry thunderstorm Mesocyclone Supercell Tornado Anticyclonic tornado Landspout Waterspout Dust devil Fire whirl Anticyclone Cyclone Polar low Extratropical cyclone European windstorm Nor'easter Subtropical cyclone Tropical cyclone Atlantic hurricane Typhoon Storm surge Dust storm Simoom Haboob Monsoon Amihan Gale Sirocco Firestorm Winter storm Ice storm Blizzard Ground blizzard Snow squall
Precipitation Drizzle Freezing Graupel Hail Megacryometeor Ice pellets Diamond dust Rain Freezing Cloudburst Snow Rain and snow mixed Snow grains Snow roller Slush
Topics Air pollution Atmosphere Chemistry Convection Physics River Climate Cloud Physics Fog Mist Season Cold wave Heat wave Jet stream Meteorology Severe weather List Extreme Severe weather terminology Canada Japan United States Weather forecasting Weather modification
Glossaries Meteorology Climate change Tornado terms Tropical cyclone terms
Weather portal
v t e

Air pollution is the contamination of air due to the presence of substances called pollutants in the atmosphere that are harmful to the health of humans and other living beings, or cause damage to the climate or to materials.^[1] It is also the contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment either by chemical, physical, or biological agents that alters the natural features of the atmosphere.^[1] There are many different types of air pollutants, such as gases (including ammonia, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxides, methane and chlorofluorocarbons), particulates (both organic and inorganic), and biological molecules. Air pollution can cause diseases, allergies, and even death to humans; it can also cause harm to other living organisms such as animals and crops, and may damage the natural environment (for example, climate change, ozone depletion or habitat degradation) or built environment (for example, acid rain).^[2] Air pollution can be caused by both human activities^[3] and natural phenomena.^[4]

Air quality is closely related to the Earth's climate and ecosystems globally. Many of the contributors of air pollution are also sources of greenhouse emission i.e., burning of fossil fuel.^[1]

Air pollution is a significant risk factor for a number of pollution-related diseases, including respiratory infections, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), stroke, and lung cancer.^[5] Growing evidence suggests that air pollution exposure may be associated with reduced IQ scores, impaired cognition,^[6] increased risk for psychiatric disorders such as depression^[7] and detrimental perinatal health.^[8] The human health effects of poor air quality are far reaching, but principally affect the body's respiratory system and the cardiovascular system.^[9][10] Individual reactions to air pollutants depend on the type of pollutant a person is exposed to,^[11][12] the degree of exposure, and the individual's health status and genetics.^[13]

Air pollution is the largest environmental risk factor for disease and premature death^[5][14] and the fourth largest risk factor overall for human health.^[15] Air pollution causes the premature deaths of around 7 million people worldwide each year,^[5] or a global mean loss of life expectancy (LLE) of 2.9 years,^[16] and there has been no significant change in the number of deaths caused by all forms of pollution since at least 2015.^[14][17][18] Outdoor air pollution attributable to fossil fuel use alone causes ~3.61 million deaths annually,^[19] making it one of the top contributors to human death.^[5] Anthropogenic ozone causes around 470,000 premature deaths a year and fine particulate (PM_2.5) pollution around another 2.1 million.^[20] The scope of the air pollution crisis is large: In 2018, WHO estimated that "9 out of 10 people breathe air containing high levels of pollutants."^[21] Although the health consequences are extensive, the way the problem is handled is considered largely haphazard^[22][21][23] or neglected.^[14]

The World Bank has estimated that welfare losses (premature deaths) and productivity losses (lost labour) caused by air pollution cost the world economy $5 trillion per year.^[24][25][26] The costs of air pollution are generally an externality to the contemporary economic system and most human activity, although they are sometimes recovered through monitoring, legislation, and regulation.^[27][28]

Many different technologies and strategies are available for reducing air pollution.^[29] Although a majority of countries have air pollution laws, according to UNEP, 43 percent of countries lack a legal definition of air pollution, 31 percent lack outdoor air quality standards, 49 percent restrict their definition to outdoor pollution only, and just 31 percent have laws for tackling pollution originating from outside their borders.^[30] National air quality laws have often been highly effective, notably the 1956 Clean Air Act in Britain and the US Clean Air Act, introduced in 1963.^[31][32] Some of these efforts have been successful at the international level, such as the Montreal Protocol,^[33] which reduced the release of harmful ozone depleting chemicals, and the 1985 Helsinki Protocol,^[34] which reduced sulfur emissions,^[35] while others, such as international action on climate change,^[36][37][38] have been less successful.

Sources of air pollution

There are many different sources of air pollution. Some air pollutants (such as nitrogen oxides) originate mainly from human activities,^[39] while some (notably radon gas) come mostly from natural sources.^[40] However, many air pollutants (including dust and sulfur dioxide) come from a mixture of natural and human sources.^[41]

Anthropogenic (human-made) sources

• Stationary sources include:
  • fossil-fuel power plants and biomass power plants both have smoke stacks (see for example environmental impact of the coal industry)^[42] Zdroj:https://en.wikipedia.org?pojem=Air_pollution
    Text je dostupný za podmienok Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License 3.0 Unported; prípadne za ďalších podmienok. Podrobnejšie informácie nájdete na stránke Podmienky použitia.

    ---