Real World Examples of Soil Contamination & Pollution
It is one thing to see images of oil covered birds, the dark slick of oil spreading across pristine waterways, or watch forests biome slowly replaced by stubbly stumped hills. It’s another to imagine that in another faraway place, there is polluted soil killing wildlife, people, and the environment. Many environmental tragedies simply do not get the press they need. It’s up to you and me to educate ourselves. It is difficult to care about the world if we don’t know what exactly is wrong with it. To start with, China and India are some of the places where very real problems with soil pollution currently exist.
China
The pollution problem that exists in China is not only well-documented, it’s also well known. Photos of the capital city of Beijing clash with the current haze smothering the city—the air quality of the city is almost unbelievably terrible. But it isn’t just one city suffering. Large swathes of the country are contaminated; in a study conducted between 2005 and 2013, as much as, “16.1% of China’s soil and 19.4% of its arable land showed contamination” (BBC). The most severe pollution seems to be concentrated in three major zones, the Yangtze River Delta in the east, the Pearl River Delta in the south, and the northeast corner of China, with, “about 82.8% of the polluted land…contaminated by inorganic materials, with levels noticeably higher than the previous survey between 1986 and 1990” (BBC). Not only can this harm the environment, but the presence of high concentrations of heavy metals can have a serious effect upon people in the areas afflicted. Bloomberg Business reports in a recent article that the most common chemicals, cadmium, lead, and zinc, “leach out from open mines and industrial sites and into surrounding farmland” (Larson). They add that, “plants grown in tainted soil can absorb heavy metals,” and unfortunately, long term exposure can lead to serious health problems (Larson). This is a problem for many local Chinese farmers, who rely on the food they grow to make a living. It is also a serious issue for poor people who have no choice but to eat the contaminated food. The Environmental Protection Ministry has admitted that entire villages of sick people, known as “cancer villages,” exist in China. The current number is somewhere around 450, but it is continually increasing. Efforts are being made to contain and even reverse the damage caused, but there is still a long road ahead. Some factories have been shut, but large parts of Western China are not following the trend. The entire country, unfortunately, is discovering firsthand that the price of rapid expansion is not always something paid up front.
Photo Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/31/world/asia/good-earth-no-more-soil-pollution-plagues-chinese-countryside.html?_r=0
India
Much like China, India is suffering the price of rapid expansion. Not only do they suffer from heavy metal pollution, but there is also a serious fertilizer problem. Chemical fertilizers and biocides are used to save crops from insects, pests, and weeds, but unfortunately, the “biocides first kill germs and unwanted plants and then degrade the quality of soil” (Chand). What’s worse is that the pesticides used can contaminate the very crops they’re supposed to protect and harm animals, the environment, and people in the process. The problem doesn’t seem to be getting better. In fact, “it is estimated that India will require 45-50 million tonnes of chemical fertilizers as against the present consumption of about 17 million tonnes. This means that pollution by increasing use of chemical fertilizers will increase considerably in the years to come” (Chand).
Despite the grim warning, using safer, organic farming methods can turn the tide of pollution, but in some cases it isn’t simply a matter of method. For example, along the west coast of India, south of Mumbai, is the Belapur Industrial Complex. In recent years, a paper was published that found contamination in a nearby wetland. Specifically, a concentration of heavy metals was recorded in the area during the dry season and, “these heavy metals have a marked effect on the aquatic flora and fauna which through biomagnification enter the food chain and ultimately affect the human beings as well,” (Singare et al.). A variety of pollution exists, which can only be a given for such a large country. It is a positive sign, however, these problems are gaining more and more attention. One of the best ways to combat soil contamination and pollution is to raise awareness about the issue. Only then can people really come together to find solutions to the problems that plague wildlife, the environment, and everybody else living on the planet.
Photo Source: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/PaYR6kB1IQOSKnEhf19jpL/More-than-half-of-Indias-rivers-too-polluted-for-drinking-w.html
It is one thing to see images of oil covered birds, the dark slick of oil spreading across pristine waterways, or watch forests biome slowly replaced by stubbly stumped hills. It’s another to imagine that in another faraway place, there is polluted soil killing wildlife, people, and the environment. Many environmental tragedies simply do not get the press they need. It’s up to you and me to educate ourselves. It is difficult to care about the world if we don’t know what exactly is wrong with it. To start with, China and India are some of the places where very real problems with soil pollution currently exist.
China
The pollution problem that exists in China is not only well-documented, it’s also well known. Photos of the capital city of Beijing clash with the current haze smothering the city—the air quality of the city is almost unbelievably terrible. But it isn’t just one city suffering. Large swathes of the country are contaminated; in a study conducted between 2005 and 2013, as much as, “16.1% of China’s soil and 19.4% of its arable land showed contamination” (BBC). The most severe pollution seems to be concentrated in three major zones, the Yangtze River Delta in the east, the Pearl River Delta in the south, and the northeast corner of China, with, “about 82.8% of the polluted land…contaminated by inorganic materials, with levels noticeably higher than the previous survey between 1986 and 1990” (BBC). Not only can this harm the environment, but the presence of high concentrations of heavy metals can have a serious effect upon people in the areas afflicted. Bloomberg Business reports in a recent article that the most common chemicals, cadmium, lead, and zinc, “leach out from open mines and industrial sites and into surrounding farmland” (Larson). They add that, “plants grown in tainted soil can absorb heavy metals,” and unfortunately, long term exposure can lead to serious health problems (Larson). This is a problem for many local Chinese farmers, who rely on the food they grow to make a living. It is also a serious issue for poor people who have no choice but to eat the contaminated food. The Environmental Protection Ministry has admitted that entire villages of sick people, known as “cancer villages,” exist in China. The current number is somewhere around 450, but it is continually increasing. Efforts are being made to contain and even reverse the damage caused, but there is still a long road ahead. Some factories have been shut, but large parts of Western China are not following the trend. The entire country, unfortunately, is discovering firsthand that the price of rapid expansion is not always something paid up front.
Photo Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/31/world/asia/good-earth-no-more-soil-pollution-plagues-chinese-countryside.html?_r=0
India
Much like China, India is suffering the price of rapid expansion. Not only do they suffer from heavy metal pollution, but there is also a serious fertilizer problem. Chemical fertilizers and biocides are used to save crops from insects, pests, and weeds, but unfortunately, the “biocides first kill germs and unwanted plants and then degrade the quality of soil” (Chand). What’s worse is that the pesticides used can contaminate the very crops they’re supposed to protect and harm animals, the environment, and people in the process. The problem doesn’t seem to be getting better. In fact, “it is estimated that India will require 45-50 million tonnes of chemical fertilizers as against the present consumption of about 17 million tonnes. This means that pollution by increasing use of chemical fertilizers will increase considerably in the years to come” (Chand).
Despite the grim warning, using safer, organic farming methods can turn the tide of pollution, but in some cases it isn’t simply a matter of method. For example, along the west coast of India, south of Mumbai, is the Belapur Industrial Complex. In recent years, a paper was published that found contamination in a nearby wetland. Specifically, a concentration of heavy metals was recorded in the area during the dry season and, “these heavy metals have a marked effect on the aquatic flora and fauna which through biomagnification enter the food chain and ultimately affect the human beings as well,” (Singare et al.). A variety of pollution exists, which can only be a given for such a large country. It is a positive sign, however, these problems are gaining more and more attention. One of the best ways to combat soil contamination and pollution is to raise awareness about the issue. Only then can people really come together to find solutions to the problems that plague wildlife, the environment, and everybody else living on the planet.
Photo Source: http://www.livemint.com/Politics/PaYR6kB1IQOSKnEhf19jpL/More-than-half-of-Indias-rivers-too-polluted-for-drinking-w.html