The “crown of creation,” armed with technology, machines, and mechanisms, has been actively influencing nature for years, sometimes without thinking about the consequences. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of examples of the deleterious effects of human activity on nature, and recently there have been more and more changes on a global scale that threaten the planet as a whole.
- Atmospheric pollution affects global warming and climate change on the planet. The main “participants in the process” are heating plants and thermal power plants, non-ferrous and ferrous metallurgy enterprises, chemical production, automobile emissions, coal and oil extraction and processing.
- Today about 400 million tons of soot, ash and dust enter the atmosphere. In addition, mineral acid vapors, organic solvents, freon, etc. are released into the environment. As a result of such emissions, a greenhouse effect occurs, leading to a gradual increase in average annual temperatures. Since the beginning of the last century, the average surface temperature of the air is increasing annually by 0.007 ° C, and scientists call the critical limit an increase of the average annual temperature by 2 ° C, that is, almost halfway has already been passed. Global warming causes melting of the ice belt in the Arctic and Antarctica, an increase in sea level, an increase in the frequency of flooding. If the situation does not change, a new ice age may well occur in the future.
- Destruction of forests affects the atmosphere and disturbs the water regime of our planet. Rivers in the area of deforestation become shallower, their bottoms become silted, and this leads to destruction of spawning grounds and reduction in the number of various fish species. Groundwater supplies are significantly reduced, and consequently the soil dries out and is washed away by rainwater and winds that are no longer held back by forests.
- When forests are cleared, all living creatures that inhabit them die. Very few of them are able to escape and adapt to life in a new place. For example, some species of sloths that live in the actively deforested Amazon basin are able to live only in these places – relocation is impossible for them.
- Pollution of the world’s oceans is another problem very acute for mankind. Pollution changes the organoleptic properties of water, heavy metals, chlorides, sulfites, radioactive elements appear in large quantities, and the amount of oxygen dissolved in water decreases. More than 15 million tons of oil products enter the ocean every year, since accidents involving oil tankers and drilling platforms have long been a common occurrence. All wastes are also dumped into the ocean by ships voyaging through it, from passenger to cargo ships. Radioactive wastes getting into the ocean as a result of accidents at the nuclear power plants are very dangerous – remember at least Fukushima.
- Plastic waste also contaminates the ocean. They form whole islands on its surface, threatening the lives of marine residents. The biggest garbage island is in the Pacific Ocean. According to rough estimations the area of this island is from 700 thousand to 1.5 million square kilometers and it goes 10 meters deep[4]. Most of the trash – 80% – is of coastal origin, and waste from ships and fishermen’s nets make up about 20%.
- Animals and fish mistake plastic for food and swallow it. Plastic does not even dissolve when exposed to stomach acid, which inevitably leads to the death of living creatures. Seals, dolphins and whales often get caught in the remains of fishing nets. They cannot free themselves without help and often die.
- The situation with freshwater reservoirs is not much better. Industrial effluents and sewage from settlements have resulted in irreparable damage to the ecosystem of many rivers and lakes. The Elbe River in Europe has long ago earned the status of the most polluted river in Europe due to massive discharges of toxic substances from factories in Germany, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. And this is not the only example.
- Soil contamination. Harmful substances enter the soil as well. This is partly due to industrial activity, partly due to the human desire to improve crop yields. Fertilizers are not only beneficial, but can also do tremendous harm to the environment.
- The lack of proper recycling of household waste and its accumulation in landfills, and in the common parlance landfills, lead to the fact that all harmful substances washed away by precipitation enter the soil, poisoning it and all life nearby.
- The illegal killing of animals is also an important environmental problem today. Poaching has wiped out some species of animals and birds, and others are on the verge of extinction.
- Despite protection measures, the inclusion of rare species in the Red Book, and the creation of national parks, barbaric killing for profit is still rampant. Especially outrageous is the so-called trophy hunting, common in Africa. For a fee, anyone can kill a beautiful living creature – an elephant, a lion, a tiger just for fun… And while poaching is illegal, trophy hunting is perfectly legal.
These are not all the environmental problems that man has created for himself. There are many more, and they are growing like a snowball.