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Pollution Due to Urbanisation Essay

Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Below, you will find an essay on pollution due to urbanisation (long) and also a short essay on pollution due to urbanisation. While urbanisation has its positives, it is imperative to look at every object according to its pros and cons. Here are two essays on pollution due to urbanisation of 400-500 words and 100-200 words, respectively. We will discuss the importance of urbanisation for countries, and how urbanisation is polluting the world.

Long Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Urbanisation is a great concept which is required to develop any country. It refers to the concept of urbanising remote areas by building infrastructure which then brings about development. Infrastructure refers to all the buildings and institutions which are necessary for economic development to take place in an area. For example, educational institutions like schools, colleges, vocational learning centres are part of the infrastructure. Healthcare facilities such as hospitals and clinics, employment opportunities, food security, etc. are also part of the infrastructure of a country.

It is seen very often that a big corporation sets up shop in a rural area, and around this, infrastructure is built, and development and urbanisation take place. Jamshedpur is an example of such a place, where Tata Industries set up shop many years ago and made the area highly developed. Thus, urbanisation definitely encourages the people of a place to have a better life by giving them more opportunities to achieve good life through education, jobs, etc.

On the other hand, it must be duly noted that urbanisation is one of the leading causes of pollution in today’s world. There are several different kinds of pollution, such as air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution and noise pollution. The facets of urbanisation contribute to each one of these types of pollution in one way or another. Factories and mines contribute to air pollution through the fumes that each of them emits into the air. The damage done to the water and soil around factories because of their flowing septic is harmful to both humans as well as aquatic life. Additionally, the noises that come from mines, the whirring of machinery in factories, etc. contribute to noise pollution.

Additionally, it is not only big industries that contribute to pollution due to urbanisation. Part of urbanisation is also the development of roads, which means more cars, buses, two-wheelers, three-wheelers, trucks, etc. on the road. These all contribute to noise pollution because of the incessant honking, and also to air pollution, because of the fumes that all motor vehicles emit. Even when we are stuck in traffic in an auto, it becomes difficult to breathe because of the fumes which surround us on the roads. If we are finding it difficult to breathe, imagine what so many fumes are doing to our planet.

Short Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

150 Words Paragraph On Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Pollution takes place when air, water or soil becomes contaminated with unwanted substances. Air pollution takes place because of the fumes of factories and motor vehicles on th e road. Soil pollution and water pollution take place due to the septic waste being released into soil or water that surrounds a factory. Even oil spills are a major reason for water pollution, and all kinds of pollution can be very dangerous for living beings. Another type of pollution is noise pollution, which comes from the honking of cars, loud sounds in factories, the passing of aeroplanes and trains, etc.

Urbanisation is a result of the need to achieve economic development. It refers to when a relatively rural or remote area is made more urban by constructing roads, hospitals, schools, offices, etc. In this way, development is a result of urbanisation, which is extremely good for all countries.

However, all the great factors that urbanisation brings in, such as factories to work in, motor vehicles to drive, and so much more, all of these contribute to pollution more and more. Even though urbanisation is very important for a country, it is important to address all the kinds of pollution

Pollution is one of the most pressing concerns confronting our civilization today. When their environment deteriorates on a daily basis, humans face major challenges. The mixing of any toxic element or contaminants in our natural environment is referred to as pollution. Many contaminants are introduced into the natural environment as a result of human activities, contaminating it too dangerous proportions. Pollution is caused by a variety of factors, one of which is urbanisation.

The negative aspect of urbanisation is the manufacturers, which emit a great deal of pollution. Their equipment emits smoke into the environment, pollutes water streams and the surrounding land, and makes a lot of noise. As a result, there is a lot of pollution as a result of urbanisation, and it is extremely destructive to the environment when it first begins.

The majority of the pollution in our environment is due to urbanisation. It's because factories are springing up all over the place, there are a lot more cars on the road now, and so on.

Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Our mother planet is choking, and we are unable to do anything about it. Today, we confront several issues, one of which is pollution. Pollution occurs when a contaminating substance is introduced into our environment and pollutes our natural resources. There are numerous causes of pollution, most of which are caused by humans. Natural resources and habitats have been depleted as a result of our activities.

Urbanisation is one of the primary causes of human pollution. Pollution levels began to rise when humans began to construct cities and industrialization developed. Human needs continue to expand, and we loot our mother planet to meet them. As a result of development, many beautiful valleys, mountains, hilltop stations, and woods have become pollution carriers. Trees have been felled, rivers and lakes have been poisoned, and natural reserves have been exploited.

As a result, we now live in severely polluted cities where daily life has become increasingly challenging. As a result of urban pollution, we are experiencing a variety of health issues, the worst part of which is that we are fully unconscious of it. It is past time for us to take steps to reduce pollution and make the world a better place for future generations.

Urbanisation is a really great step forward for any country, and it is and should be the main aim of all countries. All people around the world should have access to proper healthcare, education, sanitation, nourishment and safety, and urbanisation is how we can help achieve this goal. However, in the process of meeting this goal, we cannot forget that pollution due to urbanisation does take place, and is very dangerous for the planet and, therefore, all species living on earth in the long run.

FAQs on Pollution Due to Urbanisation Essay

1. What are the pros and cons of urbanisation according to the essay on pollution due to urbanisation?

The essay on pollution due to urbanisation says that urbanisation is good and is vital for a country, but can also be harmful for the environment. Urbanisation brings in better education, better healthcare facilities, better roads, and better infrastructure in general. However, it improves the lifestyles of human beings at the cost of hurting the environment by putting more contaminants into air, water and soil in the form of toxic fumes and septic waste. Thus, urbanisation is important, but it has to be brought about in a more sustainable manner.

2. How can we reduce pollution due to urbanisation?

At the individual level, there are some very simple ways to reduce pollution due to urbanisation. To reduce air pollution, we can choose to walk, carpool, or use public transport instead of taking a taxi. Garbage should not be thrown on roads and in water bodies, in order for us to stop soil and water pollution. We should also not honk on roads unnecessarily, to curb noise pollution. Unless the big companies and industries do not decide to take a stand and do what’s good for the environment, we will have to keep relying only on individual measures.

3. What are the different types of pollution and their causes?

Pollution in Cities: Types and Causes

Air Pollution: The air in metropolitan places is constantly polluted with harmful compounds, making breathing increasingly dangerous. The air in cities is suffocating. The air is polluted by smoke from autos, factories, and power plants. There are also other contaminants in the air, such as chemical spills and other harmful substances.

Water Pollution: Natural water supplies are becoming increasingly scarce in metropolitan areas, and those that do exist are becoming progressively contaminated. There is a lot of waste dumping in lakes and rivers, such as residential and industrial waste. A lot of trash is washed into the rivers when it rains.

Soil Pollution: Toxic mixtures in the soil are causing ecosystem disruption.

Noise Pollution: Cities are among the noisiest places on the planet. Noise pollution is caused by a variety of sources, including traffic noises, loudspeakers, and other undesirable noises, which cause a variety of health problems.

Radioactive Pollution: Nuclear power facilities' unintentional leaks represent a serious concern.

Visual Pollution: Signs, billboards, screens, high-intensity lights, and other forms of overexposure to sights in cities can also be highly unsettling.

There is also ' Thermal pollution ,' which is created by an excess of heat trapped in the earth's atmosphere.

4. How can pollution due to urbanisation be controlled?

One can implement the following methods to reduce pollution caused by urbanisation:

Conserve Energy: People in urban areas always use more energy than people in rural areas. The use of energy results in numerous types of pollution. One of the most effective strategies to reduce pollution is to conserve energy wherever possible. When you are not using an electrical appliance, turn it off. This tiny step can make a tremendous difference.

Reduce water waste: We waste a lot of water on a daily basis, which might have negative implications. We must make every effort to utilize as little water as possible.

Plant more trees: Urban areas are the ones with the least amount of greenery. It's a good idea to have a kitchen garden and a little lawn near your house.

Green belts: The government can assist by declaring specific sections in each city as green belts, allowing trees and other plants to flourish freely.

Use fewer loudspeakers: Using fewer loudspeakers can significantly minimise noise pollution. It's also a good idea to turn down the music level at functions after a specific amount of time has passed.

Indoors: In cities, home interiors are likewise heavily contaminated. We must also have some plants inside our homes to filter the polluted indoor air.

Industrial trash: Factory owners must make every effort to avoid dumping industrial waste in lakes or rivers. The government can also enact legislation in this regard.

5. What problems are caused due to Urbanization?

The necessity for open space to develop roads, buildings, and bridges, among other things, resulted in widespread deforestation. To accommodate the ever-increasing population, trees were cut down, fields were cleared, and built new space. It goes without saying that tree cutting is a major source of pollution. The high population density resulted in a scarcity of everything, including space and natural resources such as water and coal.

A number of serious challenges have arisen as a result of the interaction of the urban population with the environment. The spending habits and lifestyles of the urban people had a significant impact on the environment. Consumption of food, energy, and water is all higher in cities. Cities have much more filthy air than rural areas. This is mainly due to the increased use of automobiles and the expansion of industries and factories that pollute the air. We utilise electricity to power almost all of our equipment.

6. What is urbanisation, and how is it caused?

The population shift from rural to urban regions, the resulting decline in the number of people living in rural areas, and the methods in which societies adjust to this transition are all referred to as urbanisation. It is basically the process by which towns and cities evolve and grow as more people choose to live and work in central locations.

Individual, community and state activity result in either organic or planned urbanisation. Living in a city can be culturally and economically advantageous since it can provide more options for access to the labour market, better education, housing, and safety conditions, as well as lower commute and transit time and costs. A healthy urban environment is characterised by density, proximity, diversity, and marketplace rivalry. However, there are also negative social consequences associated with urban living, such as alienation, stress, higher living costs, and mass marginalisation. Suburbanization, which is occurring in the greatest developing countries' cities, can be seen as an attempt to balance these negative aspects of city living while still giving access to a huge number of shared resources.

7. What is the Impact of Urbanisation in Indian Cities?

The following are the main effects of urbanisation on environmental quality in Indian cities:

According to the entire slum population in India in 1991, 41 per cent of the overall slum population lived in cities with populations of one million or more, which account for 27 percent of the country's total population.

According to the current situation of municipal solid trash creation and collection situation in Indian metropolitan cities, Maharashtra creates the most municipal solid garbage (11,000 tonnes per day), followed by Delhi (8700 tonnes per day) in 2019, both of which are expected to rise in the near future.

In India and other Metropolitan Cities, the number of automobiles on the road is increasing.

In India and other metropolitan cities, the number of automobiles on the road has increased. The usage of vehicles has increased by 10% or more on average, posing a significant threat to air pollution.

Water resources are dwindling day by day as a result of rising population, wasteful usage, and a lack of conservation. Huge amounts of wastewater enter rivers as cities and industries grow, contaminating river streams that are used for drinking and other reasons.

Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Introduction.

We often consider urbanisation to be a positive phenomenon. To a large extent, it is rightly so. We know how remote areas get developed, and huge infrastructure is set up as part of urbanisation. This leads to the creation of many educational and job opportunities so that people can lead better lives. Well, urbanisation sounds really interesting, right? But we must also be aware of how it contributes to pollution, and this essay on pollution due to urbanisation will be helpful to know more about it.

Children are familiar with air pollution , water pollution, and land pollution. It is time that we teach them how urbanisation leads to pollution and causes harm to the environment. Like building schools, hospitals and factories, and roads are also developed as part of urbanisation, increasing the chances of pollution by air, water or land. This short essay on pollution due to urbanisation will delve more into this topic.

Negative Effects of Urbanisation

Due to urbanisation, factories and industries are springing up in different places, and the number of vehicles on the road is increasing. The air and gases emitted from factories and vehicles contaminate the atmosphere, thus leading to pollution. In this essay on pollution due to urbanisation, we will see how urbanisation is a major threat to the environment .

The air in cities has become toxic due to the harmful gases and smoke given out by automobiles and factories. Besides, household and industrial wastes are dumped into the water bodies, thus making them unsafe for consumption and use.

We will also see other ways in which urbanisation is causing pollution in the environment through this short essay on pollution due to urbanisation. Trees are cut down to build houses and buildings, and there is a significant rise in noise pollution and land pollution because of urbanisation. Eventually, people will struggle to get clean food and water for survival and suffer from many health issues. Moreover, our environment will deteriorate as all our natural resources will get depleted, resulting in phenomena like global warming , deforestation and acid rain, among others.

Ways to Reduce Pollution Due to Urbanisation

We dream of making every village a city by constructing schools, buildings, offices and roads. Urbanisation is seen as a sign of development, and hence, we believe it to be good for us. But it is equally important to address the issues of pollution to truly enjoy the benefits of urbanisation. This essay on pollution due to urbanisation will now discuss some effective measures to curb pollution by various means.

By fixing leaky pipes, segregating dry/wet and paper/plastic waste, reusing plastic bottles, and using biogas for cooking, we can limit the pollution from households. Besides, we can ensure proper disposal of industrial waste without dumping it in water or land. Industries must also take care to use non-toxic chemicals or materials and set up efficient machines. Thus, this short essay on pollution due to urbanisation emphasises taking active steps to reduce pollution.

Urbanisation is an important developmental measure for any country, but we must ensure that it takes place without damaging the environment. Let us also make our children aware of this problem through this essay on pollution due to urbanisation. You can check out more amazing essays, stories , GK questions, and worksheets for kids on our website.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is urbanisation.

Urbanisation is the process of turning rural villages and areas into modern cities by constructing roads, buildings, schools and offices.

Does urbanisation cause pollution?

Since urbanisation involves setting up factories and building roads, pollution is bound to happen through the air, water, soil, land, and noise.

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Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation for Students and Children in English

February 14, 2024 by Prasanna

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation: Pollution is a problem that has become more and more pressing over the last few decades. There are different kinds of pollution, which are air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution, and soil pollution, all of which are incredibly harmful to the environment. These refer to contamination of the air by fumes or unwanted noise, contamination of water bodies and that of land, respectively. It is needless to say that these are rigid examples of pollution due to urbanisation.

You can read more Essay Writing about articles, events, people, sports, technology many more.

Long and Short Essays on Pollution due to Urbanisation for Children and Kids in English

Read below to find two essays about pollution due to urbanisation. The first essay is a long essay of 500 words, and the second is a short essay of 200 words. The former is suitable for class 7-10 students as well as for those aspiring for competitive exams. The latter essay is ideal for kids of class 6 and below.

Long Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation 500 words in English

Long Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation in English for classes 7, 8, 9 and 10 and Competitive Exam Aspirants

Below we have given a long essay about pollution due to urbanisation 500 words and is suitable for students of class 7 to 10, and also for competitive exam aspirants.

Pollution has been a long-standing problem in our world for a few decades now. It is something that poses harm to the environment, and also to us humans as a result of that. Pollution refers to when there are contaminants that pose harm to the environment, and there are four main types of it. Air pollution refers to the harmful and toxic fumes in the air produced by vehicles, factories, smoking, etc. Water pollution refers to the contamination of water bodies by toxic substances, plastic, oil spills, etc. Soil or land pollution refers to the wastage we leave on the land, and also toxic substances that seep into the soil and ruin its fertility. Noise pollution refers to unwanted and unpleasant noises; all the types of pollution are incredibly detrimental to the planet.

Urbanisation refers to the concept of rural towns and villages developing into urbanised towns and cities. Urban localities are characterised by having good infrastructure and prevalence of industry, both of which are almost undoubtedly linked to each other. A lot of venture capitalists and multinational corporations select smaller, rural towns to start manufacturing businesses because the factors of production most often come cheaper there. This means that the rent is lower, labour costs less, etc. thus, it makes for a convenient place to open up good-manufacturing factories there. Urbanization has demerits more than merits.

When a factory opens in a rural area, it paves the way for the people living in and around the area to avail employment there. Since there will be many raw material trucks coming in and goods trucks leaving from the factory site, there is a requirement for paved roads. More and more facilities and infrastructure come up around the lands surrounding the factory, resulting in the development of the area. This process is called urbanisation, and it is important to know about so you can understand how pollution due to urbanisation takes place.

Where there is a factory, while a lot of infrastructure and development follows it, there is also a lot of waste produced there. Many factories may not follow the correct procedure for the disposal of waste, which can be dangerous as factory waste can sometimes be toxic. This toxic waste seeps into neighbouring soil, close-by water bodies, and poisonous fumes from the factories into the air. Aside from these forms of pollution, factories can also be noisy due to the machinery used inside. Thus it causes all four types of pollution. In this way, industries produce air, water, noise, and soil pollution due to urbanisation.

While pollution on its own is a pressing problem for our world, pollution due to urbanisation is a huge problem. Adding to that, it is becoming a bigger and bigger problem as urbanisation is taking over even the smallest areas. Yes, development is something to applaud, but not when it goes to the extent of causing harm to or destroying the environment.

Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation 200 words in English

Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanisation in English for Classes 6 and Below

Below we have given a short essay about pollution due to urbanisation of 200 words. This long essay on the topic is suitable for students of class 6 and below.

Pollution is a severe problem in today’s world. There are four kinds of pollution (air, water, soil and noise pollution) and they are all dangerous. When there are unwanted objects, smells or anything like that in the air, water, or soil, they are called pollutants. Some examples of pollutants are plastic in oceans, smoke in the air from vehicles, etc.

When industries decide to make factories in rural areas like villages and small towns, they also build good roads and other proper buildings around the factory. This is so that people can do work in factories with ease. When industries do this, it is called urbanisation. Many small towns have become big centres of development and factory work.

The bad part about urbanisation is that the factories which create a lot of pollutants. They release smoke into the air, harmful waste into water streams and surrounding land, and also make a lot of noise because of their machines. Thus there is a lot of pollution due to urbanisation, and it is very harmful to the environment when urbanisation starts.

Urbanisation is the cause of most of the pollution that there is our environment. It is because factories are everywhere, there are many more vehicles on the roads now, etc.

10 Lines on Pollution due to Urbanisation Essay in English

Pollution refers to when any of our surroundings have contaminants, toxins, pollutants and harmful substances.
There are four types of pollution, namely, air, water, soil, and noise pollution, which you find in those places, respectively.
Air pollution refers to when there are contaminants such as smoke, smells, fumes from vehicles, etc. in the air, which may even make it hard for us to breathe.
Water pollution refers to when there are unwanted substances in Earth’s water bodies, such as plastic, toxic chemicals from industries, oil from oil spills, etc. This is harmful to aquatic life, and also for the other life, including humans’ who drink this water.
Soil pollution refers to when toxins seep into the land or soil because of factory waste, untreated garbage and sewage, etc.
Noise pollution refers to when there are unwanted and disturbing noises, such as the sound of blaring horns in traffic, the loud whirring of machinery, etc.
Urbanisation brings infrastructure and employment opportunities, among various other forms of development.
Factories and industries do more harm to the environment than good for the people.
Factories let untreated waste into water streams and surrounding land sometimes, which causes soil and water pollution due to urbanisation. They also release toxic fumes into the air and jarring noises due to the heavy machinery, which is also pollution.
While development is a good thing as it brings in opportunities for thousands of people, it is not worth it if it causes uncontrollable levels of pollution which are highly detrimental to the environment.

FAQ’s on Pollution due to Urbanisation Essay

Question 1. What does it mean by urbanisation?

Answer: Urbanisation refers to the concept of a rural area becoming developed as factories, good roads, good schools, etc. are built there. An urban or urbanised city is one where there are great infrastructure and sizeable employment opportunities.

Question 2. What does it mean by pollution?

Answer: Pollution refers to the presence of toxic substances or pollutants in the environment, such as in the air, water, and soil. When harmful substances get into the air, water, or land, it means that they are polluted.

Question 3. What are the four main types of pollution in simple words?

Answer: The four main types of pollution are air, water, soil and land pollution – when there are intoxicants in the air, water, or soil, we name them as such, respectively.

Question 4. How is pollution linked to the concept of urbanisation?

Answer: With urbanisation, polluting factories come up, more fuming vehicles are on the road and other similar situations. Thus, pollution due to urbanisation is a sad but truthful reality.

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Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

Table of Contents

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization: Pollution is one of the biggest issues that we as a society face today. The everyday deteriorating environment is a big challenge for humans. The mixing of any harmful substance or pollutants in our natural environment is called pollution. It is due to human activity, many contaminators get introduced into the natural environment thereby polluting it to harmful levels. There are many reasons why pollution occurs and one of the major one is urbanization.

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Long and Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

In this section we have tried to cover all aspects of pollution due to urbanization in varying lengths to help you with the same in your exam. You can select any Pollution due to Urbanization essay as per your need:

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization – Essay 1 (200 words)

Our mother earth is choking and we are helpless. We face many challenges today and one of them is pollution. When any contaminating substance is added in our environment and pollutes our natural resources called pollution. There are many reasons of pollution and human beings are responsible for most of it. Our activities have depleted our natural resources and our natural habitat.

One of the main reasons of human pollution is urbanization. When human being started establishing cities and industrialization happened than the level of pollution started increasing. The harsh reality of urbanization is that many beautiful valleys, mountains, hills stations and forests have been converted into vessels of pollution. The needs of human beings kept on increasing day by day and to satisfy those needs we exploited our mother earth. Trees were cut down, rivers and lakes were contaminated and natural reserves were misused.

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The result today is that we live in highly polluted cities where day to day life is becoming increasingly tuff. We face many health issues due to this urban pollution and the worst part is that we do not even realize that. It is high time that we must now adopt ways to curb this pollution and create a better world for our future generations.

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in India – Essay 2 (300 words)

Introduction

The days are gone when kids would roam freely on streets and birds would fly in the sky. Such a nice scene has been very rare to see, nowadays. We should blame ourselves only! India was a land of villages; our culture arose from villages only. But than we did something so bad that we are paying the price of it even today. We have replaced the major part of earth with factories, mills and building causing pollution .

There are Various Levels at which Urban Pollution is happening like:

Types and Causes of Urban Pollution

Air Pollution: The air in the urban areas is always polluted with harmful substances and it is becoming hazardous day by day to breathe. The air in the cities is choking. The smoke from automobiles, factories and power generators make the air unhealthy. There are other factors also like chemical spills and other toxic gases that contaminate the air.
Water Pollution: As it is there are very less natural water sources in the urban areas and the ones that are there are getting increasingly polluted. There is a lot of disposal in the lakes and rivers like household & industrial disposal. A lot of waste gets mixed with rain and washed into the waters .
Soil Pollution: The mixing of toxins in the soil is disturbing the eco-system.
Noise Pollution: Urban areas are one of the noisiest ones. Various sources of noise pollution include traffic noises, loud-speakers and other unwanted noises cause many health issues .
Radioactive Pollution: The accidental leakage by nuclear power plants poses a big threat.
Visual Pollution: The over exposure of visuals in the cities in the form of signs, billboards, screens, high intensity lights etc. are also quite disturbing .
Other than these there is also ‘Thermal pollution’ that is caused by excessive amount of heat trapped in earth’s atmosphere.

Conclusion:

The various means of pollution in urban areas can lead to many health issues in the people living in cities. We are everyday exposed to more than one of these health issues sources.

Essay about Problems Due To Urbanization – Essay 3 (400 words)

We achieved a big step when we urbanized our villages but it came with a price. We surely have a luxurious and a comfortable life in the modern day cities and towns but it has dent a big hole in the health of our environment. It has brought with it many problems that we face. The developing cities saw a rapid growth and this urbanization brought with it a web of difficulties and we seem to be stuck in them.

Problems Due to Urbanization

The need of free space to build roads, buildings and bridges etc made a massive deforestation happen. The trees were cut down, the fields were cleared and space was created to accommodate the ever rising population. It is a no-brainer that cutting of trees is a major reason of pollution. The high density of population created a lack of everything like space, natural resources like water, coal etc.

The interaction of urban population with environment caused some serious problems. The consumption patterns and the lifestyle of urban population changed the environment massively. The urban population consumes more food, energy and water. The air in urban areas is much more polluted than the rural ones. This is mainly because of the use of automobiles and building up of industries and factories that pollute the air at an increasing rate. Almost everything that we use works on electricity. The need for electricity in the cities is always rising and to meet that more power plants are build and that pollutes the air.

The lakes, rivers and any other water bodies in urban areas is always polluted by the dump of industrial waste and sewage. The marine life faces a lot of danger. We cannot ignore that noise pollution is one of the major causes of stress related issues in urban population. More and more trees are cut down to meet the needs of urban people and in exchange very less tress are planted. The use of plastic is another major reason of degradation of environment .

Studies show that urbanization is one of the major causes of depleting natural resources. We are constantly damaging our mother earth and the result is high pollution levels in the cities and towns. It is not possible to reverse the damage that we have already done but we can surely take some preventive measures and control the further damage. It is high time that we take some serious steps to save our planet and leave a better tomorrow .

Essay on Pollution Caused by Urbanization and Its Solutions – Essay 4 (500 words)

The advancement of technology and industrialization has caused the rapid growth in our lifestyle. Long back we started developing cities that are well equipped with all the facilities. The process of urbanization created a big dent in the health of our environment. The natural resources were depleted and this excessive use of technology and energy became a major source of pollution and today we live in a world that is highly polluted and unfit living .

Pollution Caused by Urbanization

There are various pollution that are caused by urbanization like air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution, thermal pollution, global warming, deforestation etc. It is high time that now we must adopt ways and means by which we can improve the health of the environment.

There is a Number of Solutions that we can apply and create a Better Tomorrow.

Solutions and Prevention of Urban Pollution

Conserve Energy: The urban area’s people always use more energy than the rural area’s people. The consumption of energy causes various kinds of pollution. Saving energy wherever possible is one of the best ways to curb pollution. Turn off the electrical appliances when they are not being used. This small step can help in a big way.
Use less water: We waste a lot of water daily and this can lead to bad consequences. We must try and use as less water as possible .
Plant more trees: The urban areas are the ones that have less greeneries. Try to plant many trees and vegetation as much as possible in your surrounding areas. Kitchen garden and small lawn near home is a good idea .
Green belts: Government can help and declare some areas in every city as green belts so that trees and other plants can be grown there without any obstruction .
Use less loudspeakers: The minimum use of loud speakers can reduce the noise pollution a lot. Decreasing the volume of music at functions after a certain time is also a good move.
Indoors: The indoors of the homes are also highly polluted in cities. We must have some plants inside the homes also, that can filter the indoor polluted air.
Industrial waste: The factory owners must try and make possible that industrial waste is not dumped in the lakes or rivers. Government can also make laws for the same.
Say no to plastic: Plastic is one of the most harmful substances that can pollute air, water and soil all together. We must try and minimize the use of plastic as much as possible. Use just cloth bags instead of plastic.
Use Public transport: Avoid using cars and bikes for daily use. Try to use public transport, bicycle and car pools. This will not only curb air pollution but will also decrease the traffic on roads.
Walk: Try to go to nearby areas on foot i.e. walking, this will reduce pollution and will also improve your health .
Better garbage disposal: Use the structural methods of garbage disposal in cities.

A small step can help in a big way and contribution of every citizen will make the urban areas more livable. Following these simple steps and with a little help from the government, we can definitely reduce the city pollution a lot. If we do not wake up today and do not realize the worst condition of natural resources then after some time our future generations will not be able to survive, It’s far to enjoy the environment .

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization and Digital India – Essay 5 (600 words)

In order to create a better tomorrow we have created a difficult toady. We have urbanized our villages and made them into hi-tech cities that have all the modern facilities and everyday we are creating something or the other new. Today we all dream of a digital India. In a country every citizen uses technology for his/her betterment. We aim to create a world where everything is just a button push away. Everyday more and more Indians are using technology for making their day to day life easy. Today we have become the slaves of technology and cannot live without technology even for a minute. We need to be connected all the time. Even our government is trying to transform the nation into a digitally empowered society.

Digital India and Environmental Importance

We see a smart phone in the hands of everybody even a labor of these days. Everybody understands the power and the reach of the internet. We no more call, now video call our loved ones. Any information can reach to any corner of the world in seconds now. We cannot ignore the power of digitalization. But what is the important question here is that can digitization of the digital movement be ‘environmental substantial’. We must ask this question to the founding fathers of digital India; can they assure that through this digitization our precious environment will not be harmed? Is it possible to move forward with modernization without harming the natural resources and without disturbing the ecological balance?

The digital revolution is such thing which touches every aspect of our life as it connects us to the rest of the world all the time. We all know that the digital appliances have carbon emissions and that has harmful effects on our eco system. We are also aware that these appliances emit radiations that are very harmful for humans. It is also advised not to keep mobile phones very near to your head or heart at night.

So in short, these digital devices are more harmful than helpful. We are also consuming power at a rapid speed and soon all the power will be exhausted. We are creating new and more advanced devices day by and day and we forget that all these use power and more devices means more use of power. The consumption is increasing day by day but what we do not realize that natural resources are scarce. There will be a day when they will not be able to satisfy our power needs. Soon there will be a time when these devices will become uncontrollable and we will then suffer from the harmful effects.

The digital India comes with a cost. It can have effects on us at many levels like, it pollutes our environment, it degrades our ecosystem and most importantly it causes many harmful effects on our physical health. The radiations cause vision problems, headaches and many other such issues. What we lack are the tools of awareness that can tell us how to control these effects. Do we really need a digital India today that cannot promise a better tomorrow?

There is a strong need to create a mass concern effort that can bring awareness about these problems. Digitization is good but it must be in controlled levels so that we can move forward but also make sure that our environment is safe. It is our duty to leave a pollution free environment and safe world for our future generations.

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A cloak of smog gives Fresno, California, a hazy look. Smog, a hybrid of the words "smoke" and "fog," is caused when sunlight reacts with airborne pollution, including ash, dust, and ground-level ozone.

Urban Threats

Urbanization spurs a unique set of issues to both humans and animals.

The promise of jobs and prosperity, among other factors, pulls people to cities. Half of the global population already lives in cities, and by 2050 two-thirds of the world's people are expected to live in urban areas. But in cities two of the most pressing problems facing the world today also come together: poverty and environmental degradation.

Poor air and water quality, insufficient water availability, waste-disposal problems, and high energy consumption are exacerbated by the increasing population density and demands of urban environments. Strong city planning will be essential in managing these and other difficulties as the world's urban areas swell.

Intensive urban growth can lead to greater poverty, with local governments unable to provide services for all people.
Concentrated energy use leads to greater air pollution with significant impact on human health.
Automobile exhaust produces elevated lead levels in urban air.
Large volumes of uncollected waste create multiple health hazards.
Urban development can magnify the risk of environmental hazards such as flash flooding .
Pollution and physical barriers to root growth promote loss of urban tree cover.
Animal populations are inhibited by toxic substances, vehicles, and the loss of habitat and food sources.
Combat poverty by promoting economic development and job creation.
Involve local community in local government.
Reduce air pollution by upgrading energy use and alternative transport systems.
Create private-public partnerships to provide services such as waste disposal and housing.
Plant trees and incorporate the care of city green spaces as a key element in urban planning.

Travelers rushing through New York's busy Grand Central Station

Indonesia's giant capital city is sinking. Can the government's plan save it?

short essay on pollution due to urbanization

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Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Urbanization refers to the process of increasing population and industrialization in urban areas. As cities continue to grow and expand, pollution caused by urbanization has become a significant environmental concern. Urbanization leads to increased pollution in many forms, including air pollution, water pollution, and noise pollution.

Air pollution is one of the most significant environmental problems caused by urbanization. Urban areas typically have a high concentration of vehicles, industry, and power plants, all of which are major sources of air pollution. The burning of fossil fuels, such as coal and oil, releases harmful pollutants, including particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, and nitrogen oxides, into the air. These pollutants can have a range of negative health effects, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. In addition, air pollution can also damage crops and buildings, and contribute to climate change.

Water pollution

Water pollution is another major problem caused by urbanization. Urban areas typically have a high population density, which leads to an increase in the amount of waste and sewage produced. This can lead to the pollution of water sources, including rivers, lakes, and oceans, with harmful chemicals and pollutants. In addition, urbanization can also lead to the destruction of natural habitats, such as wetlands and rivers, which can negatively impact local ecosystems.

Noise pollution

Noise pollution is another environmental problem caused by urbanization. Urban areas typically have a high level of traffic and industrial noise, which can have negative effects on human health and well-being. Noise pollution can cause hearing loss, sleep disturbances, and stress, and can also negatively impact wildlife.

Urbanization also contributes to the destruction of natural habitats and loss of biodiversity. Urban areas often require large amounts of land for development, which leads to the destruction of forests, wetlands, and other natural habitats. This can have a negative impact on local ecosystems and wildlife, and can also contribute to climate change.

Urbanization can also lead to a lack of green spaces and access to nature in urban areas. This can have negative effects on human health and well-being, as well as negatively impacting local ecosystems.

To address the pollution caused by urbanization, there are several actions that can be taken. One approach is to reduce the use of fossil fuels and promote the use of clean energy sources, such as solar and wind power. This can help to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, strict regulations and laws can be implemented to control and minimize pollution from industrial and transportation sources.

Another approach is to promote sustainable urban planning and development. This can include incorporating green spaces and access to nature in urban areas, promoting compact and efficient land use, and encouraging the use of public transportation.

Finally, individuals can also play a role in reducing pollution caused by urbanization by making eco-friendly choices and taking actions such as reducing energy consumption, using public transportation, and recycling.

Urbanization leads to a range of environmental problems, including air pollution, water pollution, noise pollution, loss of biodiversity, and lack of green spaces. To address these problems, a combination of policy measures, urban planning and individual actions are required. These measures include reducing the use of fossil fuels, promoting sustainable urban planning and development, and encouraging individuals to make eco-friendly choices and take actions to reduce pollution. By taking these actions, we can help to reduce the negative impact of urbanization on the environment and improve the health and well-being of both people and the planet.

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English for Students Exams

December 29, 2023 entranciology Full Essays and Articles For All Competitive Exams 0

Urbanization, the rapid growth of cities and towns, is a defining feature of modern society. While it brings about economic development, improved infrastructure, and increased opportunities, it also comes with a hidden cost—pollution. As urban areas expand, pollution emerges as a pervasive challenge, affecting air, water, and soil quality. This essay explores the multifaceted impacts of pollution due to urbanization, highlighting the need for sustainable urban development and environmental stewardship.

Air Pollution

The concentration of industries, vehicular traffic, and increased energy consumption in urban areas contribute significantly to air pollution. Emissions from vehicles, industrial processes, and power plants release pollutants such as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compounds. These pollutants not only degrade air quality but also pose serious health risks, leading to respiratory diseases, cardiovascular problems, and other adverse health effects among urban populations.

Water Pollution

Urbanization often leads to increased impervious surfaces, such as roads and pavements, which hinder the natural filtration of water through soil. Consequently, urban runoff carries pollutants such as heavy metals, pesticides, and debris into water bodies, contaminating rivers, lakes, and groundwater. Poorly managed wastewater disposal from industrial and residential sources further exacerbates water pollution, threatening aquatic ecosystems and jeopardizing the availability of safe drinking water.

Soil Contamination

Urbanization introduces a variety of contaminants into the soil, including heavy metals, pesticides, and industrial chemicals. Construction activities, improper waste disposal, and industrial runoff contribute to soil degradation. Contaminated soil not only affects the health of plants but also poses risks to human health through the consumption of contaminated food.

Noise Pollution

The bustling nature of urban areas, characterized by constant human activity, vehicular traffic, and industrial operations, results in elevated noise levels. Noise pollution has adverse effects on physical and mental well-being, causing stress, sleep disturbances, and hearing impairments. It also disrupts ecosystems, impacting wildlife behavior and communication.

Heat Island Effect

Urbanization leads to the creation of heat islands, where the abundance of concrete and asphalt surfaces absorbs and retains heat. This phenomenon raises local temperatures, contributing to increased energy consumption for cooling purposes and negatively affecting the urban microclimate. The heat island effect compounds the challenges of climate change, amplifying temperature extremes and impacting the overall livability of urban areas.

Solutions and Sustainable Urban Development

Addressing pollution due to urbanization requires a holistic approach to urban planning and development. Sustainable practices, such as green infrastructure, efficient waste management, and the promotion of public transportation, can mitigate the environmental impact of urbanization. Embracing renewable energy sources, implementing green building standards, and creating green spaces within urban landscapes contribute to a more sustainable and resilient urban environment.

Public Awareness and Advocacy

Public awareness is key to fostering a sense of responsibility and encouraging sustainable practices among urban dwellers. Education campaigns, community engagement, and advocacy for environmentally friendly policies can empower individuals to make informed choices that contribute to pollution reduction and overall environmental health.

As urbanization continues to shape the global landscape, it is imperative to acknowledge and address the environmental challenges it brings. Pollution resulting from urbanization poses threats to human health, biodiversity, and the overall well-being of urban environments. By embracing sustainable urban development practices, implementing effective policies, and fostering a culture of environmental responsibility, cities can navigate the path to growth without compromising the health of the planet and its inhabitants. The vision for the future must be one where urbanization and environmental sustainability coexist harmoniously, ensuring a healthy and thriving planet for generations to come.

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Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Students are often asked to write an essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

Let’s take a look…

100 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Introduction.

Urbanisation is the shift of population from rural to urban areas. It’s a sign of progress, but it also brings pollution.

Causes of Pollution

Urbanisation leads to increased vehicles, industries, and waste, causing air, water, and land pollution.

Effects of Pollution

Pollution harms our health, affects wildlife, and contributes to climate change.

While urbanisation is necessary, we must also focus on sustainable development to reduce pollution.

250 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Types of pollution.

Urbanisation primarily contributes to air, water, and noise pollution. Rapid industrialisation, increasing vehicles, and construction activities have intensified the release of harmful pollutants into the air. Water sources are contaminated by industrial effluents and domestic waste, while the incessant noise from vehicles and industries disrupts the tranquillity of urban areas.

Impact on Environment and Health

This pollution has far-reaching impacts on both the environment and human health. It leads to climate change, biodiversity loss, and degradation of natural resources. For humans, exposure to polluted air and water increases the risk of respiratory diseases, cardiovascular conditions, and other health problems.

Need for Sustainable Urbanisation

The current trend of urbanisation is unsustainable. There is an urgent need to adopt eco-friendly practices, promote green technologies, and improve waste management. Policymakers must also focus on creating urban spaces that balance development with environmental preservation.

Urbanisation is a double-edged sword. While it brings economic prosperity and societal advancement, it also leads to pollution and environmental degradation. The challenge is to harness the benefits of urbanisation while minimising its negative impacts, ensuring a sustainable future for all.

500 Words Essay on Pollution Due to Urbanisation

Urbanisation, the process of transforming rural areas into urban spaces, has been a double-edged sword for humanity. On one hand, it has brought about economic growth, social development, and technological advancements. On the other hand, it has led to an unprecedented increase in pollution, posing a serious threat to the environment and human health.

The Impact of Urbanisation on Air Quality

Urbanisation and water pollution.

Urbanisation also significantly contributes to water pollution. Rapid urban growth often outpaces the development of necessary infrastructure, such as sewage and waste treatment facilities. As a result, untreated waste often finds its way into rivers and lakes, leading to the contamination of water bodies. This not only harms aquatic life but also poses risks to human health, as polluted water is a major source of diseases like cholera and dysentery.

The Role of Urbanisation in Soil and Noise Pollution

Soil pollution is another environmental issue exacerbated by urbanisation. The construction of buildings, roads, and other infrastructure often involves the removal of topsoil, leading to soil degradation. Additionally, the improper disposal of solid waste in urban areas can lead to soil contamination.

Urbanisation and the Heat Island Effect

Urbanisation also contributes to the phenomenon known as the urban heat island effect. This occurs when urban areas, due to their concrete structures and lack of green spaces, absorb and retain more heat than surrounding rural areas. This not only increases energy consumption for cooling but also exacerbates global warming.

In conclusion, while urbanisation brings about numerous benefits, it also contributes significantly to various forms of pollution. Therefore, it is crucial to adopt sustainable urban planning and development practices. This includes promoting energy-efficient technologies, improving waste management systems, and preserving green spaces. Only through such measures can we ensure that the process of urbanisation is in harmony with the environment, thus securing a healthier and more sustainable future for all.

Apart from these, you can look at all the essays by clicking here .

Happy studying!

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Essay on Pollution: Samples in 100, 150 and 200 Words

Updated on
Jun 20, 2024

As the world embraced urbanization, mother nature witnessed the greener lands getting transformed into modern cities and metropolises. What followed is a trail of natural disasters signalling that something is wrong with the planet Earth. Pollution is increasingly asked under the writing section in school and college tests as well as competitive exams . This is because it is a relevant environmental issue today. This blog aims to help you with the necessary knowledge as well as tips and tricks to draft a well-written essay on pollution.

This Blog Includes:

What is pollution, types of pollution, causes and health effects of pollution, sample essay on pollution in 100 words, sample essay on pollution in 250-300 words, sample essay on pollution in 300-350 words, short essay on pollution in english.

Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment. These materials are called pollutants. They can be created by human activity like trash and nature like volcanic ash. Pollutants damage the quality of water, air and land. Pollution is a global problem. Air and water carry pollution into the ocean currents and migrating fish. Pollution is among the many things that harm our planet- once greener and healthier than it is now. Pollution is a dangerous phenomenon that is contributing to an array of health issues.

Nikita Puri

Nikita is a creative writer and editor, who is always ready to learn new skills. She has great knowledge about study abroad universities, researching and writing blogs about them. Being a perfectionist, she has a habit of keeping her tasks complete on time before the OCD hits her. When Nikita is not busy working, you can find her eating while binge-watching The office. Also, she breathes music. She has done her bachelor's from Delhi University and her master's from Jamia Millia Islamia.

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Pollution Due To Urbanization – Causes & Impacts on Environment

A region that is converted from a rural or inhabited area into an urban area is known as Urbanization. It signifies the movement of people from rural to urban areas. With the introduction of urbanization, there can be an increase in the number of cities, population, and industrialization which directly or indirectly affects our ecosystems. Due to the uncontrolled urbanization only, environmental degradation has been arising very rapidly and is caused by many problems such as land insecurity, worsening of water quality, excessive air pollution, noise pollution, and the problems of waste disposal. According to a study, effective and preventive measures should be taken on the existing cause of damage to the environment due to urbanization. As it is impossible to restrict urbanization so it should be ensured that urbanization should proceed on the right path.

Table of Contents

Causes of Urban Pollution

Air Pollution: With the increase in population and industries the air in urban areas is always polluted with toxic substances. Which is becoming dangerous day by day to breathe as the air present inside cities is suffocating. The different cause of air pollution in the cities is smoke from automobiles, factories, and power generators which makes the air unhealthy. The other factors that contaminate the air are chemical spills and other toxic gases.
Water Pollution: Water, one of the most important natural resources of our environment, is being polluted day by day. There can be a different source of water pollution from industries to households to individuals. As the waste is disposed of directly to water from various sources that have arisen many water diseases.
Soil Pollution: The other cause of urban pollution is soil pollution. It occurs due to the mixing of toxins in the soil by industries or other sources. Which affects agricultural products.
Noise Pollution: One of the noisiest regions in the world is urban areas. With the population, it gives rise to various sources of noise pollution like traffic noises, loudspeakers, and other unwanted noises. It may cause many health issues like depression, mild deafness, etc.
Radioactive Pollution: It is caused due to the fortuitous leakage by nuclear power plants which poses a threat to our environment.
Visual Pollution: One of the most common pollution in urban areas is visual pollution. Signs, Billboards, Screens, high-intensity lights, etc are pretty disturbing and distracting due to the overexposure of visuals in cities.
Other than these there is also ‘Thermal Pollution’ which is caused by an extreme amount of heat trapped in the earth’s atmosphere.

Most Polluted Cities in the World

Here are given the top 20 most polluted cities according to the 2020 mid-year report:


1	Tetovo, North Macedonia	97.44
2	Kabul, Afghanistan	96.53
3	Kathmandu, Nepal	95.88
4	Faridabad, India	95.19
5	Ghaziabad, India	93.77
6	Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia	93.76
7	Dhaka, Bangladesh	93.37
8	Beirut, Lebanon	93.32
9	Accra, Ghana	93.19
10	Noida, India	92.85
11	Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam	92.34
12	Cairo, Egypt	91.92
13	Gurgaon, India	91.63
14	Yangon, Myanmar	91.30
15	Delhi, India	91.00
16	Allahabad, India	90.83
17	Hanoi, Vietnam	90.61
18	Kanpur, India	90.46
19	Manila, Philippines	90.04
20	Patna, India	89.92

Impacts of Urbanization on Different Components of Environment

Most of the important environmental problems will emerge in the future if the existing problems do not receive enough political attention. As the problems are not significantly noticed in many countries or the situation is being detected but nothing has been done for it. The most emerging issues that we are facing today are climate changes, freshwater scarcity, deforestation, and freshwater pollution, and population growth. These problems are very intricate and hard to define. It is very essential to examine problems through the social-economic-cultural system. Different impacts of pollution on our environment are as follows:

Impacts on Atmosphere and Climate

1. Change in Temperature

Cities remain warm at night when the countryside has already been cooled. It is due to the making of heat-absorbing materials like concrete, asphalt, bricks, etc which are used in building, household, industries, etc. The reflection of heat works differently than that of vegetation and soil.

2. Changes in Air Quality

A wide range of harmful gases is discharged due to human activities. Various gases that are released in the environment are carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, lead, and many other pollutants. This gives rise to respiratory diseases like Asthma, Tuberculosis, acute respiratory infections, etc are most affected by the people living in urban areas.

3. Changes in Patterns of Precipitation

As cities are warmer than the surrounding countryside, it often receives more rainfall. Since dust can stimulate the precipitation of water vapour into rain droplets.

Impacts on Lithosphere and Land Resources

1. Erosion and other changes in the quality of land

High levels of erosion and sedimentation in river channels are the result of rapid developments. The construction of buildings, roads, etc gives rise to deforestation which results in erosion and changes in the quality of the land.

2. Pollution

Burying a huge amount of waste in the ground results in land pollution. Pollutants are usually scattered over cities or concentrated in industrial areas or waste sites. Lead-based paint that is used on roads, highways, and buildings is one such example of a widely dispersed pollutant that found its way into the soil.

Impacts on Hydrosphere and Water Resources

1. Flow of Water into Streams

Unlike rural areas, urban areas are not surrounded by natural vegetation and undisturbed soil which are substituted with concrete, asphalt, brick, and other water-resistant surfaces. It means that when it rains in cities water is less likely to be absorbed into the ground. Which results in the direct flow of rainwater into river channels or streams.

2. Degraded Water Quality

With time the water quality has degraded due to urbanization. As all the city’s waste is deposited in rivers. That eventually leads to increased sedimentation thereupon increasing the pollutant in the run-off.

Impacts on Biosphere

1. Alteration of Habitats

The fertilizers that are spread across yards to promote the growth of plants find its way into water channels at the expense of fishes. The waste which is dumped into streams lowers the level of oxygen during its decay and results in the perishing of plants and animals.

2. Disruption of Habitats

As an outcome of urbanization complete eradication of habitats can be seen in cities. As a result, native species of the particular place are driven out of cities.

Other Impacts of Urbanization on the Environment

The other important effect of urbanization on the environment is a major increase in greenhouse gasses which creates an excessive risk to the environment. These are those gaseous components of the atmosphere that absorb and release radiation at a specific wavelength. The absorption of greenhouse gasses (GHG’s) in the atmosphere has rapidly increased due to the man-made activities connected to the urbanization growth which results in an irrelevant increase in the temperature of the earth. These gases absorb the energy radiated from the sun making the lower part of the atmosphere warmer. This foremost aspect is known as a natural greenhouse gas effect. These effects expanded with the emission of gasses from various man-made activities ensuing to industrialization and urbanization.

1. Industrial Sector

A major source of greenhouse gas emissions is industries. One-third of global carbon dioxide emission is due to the industrial sector only. In India, and other countries as well industries are the main source of emission of harmful gases. Industries like the steel industry, thermal power, cement plants, chemical production, and other industries mostly emit carbon dioxide and other harmful gases.

2. Waste Generation

The waste sector mainly contributes to the emission of carbon dioxide due to the waste burning of the inorganic matter when there is no energy renewal. Annual anthropogenic methane is produced approximately 10-23 percent and is discharged into the atmosphere. Both domestic and industrial water source wastewater treatment may be responsible for ten percent of anthropogenic methane emissions.

3. GHGs emissions due to the transportation sector

Most of the greenhouse gas emissions are due to the transport sector in urban areas. Due to an increase in the number of vehicles on the roads, there is an increase in the emission of harmful gases into the atmosphere. The traffic structure of the megacities of India (Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, and Hyderabad) represents that there is a tangible shift from the share of slow-moving vehicles to fast-moving vehicles and public transport to private transport. For example, Delhi’s transport sector generates six times as much greenhouse gas discharges (GHG) as that of Kolkata’s, five times as much as Ahmedabad’s and three times as much as Greater Mumbai and Chennai Followed by Banglore and Hyderabad, Delhi’s transport sector emits 12.39 million ton of carbon dioxide. As compared to other Indian cities Hyderabad emits the greatest portion of GreenHouse gases according to 2015 reports.

Impact of Urbanization in Indian Cities

The main impact of urbanization on the environmental quality in Indian cities are:

The total slum population according to size or class of towns in India during 1991 shows that 41% of the total slum population was living in million-plus cities, where 27% of the total population of India lives.
According to the status of Municipal solid waste generation and collection in Metropolitan Cities of India Maharashtra generates the largest amount of municipal solid waste which is 11,000 tonnes/day followed by Delhi (8700 tonnes/day) in 2019 which are most likely to be increasing in near future.
Growth in motor vehicles in India and other Metropolitan Cities.
There has been an increase in the number of vehicles used in India and other metropolitan cities. An average of 10% or more increase has been found in the use of vehicles which is a major concern for air pollution.
Due to the increase in population, wasteful consumption, and negligence of conservation, water resources are diminishing day by day. With an increase in urbanization and industrialization, huge quantities of wastewater enter rivers which affect the river streams that are used for drinking and purposes.

Urbanization lies in the enactment and the regulating agencies of the country. Due to some bad decisions of governance, today’s cities resulted in the growth of informal settlements and slums that constitute unhealthy living and working environments. Serious attention should be given to the need for improving urban strategies, which promote productivity in resource use. In metropolitan cities, top priority should be given to the control of Vehicular pollution. Primary attention should be addressed to reduce the generation of solid waste. In case adequate steps are not taken to prevent pollution and to improve the quality of life by providing more social amenities, the life of the urban inhabitants of metropolitan cities may become more discontented this may be the cause of health hazards and worst devastation. We can follow these major steps also:

By promoting economic development and creating jobs we can combat poverty which is also an important aspect of urbanization.
We can involve local communities who are working for the environment.
By upgrading energy use and alternative transport systems we can reduce air pollution.
Waste disposal and housing facilities can be provided through a private-public partnership.
A key element in urban planning is to plant trees and incorporate the care of city green spaces.

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Pollution due to Urbanization – IELTS Writing Task 2

Updated On Aug 14, 2024

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Pollution due to Urbanization. Do you agree or disagree?

Opinion Essay

Introduction

Sentence 1&2 – Introduce the topic.

Sentence 3 – I agree with the notion of the essay.

Body Paragraphs

Paragraph 1 – Human beings have exploited natural resources to fulfil their needs.

Paragraph 2 – urbanization also has an impact on the health of the masses, in addition to its environmental impact.

Sum up the points discussed in the essay.

In today’s society, pollution is one of the most pressing issues . Our environment is deteriorating at an alarming rate, posing a great challenge for humans. The urbanization of the world has been cited as a source of pollution, and I completely agree with this opinion.

The increasing sense of prosperity and job opportunities in cities attracts people. Globally, 50% of the population already lives in cities. As the urban population is increasing, ample space is necessary for buildings, roads, and bridges. Massive deforestation is arising as a result. A growing population called for the cutting of trees, the clearing of fields, and increased space. Evidently, cutting trees contributes to pollution. As a result of the high density of population, natural resources like water, coal, etc. are becoming scarce. Air and water quality are worsened. There is insufficient water, waste disposal issues are exacerbated , and the energy consumption is high. Sadly, urbanization has posed a challenge to the ability of many valleys, mountains, hill stations, and forests to prevent the pollution of these natural locales. Increasingly, human beings have exploited mother earth to fulfill their needs.

The WHO says that urbanization also has an impact on the health of the masses, in addition to its environmental impact. Considering it causes more than 9 million deaths worldwide annually, air pollution from anthropogenic sources is one of the biggest health risks worldwide. In addition to that, the health hazards that come from the soil, water, noise, and radioactive pollution are also numerous.

Nevertheless, some cite the argument that pollution is a global problem that’s not just confined to urban areas. But studies in sparsely populated areas showed that they are less polluted and have a healthier lifestyle.

In conclusion, urbanization is one of the main factors contributing to natural resource depletion . Pollution levels in cities and towns are high because of the constant deterioration of our mother earth.

Pressing issues

Meaning: Problem, need, or issue has to be dealt with immediately. Eg: Rising level of unemployment is the pressing issue of our county.

Deteriorating-

Meaning: to become worse Eg: The political tension is deteriorating into a civil war.

Evidently

Meaning: clearly; that can be easily seen or understood Eg: Evidently, he no longer has the strength to fight back.

Exacerbated

Meaning: to make something worse, especially a disease or problem Eg: Her presence exacerbated the whole situation.

Anthropogenic

Meaning: originating in human activity. Eg : The overwhelming evidence points to the reality of anthropogenic global warming.

Meaning: a source or a situation with the potential for harm Eg: The sign indicated it was hazardous.

Meaning: to quote or refer to in substantiation as an authority, proof, or example. Eg: H cited a passage from the principal’s speech.

Meaning: very small, or to stay within the limits of something Eg: He was confined to jail for ten years.

Sparsely populated

Meaning an area that contains few people. Eg: The Atlantics are sparsely populated

Meaning to decrease seriously or exhaust the abundance or supply of Eg: The fire depleted the flora and fauna of the forest.

Practice IELTS Writing Task 2 based on Essay types

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Urban Areas and Air Pollution: Causes, Concerns, and Mitigation

First Online: 02 December 2023

Cite this chapter

Shivali Gupta 5 &
Rakesh Kumar ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0003-4139-300X 5

412 Accesses

Urbanization has proven to be a catalyst for global economic growth. However, the concomitant progress in economic development has led to a degradation in air quality within urban settlements, primarily attributable to copious anthropogenic sources of pollutant emissions. Air pollution has numerous negative impacts on the well-being of humans and the environment. This includes the deleterious impacts on climate change as well as the emergence of serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases. This chapter, therefore, discusses urban air pollution, encompassing the causal factors, associated concerns, and various strategies employed to mitigate its adverse effects. These strategies involve regulatory, technological, and behavioural responses, which are imperative to effectively address the issue of air pollution. Therefore, the examination of the complex interplay between urbanization across varying stages of development and air pollution is integral in attaining ambient air quality targets with respect to upcoming economic advancement and sustainable progression.

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Urban Air Pollution

How can urban policies improve air quality and help mitigate global climate change: a systematic mapping review.

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Gupta, S., Kumar, R. (2023). Urban Areas and Air Pollution: Causes, Concerns, and Mitigation. In: Mushtaq, F., Farooq, M., Mukherjee, A.B., Ghosh Nee Lala, M. (eds) Geospatial Analytics for Environmental Pollution Modeling. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-45300-7_7

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Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization

Pollution is one of the biggest issues that we as a society face today. The everyday deteriorating environment is a big challenge for humans. The mixing of any harmful substance or pollutants in our natural environment is called pollution. It is due to human activity, many contaminators get introduced in the natural environment thereby polluting it to harmful levels. There are many reasons why pollution occurs and one of the major one is urbanization.

Long and Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization – Essay 1 (200 words)

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in India – Essay 2 (300 words)

Introduction

There are Various Levels at which Urban Pollution is happening like:

Types and Causes of Urban Pollution

Air Pollution: The air in the urban areas is always polluted with harmful substances and it is becoming hazardous day by day to breathe. The air in the cities is choking. The smoke from automobiles, factories and power generators make the air unhealthy. There are other factors also like chemical spills and other toxic gases that contaminate the air.
Water Pollution: As it is there are very less natural water sources in the urban areas and the ones that are there are getting increasingly polluted. There is a lot of disposal in the lakes and rivers like household & industrial disposal. A lot of waste gets mixed with rain and washed into the waters .
Soil Pollution: The mixing of toxins in the soil is disturbing the eco-system.
Noise Pollution: Urban areas are one of the noisiest ones. Various sources of noise pollution include traffic noises, loud-speakers and other unwanted noises cause many health issues .
Radioactive Pollution: The accidental leakage by nuclear power plants poses a big threat.
Visual Pollution: The over exposure of visuals in the cities in the form of signs, billboards, screens, high intensity lights etc. are also quite disturbing .
Other than these there is also ‘Thermal pollution’ that is caused by excessive amount of heat trapped in earth’s atmosphere.

Conclusion:

The various means of pollution in urban areas can lead to many health issues in the people living in cities. We are everyday exposed to more than one of these health issues sources.

Essay about Problems Due To Urbanization – Essay 3 (400 words)

Problems Due to Urbanization

Essay on Pollution Caused by Urbanization and Its Solutions – Essay 4 (500 words)

Pollution Caused by Urbanization

There is a Number of Solutions that we can apply and create a Better Tomorrow.

Solutions and Prevention of Urban Pollution

Conserve Energy: The urban area’s people always use more energy than the rural area’s people. The consumption of energy causes various kinds of pollution. Saving energy wherever possible is one of the best ways to curb pollution. Turn off the electrical appliances when they are not being used. This small step can help in a big way.
Use less water: We waste a lot of water daily and this can lead to bad consequences. We must try and use as less water as possible .
Plant more trees: The urban areas are the ones that have less greeneries. Try to plant many trees and vegetation as much as possible in your surrounding areas. Kitchen garden and small lawn near home is a good idea .
Green belts: Government can help and declare some areas in every city as green belts so that trees and other plants can be grown there without any obstruction .
Use less loudspeakers: The minimum use of loud speakers can reduce the noise pollution a lot. Decreasing the volume of music at functions after a certain time is also a good move.
Indoors: The indoors of the homes are also highly polluted in cities. We must have some plants inside the homes also, that can filter the indoor polluted air.
Industrial waste: The factory owners must try and make possible that industrial waste is not dumped in the lakes or rivers. Government can also make laws for the same.
Say no to plastic: Plastic is one of the most harmful substances that can pollute air, water and soil all together. We must try and minimize the use of plastic as much as possible. Use just cloth bags instead of plastic.
Use Public transport: Avoid using cars and bikes for daily use. Try to use public transport, bicycle and car pools. This will not only curb air pollution but will also decrease the traffic on roads.
Walk: Try to go to nearby areas on foot i.e. walking, this will reduce pollution and will also improve your health .
Better garbage disposal: Use the structural methods of garbage disposal in cities.

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization and Digital India – Essay 5 (600 words)

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Open access
Published: 29 October 2020

Urban and air pollution: a multi-city study of long-term effects of urban landscape patterns on air quality trends

Lu Liang 1 &
Peng Gong 2 , 3 , 4

Scientific Reports volume 10 , Article number: 18618 ( 2020 ) Cite this article

64k Accesses

125 Citations

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Environmental impact
Environmental sciences

Most air pollution research has focused on assessing the urban landscape effects of pollutants in megacities, little is known about their associations in small- to mid-sized cities. Considering that the biggest urban growth is projected to occur in these smaller-scale cities, this empirical study identifies the key urban form determinants of decadal-long fine particulate matter (PM 2.5 ) trends in all 626 Chinese cities at the county level and above. As the first study of its kind, this study comprehensively examines the urban form effects on air quality in cities of different population sizes, at different development levels, and in different spatial-autocorrelation positions. Results demonstrate that the urban form evolution has long-term effects on PM 2.5 level, but the dominant factors shift over the urbanization stages: area metrics play a role in PM 2.5 trends of small-sized cities at the early urban development stage, whereas aggregation metrics determine such trends mostly in mid-sized cities. For large cities exhibiting a higher degree of urbanization, the spatial connectedness of urban patches is positively associated with long-term PM 2.5 level increases. We suggest that, depending on the city’s developmental stage, different aspects of the urban form should be emphasized to achieve long-term clean air goals.

Impact of urban agglomeration construction on urban air quality–empirical test based on PSM–DID model

Spatiotemporal variations of air pollutants based on ground observation and emission sources over 19 Chinese urban agglomerations during 2015–2019

Tracking the scaling of urban open spaces in China from 1990 to 2020

Introduction.

Air pollution represents a prominent threat to global society by causing cascading effects on individuals 1 , medical systems 2 , ecosystem health 3 , and economies 4 in both developing and developed countries 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 . About 90% of global citizens lived in areas that exceed the safe level in the World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guidelines 9 . Among all types of ecosystems, urban produce roughly 78% of carbon emissions and substantial airborne pollutants that adversely affect over 50% of the world’s population living in them 5 , 10 . While air pollution affects all regions, there exhibits substantial regional variation in air pollution levels 11 . For instance, the annual mean concentration of fine particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter of less than 2.5 \(\upmu\mathrm{m}\) (PM 2.5 ) in the most polluted cities is nearly 20 times higher than the cleanest city according to a survey of 499 global cities 12 . Many factors can influence the regional air quality, including emissions, meteorology, and physicochemical transformations. Another non-negligible driver is urbanization—a process that alters the size, structure, and growth of cities in response to the population explosion and further leads to lasting air quality challenges 13 , 14 , 15 .

With the global trend of urbanization 16 , the spatial composition, configuration, and density of urban land uses (refer to as urban form) will continue to evolve 13 . The investigation of urban form impacts on air quality has been emerging in both empirical 17 and theoretical 18 research. While the area and density of artificial surface areas have well documented positive relationship with air pollution 19 , 20 , 21 , the effects of urban fragmentation on air quality have been controversial. In theory, compact cities promote high residential density with mixed land uses and thus reduce auto dependence and increase the usage of public transit and walking 21 , 22 . The compact urban development has been proved effective in mitigating air pollution in some cities 23 , 24 . A survey of 83 global urban areas also found that those with highly contiguous built-up areas emitted less NO 2 22 . In contrast, dispersed urban form can decentralize industrial polluters, improve fuel efficiency with less traffic congestion, and alleviate street canyon effects 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 . Polycentric and dispersed cities support the decentralization of jobs that lead to less pollution emission than compact and monocentric cities 29 . The more open spaces in a dispersed city support air dilution 30 . In contrast, compact cities are typically associated with stronger urban heat island effects 31 , which influence the availability and the advection of primary and secondary pollutants 32 .

The mixed evidence demonstrates the complex interplay between urban form and air pollution, which further implies that the inconsistent relationship may exist in cities at different urbanization levels and over different periods 33 . Few studies have attempted to investigate the urban form–air pollution relationship with cross-sectional and time series data 34 , 35 , 36 , 37 . Most studies were conducted in one city or metropolitan region 38 , 39 or even at the country level 40 . Furthermore, large cities or metropolitan areas draw the most attention in relevant studies 5 , 41 , 42 , and the small- and mid-sized cities, especially those in developing countries, are heavily underemphasized. However, virtually all world population growth 43 , 44 and most global economic growth 45 , 46 are expected to occur in those cities over the next several decades. Thus, an overlooked yet essential task is to account for various levels of cities, ranging from large metropolitan areas to less extensive urban area, in the analysis.

This study aims to improve the understanding of how the urban form evolution explains the decadal-long changes of the annual mean PM 2.5 concentrations in 626 cities at the county-level and above in China. China has undergone unprecedented urbanization over the past few decades and manifested a high degree of heterogeneity in urban development 47 . Thus, Chinese cities serve as a good model for addressing the following questions: (1) whether the changes in urban landscape patterns affect trends in PM 2.5 levels? And (2) if so, do the determinants vary by cities?

City boundaries

Our study period spans from the year 2000 to 2014 to keep the data completeness among all data sources. After excluding cities with invalid or missing PM 2.5 or sociodemographic value, a total of 626 cities, with 278 prefecture-level cities and 348 county-level cities, were selected. City boundaries are primarily based on the Global Rural–Urban Mapping Project (GRUMP) urban extent polygons that were defined by the extent of the nighttime lights 48 , 49 . Few adjustments were made. First, in the GRUMP dataset, large agglomerations that include several cities were often described in one big polygon. We manually split those polygons into individual cities based on the China Administrative Regions GIS Data at 1:1 million scales 50 . Second, since the 1978 economic reforms, China has significantly restructured its urban administrative/spatial system. Noticeable changes are the abolishment of several prefectures and the promotion of many former county-level cities to prefecture-level cities 51 . Thus, all city names were cross-checked between the year 2000 and 2014, and the mismatched records were replaced with the latest names.

PM 2.5 concentration data

The annual mean PM 2.5 surface concentration (micrograms per cubic meter) for each city over the study period was calculated from the Global Annual PM 2.5 Grids at 0.01° resolution 52 . This data set combines Aerosol Optical Depth retrievals from multiple satellite instruments including the NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR), and the Sea-Viewing Wide Field-of-View Sensor (SeaWiFS). The global 3-D chemical transport model GEOS-Chem is further applied to relate this total column measure of aerosol to near-surface PM 2.5 concentration, and geographically weighted regression is finally used with global ground-based measurements to predict and adjust for the residual PM 2.5 bias per grid cell in the initial satellite-derived values.

Human settlement layer

The urban forms were quantified with the 40-year (1978–2017) record of annual impervious surface maps for both rural and urban areas in China 47 , 53 . This state-of-art product provides substantial spatial–temporal details on China’s human settlement changes. The annual impervious surface maps covering our study period were generated from 30-m resolution Landsat images acquired onboard Landsat 5, 7, and 8 using an automatic “Exclusion/Inclusion” mapping framework 54 , 55 . The output used here was the binary impervious surface mask, with the value of one indicating the presence of human settlement and the value of zero identifying non-residential areas. The product assessment concluded good performance. The cross-comparison against 2356 city or town locations in GeoNames proved an overall high agreement (88%) and approximately 80% agreement was achieved when compared against visually interpreted 650 urban extent areas in the year 1990, 2000, and 2010.

Control variables

To provide a holistic assessment of the urban form effects, we included control variables that are regarded as important in influencing air quality to account for the confounding effects.

Four variables, separately population size, population density, and two economic measures, were acquired from the China City Statistical Yearbook 56 (National Bureau of Statistics 2000–2014). Population size is used to control for the absolute level of pollution emissions 41 . Larger populations are associated with increased vehicle usage and vehicle-kilometers travels, and consequently boost tailpipes emissions 5 . Population density is a useful reflector of transportation demand and the fraction of emissions inhaled by people 57 . We also included gross regional product (GRP) and the proportion of GRP generated from the secondary sector (GRP2). The impact of economic development on air quality is significant but in a dynamic way 58 . The rising per capita income due to the concentration of manufacturing industrial activities can deteriorate air quality and vice versa if the stronger economy is the outcome of the concentration of less polluting high-tech industries. Meteorological conditions also have short- and long-term effects on the occurrence, transport, and dispersion of air pollutants 59 , 60 , 61 . Temperature affects chemical reactions and atmospheric turbulence that determine the formation and diffusion of particles 62 . Low air humidity can lead to the accumulation of air pollutants due to it is conducive to the adhesion of atmospheric particulate matter on water vapor 63 . Whereas high humidity can lead to wet deposition processes that can remove air pollutants by rainfall. Wind speed is a crucial indicator of atmospheric activity by greatly affect air pollutant transport and dispersion. All meteorological variables were calculated based on China 1 km raster layers of monthly relative humidity, temperature, and wind speed that are interpolated from over 800 ground monitoring stations 64 . Based on the monthly layer, we calculated the annual mean of each variable for each year. Finally, all pixels falling inside of the city boundary were averaged to represent the overall meteorological condition of each city.

Considering the dynamic urban form-air pollution relationship evidenced from the literature review, our hypothesis is: the determinants of PM 2.5 level trends are not the same for cities undergoing different levels of development or in different geographic regions. To test this hypothesis, we first categorized city groups following (1) social-economic development level, (2) spatial autocorrelation relationship, and (3) population size. We then assessed the relationship between urban form and PM 2.5 level trends by city groups. Finally, we applied the panel data models to different city groups for hypothesis testing and key determinant identification (Fig. 1 ).

Methodology workflow.

Calculation of urban form metrics

Based on the previous knowledge 65 , 66 , 67 , fifteen landscape metrics falling into three categories, separately area, shape, and aggregation, were selected. Those metrics quantify the compositional and configurational characteristics of the urban landscape, as represented by urban expansion, urban shape complexity, and compactness (Table 1 ).

Area metrics gives an overview of the urban extent and the size of urban patches that are correlated with PM 2.5 20 . As an indicator of the urbanization degree, total area (TA) typically increases constantly or remains stable, because the urbanization process is irreversible. Number of patches (NP) refers to the number of discrete parcels of urban settlement within a given urban extent and Mean Patch Size (AREA_MN) measures the average patch size. Patch density (PD) indicates the urbanization stages. It usually increases with urban diffusion until coalescence starts, after which decreases in number 66 . Largest Patch Index (LPI) measures the percentage of the landscape encompassed by the largest urban patch.

The shape complexity of urban patches was represented by Mean Patch Shape Index (SHAPE_MN), Mean Patch Fractal Dimension (FRAC_MN), and Mean Contiguity Index (CONTIG_MN). The greater irregularity the landscape shape, the larger the value of SHAPE_MN and FRAC_MN. CONTIG_MN is another method of assessing patch shape based on the spatial connectedness or contiguity of cells within a patch. Larger contiguous patches will result in larger CONTIG_MN.

Aggregation metrics measure the spatial compactness of urban land, which affects pollutant diffusion and dilution. Mean Euclidean nearest-neighbor distance (ENN_MN) quantifies the average distance between two patches within a landscape. It decreases as patches grow together and increases as the urban areas expand. Landscape Shape Index (LSI) indicates the divergence of the shape of a landscape patch that increases as the landscape becomes increasingly disaggregated 68 . Patch Cohesion Index (COHESION) is suggestive of the connectedness degree of patches 69 . Splitting Index (SPLIT) and Landscape Division Index (DIVISION) increase as the separation of urban patches rises, whereas, Mesh Size (MESH) decreases as the landscape becomes more fragmented. Aggregation Index (AI) measures the degree of aggregation or clumping of urban patches. Higher values of continuity indicate higher building densities, which may have a stronger effect on pollution diffusion.

The detailed descriptions of these indices are given by the FRAGSTATS user’s guide 70 . The calculation input is a layer of binary grids of urban/nonurban. The resulting output is a table containing one row for each city and multiple columns representing the individual metrics.

Division of cities

Division based on the socioeconomic development level.

The socioeconomic development level in China is uneven. The unequal development of the transportation system, descending in topography from the west to the east, combined with variations in the availability of natural and human resources and industrial infrastructure, has produced significantly wide gaps in the regional economies of China. By taking both the economic development level and natural geography into account, China can be loosely classified into Eastern, Central, and Western regions. Eastern China is generally wealthier than the interior, resulting from closeness to coastlines and the Open-Door Policy favoring coastal regions. Western China is historically behind in economic development because of its high elevation and rugged topography, which creates barriers in the transportation infrastructure construction and scarcity of arable lands. Central China, echoing its name, is in the process of economic development. This region neither benefited from geographic convenience to the coast nor benefited from any preferential policies, such as the Western Development Campaign.

Division based on spatial autocorrelation relationship

The second type of division follows the fact that adjacent cities are likely to form air pollution clusters due to the mixing and diluting nature of air pollutants 71 , i.e., cities share similar pollution levels as its neighbors. The underlying processes driving the formation of pollution hot spots and cold spots may differ. Thus, we further divided the city into groups based on the spatial clusters of PM 2.5 level changes.

Local indicators of spatial autocorrelation (LISA) was used to determine the local patterns of PM 2.5 distribution by clustering cities with a significant association. In the presence of global spatial autocorrelation, LISA indicates whether a variable exhibits significant spatial dependence and heterogeneity at a given scale 72 . Practically, LISA relates each observation to its neighbors and assigns a value of significance level and degree of spatial autocorrelation, which is calculated by the similarity in variable \(z\) between observation \(i\) and observation \(j\) in the neighborhood of \(i\) defined by a matrix of weights \({w}_{ij}\) 7 , 73 :

where \({I}_{i}\) is the Moran’s I value for location \(i\) ; \({\sigma }^{2}\) is the variance of variable \(z\) ; \(\bar{z}\) is the average value of \(z\) with the sample number of \(n\) . The weight matrix \({w}_{ij}\) is defined by the k-nearest neighbors distance measure, i.e., each object’s neighborhood consists of four closest cites.

The computation of Moran’s I enables the identification of hot spots and cold spots. The hot spots are high-high clusters where the increase in the PM 2.5 level is higher than the surrounding areas, whereas cold spots are low-low clusters with the presence of low values in a low-value neighborhood. A Moran scatterplot, with x-axis as the original variable and y-axis as the spatially lagged variable, reflects the spatial association pattern. The slope of the linear fit to the scatter plot is an estimation of the global Moran's I 72 (Fig. 2 ). The plot consists of four quadrants, each defining the relationship between an observation 74 . The upper right quadrant indicates hot spots and the lower left quadrant displays cold spots 75 .

Moran’s I scatterplot. Figure was produced by R 3.4.3 76 .

Division based on population size

The last division was based on population size, which is a proven factor in changing per capita emissions in a wide selection of global cities, even outperformed land urbanization rate 77 , 78 , 79 . We used the 2014 urban population to classify the cities into four groups based on United Nations definitions 80 : (1) large agglomerations with a total population larger than 1 million; (2) mid-sized cities, 500,000–1 million; (3) small cities, 250,000–500,000, and (4) very small cities, 100,000–250,000.

Panel data analysis

The panel data analysis is an analytical method that deals with observations from multiple entities over multiple periods. Its capacity in analyzing the characteristics and changes from both the time-series and cross-section dimensions of data surpasses conventional models that purely focus on one dimension 81 , 82 . The estimation equation for the panel data model in this study is given as:

where the subscript \(i\) and \(t\) refer to city and year respectively. \(\upbeta _{{0}}\) is the intercept parameter and \(\upbeta _{{1}} - { }\upbeta _{{{18}}}\) are the estimates of slope coefficients. \(\varepsilon \) is the random error. All variables are transformed into natural logarithms.

Two methods can be used to obtain model estimates, separately fixed effects estimator and random effects estimator. The fixed effects estimator assumes that each subject has its specific characteristics due to inherent individual characteristic effects in the error term, thereby allowing differences to be intercepted between subjects. The random effects estimator assumes that the individual characteristic effect changes stochastically, and the differences in subjects are not fixed in time and are independent between subjects. To choose the right estimator, we run both models for each group of cities based on the Hausman specification test 83 . The null hypothesis is that random effects model yields consistent and efficient estimates 84 : \({H}_{0}{:}\,E\left({\varepsilon }_{i}|{X}_{it}\right)=0\) . If the null hypothesis is rejected, the fixed effects model will be selected for further inferences. Once the better estimator was determined for each model, one optimal panel data model was fit to each city group of one division type. In total, six, four, and eight runs were conducted for socioeconomic, spatial autocorrelation, and population division separately and three, two, and four panel data models were finally selected.

Spatial patterns of PM 2.5 level changes

During the period from 2000 to 2014, the annual mean PM 2.5 concentration of all cities increases from 27.78 to 42.34 µg/m 3 , both of which exceed the World Health Organization recommended annual mean standard (10 µg/m 3 ). It is worth noting that the PM 2.5 level in the year 2014 also exceeds China’s air quality Class 2 standard (35 µg/m 3 ) that applies to non-national park places, including urban and industrial areas. The standard deviation of annual mean PM 2.5 values for all cities increases from 12.34 to 16.71 µg/m 3 , which shows a higher variability of inter-urban PM 2.5 pollution after a decadal period. The least and most heavily polluted cities in China are Delingha, Qinghai (3.01 µg/m 3 ) and Jizhou, Hubei (64.15 µg/m 3 ) in 2000 and Hami, Xinjiang (6.86 µg/m 3 ) and Baoding, Hubei (86.72 µg/m 3 ) in 2014.

Spatially, the changes in PM 2.5 levels exhibit heterogeneous patterns across cities (Fig. 3 b). According to the socioeconomic level division (Fig. 3 a), the Eastern, Central, and Western region experienced a 38.6, 35.3, and 25.5 µg/m 3 increase in annual PM 2.5 mean , separately, and the difference among regions is significant according to the analysis of variance (ANOVA) results (Fig. 4 a). When stratified by spatial autocorrelation relationship (Fig. 3 c), the differences in PM 2.5 changes among the spatial clusters are even more dramatic. The average PM 2.5 increase in cities belonging to the high-high cluster is approximately 25 µg/m 3 , as compared to 5 µg/m 3 in the low-low clusters (Fig. 4 b). Finally, cities at four different population levels have significant differences in the changes of PM 2.5 concentration (Fig. 3 d), except for the mid-sized cities and large city agglomeration (Fig. 4 c).

( a ) Division of cities in China by socioeconomic development level and the locations of provincial capitals; ( b ) Changes in annual mean PM 2.5 concentrations between the year 2000 and 2014; ( c ) LISA cluster maps for PM 2.5 changes at the city level; High-high indicates a statistically significant cluster of high PM 2.5 level changes over the study period. Low-low indicates a cluster of low PM 2.5 inter-annual variation; No high-low cluster is reported; Low–high represents cities with high PM 2.5 inter-annual variation surrounded by cities with low variation; ( d ) Population level by cities in the year 2014. Maps were produced by ArcGIS 10.7.1 85 .

Boxplots of PM 2.5 concentration changes between 2000 and 2014 for city groups that are formed according to ( a ) socioeconomic development level division, ( b ) LISA clusters, and ( c ) population level. Asterisk marks represent the p value of ANOVA significant test between the corresponding pair of groups. Note ns not significant; * p value < 0.05; ** p value < 0.01; *** p value < 0.001; H–H high-high cluster, L–H low–high cluster, L–L denotes low–low cluster.

The effects of urban forms on PM 2.5 changes

The Hausman specification test for fixed versus random effects yields a p value less than 0.05, suggesting that the fixed effects model has better performance. We fit one panel data model to each city group and built nine models in total. All models are statistically significant at the p < 0.05 level and have moderate to high predictive power with the R 2 values ranging from 0.63 to 0.95, which implies that 63–95% of the variation in the PM 2.5 concentration changes can be explained by the explanatory variables (Table 2 ).

The urban form—PM 2.5 relationships differ distinctly in Eastern, Central, and Western China. All models reach high R 2 values. Model for Eastern China (refer to hereafter as Eastern model) achieves the highest R 2 (0.90), and the model for the Western China (refer to hereafter as Western model) reaches the lowest R 2 (0.83). The shape metrics FRAC and CONTIG are correlated with PM 2.5 changes in the Eastern model, whereas the area metrics AREA demonstrates a positive effect in the Western model. In contrast to the significant associations between shape, area metrics and PM 2.5 level changes in both Eastern and Western models, no such association was detected in the Central model. Nonetheless, two aggregation metrics, LSI and AI, play positive roles in determining the PM 2.5 trends in the Central model.

For models built upon the LISA clusters, the H–H model (R 2 = 0.95) reaches a higher fitting degree than the L–L model (R 2 = 0.63). The estimated coefficients vary substantially. In the H–H model, the coefficient of CONTIG is positive, which indicates that an increase in CONTIG would increase PM 2.5 pollution. In contrast, no shape metrics but one area metrics AREA is significant in the L–L model.

The results of the regression models built for cities at different population levels exhibit a distinct pattern. No urban form metrics was identified to have a significant relationship with the PM 2.5 level changes in groups of very small and mid-sized cities. For small size cities, the aggregation metrics COHESION was positively associated whereas AI was negatively related. For mid-sized cities and large agglomerations, CONTIG is the only significant variable that is positively related to PM 2.5 level changes.

Urban form is an effective measure of long-term PM 2.5 trends

All panel data models are statistically significant regardless of the data group they are built on, suggesting that the associations between urban form and ambient PM 2.5 level changes are discernible at all city levels. Importantly, these relationships are found to hold when controlling for population size and gross domestic product, implying that the urban landscape patterns have effects on long-term PM 2.5 trends that are independent of regional economic performance. These findings echo with the local, regional, and global evidence of urban form effect on various air pollution types 5 , 14 , 21 , 22 , 24 , 39 , 78 .

Although all models demonstrate moderate to high predictive power, the way how different urban form metrics respond to the dependent variable varies. Of all the metrics tested, shape metrics, especially CONTIG has the strongest effect on PM 2.5 trends in cities belonging to the high-high cluster, Eastern, and large urban agglomerations. All those regions have a strong economy and higher population density 86 . In the group of cities that are moderately developed, such as the Central region, as well as small- and mid-sized cities, aggregation metrics play a dominant negative role in PM 2.5 level changes. In contrast, in the least developed cities belonging to the low-low cluster regions and Western China, the metrics describing size and number of urban patches are the strongest predictors. AREA and NP are positively related whereas TA is negatively associated.

The impacts of urban form metrics on air quality vary by urbanization degree

Based on the above observations, how urban form affects within-city PM 2.5 level changes may differ over the urbanization stages. We conceptually summarized the pattern in Fig. 5 : area metrics have the most substantial influence on air pollution changes at the early urban development stage, and aggregation metrics emerge at the transition stage, whereas shape metrics affect the air quality trends at the terminal stage. The relationship between urban form and air pollution has rarely been explored with such a wide range of city selections. Most prior studies were focused on large urban agglomeration areas, and thus their conclusions are not representative towards small cities at the early or transition stage of urbanization.

The most influential metric of urban form in affecting PM 2.5 level changes at different urbanization stages.

Not surprisingly, the area metrics, which describe spatial grain of the landscape, exert a significant effect on PM 2.5 level changes in small-sized cities. This could be explained by the unusual urbanization speed of small-sized cities in the Chinese context. Their thriving mostly benefited from the urbanization policy in the 1980s, which emphasized industrialization of rural, small- and mid-sized cities 87 . With the large rural-to-urban migration and growing public interest in investing real estate market, a side effect is that the massive housing construction that sometimes exceeds market demand. Residential activities decline in newly built areas of smaller cities in China, leading to what are known as ghost cities 88 . Although ghost cities do not exist for all cities, high rate of unoccupied dwellings is commonly seen in cities under the prefectural level. This partly explained the negative impacts of TA on PM 2.5 level changes, as an expanded while unoccupied or non-industrialized urban zones may lower the average PM 2.5 concentration within the city boundary, but it doesn’t necessarily mean that the air quality got improved in the city cores.

Aggregation metrics at the landscape scale is often referred to as landscape texture that quantifies the tendency of patch types to be spatially aggregated; i.e., broadly speaking, aggregated or “contagious” distributions. This group of metrics is most effective in capturing the PM 2.5 trends in mid-sized cities (population range 25–50 k) and Central China, where the urbanization process is still undergoing. The three significant variables that reflect the spatial property of dispersion, separately landscape shape index, patch cohesion index, and aggregation index, consistently indicate that more aggregated landscape results in a higher degree of PM 2.5 level changes. Theoretically, the more compact urban form typically leads to less auto dependence and heavier reliance on the usage of public transit and walking, which contributes to air pollution mitigation 89 . This phenomenon has also been observed in China, as the vehicle-use intensity (kilometers traveled per vehicle per year, VKT) has been declining over recent years 90 . However, VKT only represents the travel intensity of one car and does not reflect the total distance traveled that cumulatively contribute to the local pollution. It should be noted that the private light-duty vehicle ownership in China has increased exponentially and is forecast to reach 23–42 million by 2050, with the share of new-growth purchases representing 16–28% 90 . In this case, considering the increased total distance traveled, the less dispersed urban form can exert negative effects on air quality by concentrating vehicle pollution emissions in a limited space.

Finally, urban contiguity, observed as the most effective shape metric in indicating PM 2.5 level changes, provides an assessment of spatial connectedness across all urban patches. Urban contiguity is found to have a positive effect on the long-term PM 2.5 pollution changes in large cities. Urban contiguity reflects to which degree the urban landscape is fragmented. Large contiguous patches result in large CONTIG_MN values. Among the 626 cities, only 11% of cities experience negative changes in urban contiguity. For example, Qingyang, Gansu is one of the cities-featuring leapfrogs and scattered development separated by vacant land that may later be filled in as the development continues (Fig. 6 ). Most Chinese cities experienced increased urban contiguity, with less fragmented and compacted landscape. A typical example is Shenzhou, Hebei, where CONTIG_MN rose from 0.27 to 0.45 within the 14 years. Although the 13 counties in Shenzhou are very far scattered from each other, each county is growing intensively internally rather than sprawling further outside. And its urban layout is thus more compact (Fig. 6 ). The positive association revealed in this study contradicts a global study indicating that cities with highly contiguous built-up areas have lower NO 2 pollution 22 . We noticed that the principal emission sources of NO 2 differ from that of PM 2.5. NO 2 is primarily emitted with the combustion of fossil fuels (e.g., industrial processes and power generation) 6 , whereas road traffic attributes more to PM 2.5 emissions. Highly connected urban form is likely to cause traffic congestion and trap pollution inside the street canyon, which accumulates higher PM 2.5 concentration. Computer simulation results also indicate that more compact cities improve urban air quality but are under the premise that mixed land use should be presented 18 . With more connected impervious surfaces, it is merely impossible to expect increasing urban green spaces. If compact urban development does not contribute to a rising proportion of green areas, then such a development does not help mitigating air pollution 41 .

Six cities illustrating negative to positive changes in CONTIG_MN and AREA_MN. Pixels in black show the urban areas in the year 2000 and pixels in red are the expanded urban areas from the year 2000 to 2014. Figure was produced by ArcGIS 10.7.1 85 .

Conclusions

This study explores the regional land-use patterns and air quality in a country with an extraordinarily heterogeneous urbanization pattern. Our study is the first of its kind in investigating such a wide range selection of cities ranging from small-sized ones to large metropolitan areas spanning a long time frame, to gain a comprehensive insight into the varying effects of urban form on air quality trends. And the primary insight yielded from this study is the validation of the hypothesis that the determinants of PM 2.5 level trends are not the same for cities at various developmental levels or in different geographic regions. Certain measures of urban form are robust predictors of air quality trends for a certain group of cities. Therefore, any planning strategy aimed at reducing air pollution should consider its current development status and based upon which, design its future plan. To this end, it is also important to emphasize the main shortcoming of this analysis, which is generally centered around the selection of control variables. This is largely constrained by the available information from the City Statistical Yearbook. It will be beneficial to further polish this study by including other important controlling factors, such as vehicle possession.

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Acknowledgements

Lu Liang received intramural research funding support from the UNT Office of Research and Innovation. Peng Gong is partially supported by the National Research Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology of the People’s Republic of China (2016YFA0600104), and donations from Delos Living LLC and the Cyrus Tang Foundation to Tsinghua University.

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Liang, L., Gong, P. Urban and air pollution: a multi-city study of long-term effects of urban landscape patterns on air quality trends. Sci Rep 10 , 18618 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-74524-9

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Pollution due to Urbanization, English Essay, Paragraph, Speech for Class 9, 10, 12 in 300 Words.

Pollution due to urbanization.

Urbanization refers to the process of increasing the population and development of cities. It is a key aspect of modern society and has many benefits, including economic growth and access to education and healthcare. However, it also has a dark side, as it can lead to environmental pollution.

One of the main sources of pollution due to urbanization is the increased amount of transportation. As cities grow, there are more cars on the road, leading to increased air pollution. This pollution can have serious health effects, particularly for those who live in urban areas and are exposed to it on a daily basis.

Another source of pollution in urban areas is the waste produced by a growing population. As cities become more densely populated, there is more waste generated, which can lead to land and water pollution if it is not properly managed.

Urbanization can also lead to the destruction of natural habitats, as land is developed to accommodate the needs of a growing population. This can lead to the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem degradation.

There are ways to mitigate the negative impacts of urbanization on the environment. One approach is to promote sustainable development, which takes into account the needs of both the environment and the growing population. This can involve the use of green technologies, such as renewable energy sources, and the implementation of policies that encourage the reduction of waste and the use of public transportation.

In conclusion, urbanization has many benefits, but it can also lead to pollution and environmental degradation if it is not properly managed. It is important for governments and individuals to take steps to reduce the negative impacts of urbanization and promote sustainable development.

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Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization: Urbanization has brought about numerous benefits such as economic growth and improved living standards. However, it has also led to a significant increase in pollution levels in urban areas. This essay will explore the various forms of pollution that have arisen as a result of urbanization, including air, water, and noise pollution. It will also discuss the impacts of this pollution on human health and the environment, as well as potential solutions to mitigate its effects.

Table of Contents

Pollution Due To Urbanization Essay Writing Tips

1. Introduction: Start your essay by defining urbanization and its impact on the environment. Explain how rapid urbanization has led to increased pollution levels in cities.

2. Discuss the sources of pollution: Identify the main sources of pollution in urban areas such as vehicular emissions, industrial activities, construction work, and waste disposal. Explain how these activities contribute to air, water, and soil pollution.

3. Effects of pollution: Describe the harmful effects of pollution on human health and the environment. Discuss how air pollution can lead to respiratory diseases, water pollution can contaminate drinking water sources, and soil pollution can affect agricultural productivity.

4. Impact on wildlife: Explain how pollution due to urbanization can also have a negative impact on wildlife. Discuss how habitat destruction, chemical pollution, and noise pollution can disrupt ecosystems and threaten biodiversity.

5. Solutions to reduce pollution: Propose practical solutions to reduce pollution in urban areas. This can include promoting public transportation, implementing stricter emission standards for vehicles and industries, enforcing waste management regulations, and promoting green spaces in cities.

6. Role of government and individuals: Highlight the importance of government policies and regulations in addressing pollution due to urbanization. Discuss how individuals can also contribute to reducing pollution by adopting sustainable practices such as recycling, conserving energy, and using eco-friendly products.

7. Conclusion: Summarize the key points discussed in the essay and emphasize the need for collective action to combat pollution due to urbanization. Encourage readers to take responsibility for their actions and work towards creating a cleaner and healthier environment for future generations.

8. Proofread and revise: Before submitting your essay, make sure to proofread it for any grammatical or spelling errors. Revise the content to ensure that your arguments are clear and well-supported with evidence and examples.

By following these writing tips, you can effectively write an essay on pollution due to urbanization that is informative, engaging, and persuasive.

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization in 10 Lines – Examples

1. Urbanization leads to increased pollution as more people move to cities, resulting in higher levels of traffic, industrial activities, and waste generation. 2. The burning of fossil fuels for transportation and energy production in urban areas contributes to air pollution, leading to respiratory problems and other health issues. 3. Urbanization also leads to deforestation and loss of green spaces, which can result in soil erosion, water pollution, and habitat destruction. 4. The construction of buildings and infrastructure in urban areas can disrupt natural ecosystems and contribute to pollution through the release of construction materials and chemicals. 5. Urbanization increases the demand for water resources, leading to over-extraction of groundwater and contamination of water sources with pollutants. 6. The concentration of people in urban areas results in higher levels of waste generation, leading to problems with waste management and disposal, including littering and illegal dumping. 7. Urbanization can also lead to noise pollution from increased traffic, construction activities, and other sources, affecting the quality of life for residents. 8. The expansion of urban areas can result in the destruction of agricultural land and natural habitats, leading to loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. 9. Urbanization can exacerbate the effects of climate change through increased greenhouse gas emissions, heat island effects, and other factors. 10. Addressing pollution due to urbanization requires sustainable urban planning, investment in green infrastructure, and policies to promote cleaner transportation and energy sources.

Sample Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization in 100-180 Words

Urbanization has led to a significant increase in pollution levels in cities. The rapid growth of urban areas has resulted in higher levels of air, water, and noise pollution. The increase in vehicles, industries, and construction activities has contributed to the degradation of the environment.

Air pollution is a major concern in urban areas, with emissions from vehicles and industries leading to the formation of harmful pollutants such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter. Water pollution is also a problem, as urban runoff carries pollutants into rivers and lakes, contaminating water sources. Noise pollution from traffic and construction activities can have negative effects on human health and well-being.

To combat pollution due to urbanization, it is essential to implement strict regulations on emissions and waste disposal. Encouraging the use of public transportation, promoting green spaces, and investing in renewable energy sources can also help reduce pollution levels in urban areas. Ultimately, it is crucial to prioritize sustainable development practices to mitigate the harmful effects of urbanization on the environment.

Short Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization in 200-500 Words

Urbanization is the process of population concentration in urban areas, leading to the growth of cities and towns. This rapid urbanization has resulted in numerous environmental challenges, with pollution being one of the most significant issues. Pollution due to urbanization has become a major concern as cities continue to expand and develop.

One of the main sources of pollution in urban areas is air pollution. The increase in vehicular traffic, industrial activities, and construction projects in urban areas has led to a significant rise in air pollution levels. The emission of harmful gases and particulate matter from vehicles and industries has resulted in poor air quality, leading to respiratory problems and other health issues for the residents of these areas. Additionally, the burning of fossil fuels for energy production and heating further contributes to air pollution in urban areas.

Water pollution is another major consequence of urbanization. The discharge of untreated sewage and industrial waste into rivers and water bodies has contaminated water sources, making them unfit for consumption. The rapid urbanization has also led to the encroachment and destruction of wetlands and natural water bodies, further exacerbating the problem of water pollution. The presence of pollutants in water bodies not only affects aquatic life but also poses a serious health risk to humans who rely on these water sources for drinking and other purposes.

Noise pollution is another issue that arises due to urbanization. The increase in population density and urban activities has led to higher levels of noise pollution in cities. Traffic noise, construction activities, and industrial operations contribute to the overall noise levels in urban areas, leading to stress, sleep disturbances, and other health problems for residents. Noise pollution can also have a negative impact on wildlife, disrupting their natural habitats and communication patterns.

Urbanization also contributes to the generation of solid waste in cities. The increase in population and consumption patterns has led to a significant rise in the amount of waste generated in urban areas. Improper waste management practices, such as open dumping and burning of waste, further exacerbate the problem of solid waste pollution in cities. The accumulation of waste in landfills and open spaces not only degrades the environment but also poses a threat to public health.

In conclusion, pollution due to urbanization is a pressing issue that requires immediate attention and action. Sustainable urban planning and development practices, along with stringent environmental regulations, are essential to mitigate the adverse effects of pollution in urban areas. It is crucial for governments, policymakers, and residents to work together to address the challenges posed by urbanization and ensure a cleaner and healthier environment for future generations.

Essay on Pollution Due To Urbanization in 1000-1500 Words

Urbanization is the process of population concentration in cities and towns, leading to the growth of urban areas. It is a global phenomenon that has been occurring at an unprecedented rate in recent decades. While urbanization has brought about numerous benefits such as economic growth, improved infrastructure, and access to better services, it has also led to a range of environmental problems, with pollution being one of the most significant issues.

Pollution due to urbanization is a complex and multifaceted problem that affects both the natural environment and human health. The rapid expansion of cities and towns has resulted in increased levels of air, water, and soil pollution, as well as noise pollution. These pollutants have a range of negative impacts on the environment, including damage to ecosystems, loss of biodiversity, and climate change. In addition, pollution poses serious health risks to urban residents, leading to respiratory diseases, cardiovascular problems, and other health issues.

One of the main sources of pollution due to urbanization is air pollution. The burning of fossil fuels for energy production, transportation, and industrial activities releases a range of pollutants into the atmosphere, including carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, and particulate matter. These pollutants can have a range of negative impacts on human health, including respiratory problems, cardiovascular diseases, and even premature death. In addition, air pollution can also damage ecosystems, reduce crop yields, and contribute to climate change.

Water pollution is another significant issue associated with urbanization. The discharge of untreated sewage, industrial effluents, and agricultural runoff into rivers, lakes, and oceans can contaminate water sources and degrade water quality. This pollution can have serious consequences for aquatic ecosystems, leading to the loss of biodiversity, fish kills, and the destruction of coral reefs. In addition, water pollution can also pose risks to human health, as contaminated water sources can transmit diseases such as cholera, typhoid, and hepatitis.

Soil pollution is also a concern in urban areas, as the disposal of solid waste, industrial chemicals, and agricultural pesticides can contaminate soil and degrade soil quality. This pollution can have negative impacts on agricultural productivity, as contaminated soil may not be suitable for growing crops. In addition, soil pollution can also pose risks to human health, as contaminated soil can transfer pollutants to food crops, leading to the ingestion of harmful chemicals.

Noise pollution is another issue associated with urbanization, as the growth of cities and towns has led to increased levels of noise from traffic, construction, and industrial activities. This noise pollution can have negative impacts on human health, leading to stress, sleep disturbances, and hearing loss. In addition, noise pollution can also disrupt wildlife habitats, leading to changes in animal behavior and population dynamics.

In addition to these specific forms of pollution, urbanization can also contribute to broader environmental problems such as deforestation, habitat destruction, and climate change. The expansion of cities and towns often involves the clearing of forests and other natural habitats, leading to the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services. In addition, urban areas are major sources of greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to global warming and climate change.

Addressing pollution due to urbanization requires a range of strategies at the local, national, and global levels. One key approach is to promote sustainable urban planning and development practices that prioritize environmental protection and public health. This can include measures such as promoting public transportation, improving waste management systems, and implementing green building standards. In addition, governments can also regulate industrial emissions, enforce pollution control laws, and invest in clean energy technologies to reduce pollution levels.

Public awareness and education are also crucial in addressing pollution due to urbanization. By raising awareness about the impacts of pollution on the environment and human health, individuals can take steps to reduce their own environmental footprint and advocate for policies that promote sustainability. In addition, education programs can also help to build public support for pollution control measures and encourage behavior change towards more sustainable lifestyles.

In conclusion, pollution due to urbanization is a significant environmental problem that poses serious risks to the environment and human health. The rapid expansion of cities and towns has led to increased levels of air, water, and soil pollution, as well as noise pollution, with a range of negative impacts on ecosystems, biodiversity, and public health. Addressing pollution due to urbanization requires a range of strategies, including sustainable urban planning, pollution control measures, and public awareness campaigns. By taking action to reduce pollution levels and promote environmental protection, we can create healthier and more sustainable urban environments for current and future generations.

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Essay On Pollution Due To Urbanization

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Essay On Pollution Due To Urbanization | Pollution Due to Urbanization Essay

Introduction.

Pollution due to Urbanization becomes increases day by day. because in industrialized cities pollution is a major problem. it may be caused by the industries or by the excessive movement of vehicles.

Today we consider urbanization as a symbol of development, but due to urbanization, our environment suffers a lot of damage.

The Urbanization words come from the Latin word “Urbs”, which means “City” . The term urbanization means the Lifestyle that is common in a city becomes prevalent. This can happen in two different ways:

Through the growth of cities; called physical Urbanization and Through the change of behavior of people living in rural areas; called Functional urbanization.

Urbanization refers to the concept of a rural area becoming developed as factories, good roads, good schools, etc . are build there.

“Act seriously over all the solution to pollution. Think about future generations and reduce pollution.”

Body (Essay On Pollution Due To Urbanization)

If we talk about the problems of urbanization , then environmental problems become very important. The biggest problem of urbanization is pollution. People are getting serious diseases due to pollution and millions of people are also dying from it.

According to the United Nations Report , currently, half of the world’s population is living in cities. By the year 2050 , half of the population of India will start living in cities and metro cities.

Then it’s obvious that an increase in population will responsible for more Industrial Development in urban areas and as a result, pollution will increase, which level has been increasing over the years.

Cities are turning into heat Island due to concrete roads and buildings. The sacrifice of green areas for the development of cities is promoting global warming. Which is also a warning for very serious problems coming in the future.

Due to the sheets of road-laid concrete in the cities , on one hand, groundwater recycling is being affected, on the other hand, the cities are getting flooded due to unplanned urbanization and drainage system . Due to this, problems of drinking water are also increasing.

We achieved a big step when we urbanized our villages but it came with a price, we certainly have a luxurious and comfortable life in modern cities and towns, but due to this there is a big hole in the health of our environment.

This has brought with us many problems that we face. developing cities saw a boom and this urbanization brought with it a web of difficulties and we are getting entangled in them.

There is various pollution that is due to urbanization such as air pollution, noise pollution, water pollution, Thermal Pollution, global warming, deforestation, etc .

It is high time that we should adopt the means by which we can improve the health of the environment . There are a number of solutions that we can implement and create a better tomorrow.

In the present scenario, pollution is becoming a serious challenge where breathing in the air is similar to poison. Areas of the Delhi NCR occupy an average severe category in the air quality index . where even a healthy person can become ill by breathing.

Essay On Pollution In 1500+ Words
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There are many types of Pollution due to Urbanization:-

Soil pollution, water pollution, noise pollution.

Air Pollution etc.

Due to overpopulation in the urban areas, the amount of garbage, plastic, non-biodegradable dustbin, etc, become increased and due to the establishment of factories, the number of trees also decreased which is the main cause of soil erosion as well as pollution due to urbanization.

Excessive use of water especially in urban areas by people as well as factories is also responsible for water pollution . because we do not have enough resources to stop the dirty water from getting into the river. So, dirty water mixed with the river makes it even more polluted, so that the creatures living in the water have to face difficulties.

The number of vehicles, Industries, construction, parties, functions, etc becomes increased in the urban areas is the main reason for noise pollution due to urbanization .

Air Pollution

Due to increasing the population in urban areas the number of vehicles, industries, etc also increases. So, the air quality becomes decreased continuously is also the cause of air pollution due to urbanization.

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Conclusion ( Essay On Pollution Due To Urbanization)

Pollution levels began to rise when humans started establishing cities and industrialization took place.

The harsh reality of urbanization is that many beautiful valleys, mountains, hill stations, and forests become polluted due to an increase in human activity.

Overall, Systematical urbanization is good for developing countries, by this, we can able to reduce “ pollution due to urbanization”.

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Urbanization: a problem for the rich and the poor?

Md Abdul Kuddus 1 , 2 , 4 ,
Elizabeth Tynan 3 &
Emma McBryde 1 , 2

Public Health Reviews volume 41 , Article number: 1 ( 2020 ) Cite this article

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Urbanization has long been associated with human development and progress, but recent studies have shown that urban settings can also lead to significant inequalities and health problems. This paper is concerned with the adverse impact of urbanization on both developed and developing nations and both wealthy and poor populations within those nations, addressing issues associated with public health problems in urban areas. The discussion in this paper will be of interest to policy makers. The paper advocates policies that improve the socio-economic conditions of the urban poor and promote their better health. Further, this discussion encourages wealthy people and nations to become better informed about the challenges that may arise when urbanization occurs in their regions without the required social supports and infrastructure.

Urbanization refers to the mass movement of populations from rural to urban settings and the consequent physical changes to urban settings. In 2019, the United Nations estimated that more than half the world’s population (4.2 billion people) now live in urban area and by 2041, this figure will increase to 6 billion people [ 1 ].

Cities are known to play multifaceted functions in all societies. They are the heart of technological development and economic growth of many nations, while at the same time serving as a breeding ground for poverty, inequality, environmental hazards, and communicable diseases [ 2 ]. When large numbers of people congregate in cities, many problems result, particularly for the poor. For example, many rural migrants who settle in an urban slum area bring their families and their domesticated animals—both pets and livestock—with them. This influx of humans and animals leads to vulnerability of all migrants to circulating communicable diseases and the potential to establish an urban transmission cycle. Further, most urban poor live in slums that are unregulated, have congested conditions, are overcrowded, are positioned near open sewers, and restricted to geographically dangerous areas such as hillsides, riverbanks, and water basins subject to landslides, flooding, or industrial hazards. All of these factors lead to the spread of communicable and non-communicable diseases, pollution, poor nutrition, road traffic, and so on [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. The problems faced by the poor spill over to other city dwellers. As the trend to urbanization continues, this spillover effect increases and takes on a global dimension as more and more of the world’s populations are affected [ 3 ].

Some of the major health problems resulting from urbanization include poor nutrition, pollution-related health conditions and communicable diseases, poor sanitation and housing conditions, and related health conditions. These have direct impacts on individual quality of life, while straining public health systems and resources [ 6 ].

Urbanization has a major negative impact on the nutritional health of poor populations. Because they have limited financial resources and the cost of food is higher in cities, the urban poor lack nutritious diets and this leads to illness, which contributes to loss of appetite and poor absorption of nutrients among those affected. Furthermore, environmental contamination also contributes to undernutrition; street food is often prepared in unhygienic conditions, leading to outbreaks of food-borne illnesses (e.g., botulism, salmonellosis, and shigellosis) [ 6 ]. Urban dwellers also suffer from overnutrition and obesity, a growing global public health problem. Obesity and other lifestyle conditions contribute to chronic diseases (such as cancers, diabetes, and heart diseases). Although obesity is most common among the wealthy, international agencies have noted the emergence of increased weight among the middle class and poor in recent years [ 7 ].

Populations in poor nations that suffer from protein-energy malnutrition [ 8 ] have increased susceptibility to infection [ 9 ] through the impact of micronutrient deficiency on immune system development and function [ 10 ]. Around 168 million children under 5 are estimated to be malnourished and 76% of these children live in Asia [ 11 ]. At the same time, the World Health Organization is concerned that there is an emerging pandemic of obesity in poor countries that leads to non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, and stroke [ 12 ].

Obesity is caused by increased caloric intake and decreased physical activity [ 13 ], something historically associated with wealth. However, people in urbanized areas of developing countries are also now vulnerable to obesity due to lack of physical space, continually sitting in workplaces, and excessive energy intake and low energy expenditure. In these areas, infrastructure is often lacking, including sufficient space for recreational activities. Further, in developing countries, as in developed countries, large employers frequently place head offices in urban capitals and work is increasingly sedentary in nature [ 14 ]. Another culprit associated with the risk of developing obesity is the change in food intake that has led to the so-called nutrition transition (increased the consumption of animal-source foods, sugar, fats and oils, refined grains, and processed foods) in urban areas. For instance, in China, dietary patterns have changed concomitantly with urbanization in the past 30 years, leading to increased obesity [ 15 ]. In 2003, the World Health Organization estimated that more than 300 million adults were affected, the majority in developed and highly urbanized countries [ 16 ]. Since then, the prevalence of obesity has increased. For example, in Australia, around 28% of adults were obese in 2014–2015 [ 17 ].

Pollution is another major contributor to poor health in urban environments. For instance, the World Health Organization estimated that 6.5 million people died (11.6% of all global deaths) as a consequence of indoor and outdoor air pollution and nearly 90% of air-pollution-related deaths occurred in low- and middle-income countries [ 18 ]. Poor nutrition and pollution both contribute to a third major challenge for urban populations: communicable diseases. The poor live in congested conditions, near open sewers and stagnant water, and are therefore constantly exposed to unhealthy waste [ 6 ]. Inadequate sanitation can lead to the transmission of helminths and other intestinal parasites. Pollution (e.g., from CO 2 emission) from congested urban areas contributes to localized and global climate change and direct health problems, such as respiratory illnesses, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer for both the rich and the poor.

In addition to human-to-human transmission, animals and insects serve as efficient vectors for diseases within urban settings and do not discriminate between the rich and poor. The prevalence and impact of communicable diseases in urban settings, such as tuberculosis (TB), malaria, cholera, dengue, and others, is well established and of global concern.

National and international researchers and policy makers have explored various strategies to address such problems, yet the problems remain. For example, research on solutions for megacities has been ongoing since the early 1990s [ 19 , 20 ]. These studies have concluded that pollution, unreliable electricity, and non-functioning infrastructure are priority initiatives; nevertheless, air pollution, quality of water in cities, congestion, disaster management issues, and infrastructure are not being systematically addressed [ 19 , 20 ].

The impact of inner city transportation on health, such as road traffic, is emerging as a serious problem. Statistics show that a minimum of 10 people die every day on the railways in the city of Mumbai, India [ 21 ]. Vietnam is another example of a country that has seen a remarkable increase in road traffic accidents [ 22 ]. Improvements to the country’s infrastructure have not been able to meet the increasing growth of vehicular and human traffic on the street. Vietnam reportedly has a population of 95 million and more than 18 million motorbikes on its roads. A deliberate policy is needed to reduce accidents [ 21 ].

Although urbanization has become an irreversible phenomenon, some have argued that to resolve the problems of the city, we must tackle the root causes of the problem, such as improving the socio-economic situation of the urban poor.

Until the conditions in rural areas improve, populations will continue to migrate to urban settings. Given the challenges that rural development poses, the root causes are unlikely to be addressed in the near future. Therefore, governments and development agencies should concentrate on adapting to the challenges of urbanization, while seeking to reduce unplanned urbanization.

Some examples of policies and practices that should be considered include (i) policies that consider whole-of-life journeys, incorporating accessible employment, community participation, mobility/migration and social transition, to break generational poverty cycles; (ii) policies addressing urban environmental issues, such as planned urban space and taxes on the use of vehicles to reduce use or to encourage vehicles that use less fuel as well as encourage bicycle use, walking, and other forms of human transportation; (iii) greater cooperative planning between rural and urban regions to improve food security (e.g., subsidies for farmers providing locally produced, unprocessed and low cost food to urban centers); (iv) social protection and universal health coverage to reduce wealth disparity among urban dwellers; including introduction of programs and services for health, for example by establishing primary healthcare clinics accessible and affordable for all including those living in urban slums [ 23 ].

Availability of data and materials

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the editor for his/her thoughtful comments and efforts towards improving the manuscript.

This work was conducted as a part of a PhD programme of the first authors and funded by the College of Medicine and Dentistry at the James Cook University, Australia (JCU-QLD-933347).

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Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization

Essay on pollution due to urbanization in english for students and others.

Long and Short Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in English

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization – Essay 1 (200 words)

Essay on Pollution due to Urbanization in India – Essay 2 (300 words)

Introduction

There are Various Levels at which Urban Pollution is happening like:

Types and Causes of Urban Pollution

Air Pollution: The air in the urban areas is always polluted with harmful substances and it is becoming hazardous day by day to breathe. The air in the cities is choking. The smoke from automobiles, factories and power generators make the air unhealthy. There are other factors also like chemical spills and other toxic gases that contaminate the air.
Water Pollution: As it is there are very less natural water sources in the urban areas and the ones that are there are getting increasingly polluted. There is a lot of disposal in the lakes and rivers like household & industrial disposal. A lot of waste gets mixed with rain and washed into the waters .
Soil Pollution: The mixing of toxins in the soil is disturbing the eco-system.
Noise Pollution: Urban areas are one of the noisiest ones. Various sources of noise pollution include traffic noises, loud-speakers and other unwanted noises cause many health issues .
Radioactive Pollution: The accidental leakage by nuclear power plants poses a big threat.
Visual Pollution: The over exposure of visuals in the cities in the form of signs, billboards, screens, high intensity lights etc. are also quite disturbing .
Other than these there is also ‘Thermal pollution’ that is caused by excessive amount of heat trapped in earth’s atmosphere.

Conclusion:

The various means of pollution in urban areas can lead to many health issues in the people living in cities. We are everyday exposed to more than one of these health issues sources.

Essay about Problems Due To Urbanization – Essay 3 (400 words)

Problems Due to Urbanization

Essay on Pollution Caused by Urbanization and Its Solutions – Essay 4 (500 words)

Pollution Caused by Urbanization

There is a Number of Solutions that we can apply and create a Better Tomorrow.

Solutions and Prevention of Urban Pollution

Conserve Energy: The urban area’s people always use more energy than the rural area’s people. The consumption of energy causes various kinds of pollution. Saving energy wherever possible is one of the best ways to curb pollution. Turn off the electrical appliances when they are not being used. This small step can help in a big way.
Use less water: We waste a lot of water daily and this can lead to bad consequences. We must try and use as less water as possible .
Plant more trees: The urban areas are the ones that have less greeneries. Try to plant many trees and vegetation as much as possible in your surrounding areas. Kitchen garden and small lawn near home is a good idea .
Green belts: Government can help and declare some areas in every city as green belts so that trees and other plants can be grown there without any obstruction .
Use less loudspeakers: The minimum use of loud speakers can reduce the noise pollution a lot. Decreasing the volume of music at functions after a certain time is also a good move.
Indoors: The indoors of the homes are also highly polluted in cities. We must have some plants inside the homes also, that can filter the indoor polluted air.
Industrial waste: The factory owners must try and make possible that industrial waste is not dumped in the lakes or rivers. Government can also make laws for the same.
Say no to plastic: Plastic is one of the most harmful substances that can pollute air, water and soil all together. We must try and minimize the use of plastic as much as possible. Use just cloth bags instead of plastic.
Use Public transport: Avoid using cars and bikes for daily use. Try to use public transport, bicycle and car pools. This will not only curb air pollution but will also decrease the traffic on roads.
Walk: Try to go to nearby areas on foot i.e. walking, this will reduce pollution and will also improve your health .
Better garbage disposal: Use the structural methods of garbage disposal in cities.

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A-Z Publications

Annual Review of Environment and Resources

Volume 42, 2017, review article, linking urbanization and the environment: conceptual and empirical advances.

Xuemei Bai 1 , Timon McPhearson 2,3 , Helen Cleugh 4 , Harini Nagendra 5 , Xin Tong 6 , Tong Zhu 7 , and Yong-Guan Zhu 8,9
View Affiliations Hide Affiliations Affiliations: 1 Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University, Canberra ACT 0200, Australia; email: [email protected] 2 Urban Systems Lab, The New School, New York, NY 10003, USA 3 Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, New York 12545, USA 4 Climate Science Centre, CSIRO, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia 5 School of Development, Azim Premji University, Bangalore 560100, India 6 Department of Urban and Economic Geography, College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China 7 BIC-ESAT and SKL-ESPC, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China 8 Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China 9 Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China
Vol. 42:215-240 (Volume publication date October 2017) https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-102016-061128
First published as a Review in Advance on August 14, 2017

Urbanization is one of the biggest social transformations of modern time, driving and driven by multiple social, economic, and environmental processes. The impacts of urbanization on the environment are profound, multifaceted and are manifested at the local, regional, and global scale. This article reviews recent advances in conceptual and empirical knowledge linking urbanization and the environment, focusing on six core aspects: air pollution, ecosystems, land use, biogeochemical cycles and water pollution, solid waste management, and the climate. We identify several emerging trends and remaining questions in urban environmental research, including ( a ) increasing evidence on the amplified or accelerated environmental impacts of urbanization; ( b ) varying distribution patterns of impacts along geographical and other socio-economic gradients; ( c ) shifting focus from understanding and quantifying the impacts of urbanization toward understanding the processes and underlying mechanisms; ( d ) increasing focus on understanding complex interactions and interlinkages among different environmental, social, economic, and cultural processes; and ( e ) conceptual advances that call for articulating and using a systems approach in cities. In terms of governing the urban environment, there is an increasing focus on public participation and coproduction of knowledge with stakeholders. Cities are actively experimenting toward sustainability under a plethora of guiding concepts that manifests their aspirational goals, with varying levels of implementation and effectiveness.

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Essay on Pollution Crisis in Urban Areas

August 29, 2021 by Sandeep

The presence of poisonous, contaminating substances in the environment around us creates havoc to the dwelling space and introduces harmful and non-biodegradable substances. These harmful chemical-laden toxic elements cause ‘pollution.’ Below, we have provided pollution crisis in urban areas essay, suitable for aspirants preparing for competitive exams.

Urbanisation and Pollution

Man and his ways have polluted the environment around us; it’s a phenomenon prevailing since many millions of years and has reached alarming levels today. The concern in the urban areas is more severe because the greenery belt in the metros cities is severely low, and pollution levels are very high. There is no control on pollution and no scientific checks that can solidly create a lasting impact to decrease pollution levels.

Urban areas have a higher density of vehicles, more emissions from factories and industries, a higher rate of food adulteration, etc. This has caused an overall rise in the average temperatures, created a way for global warming. Due to this, people are suffering from deadly diseases, like cancer and asthma, acid rains are becoming more common. Air, water, land pollution is fully contaminating the environment around us severely.

Burning of Farm Residues

Whenever we take a long drive towards the out suits of any city, we can find thick and thin piles of smoke swelling up from small or big farmlands. It could be paddy straws that are being burnt or any other agricultural leftovers. They cause major reasons for pollution . They can be detrimental to our health too. They have very high small micro-level particles that can choke our lungs and trouble the respiratory system. The concentration of these fine particles in the residue burning would be so high that the smoke can enter the nearby, immediate urban landscape and cause huge damage to the lungs.

Very high levels of toxic elements like nitrogen, phosphorus, etc., are found in this kind of smoke emitting residue burning. The levels of potassium and sulphur can act upon the neighbouring lands and destroy the top layers of the soil. Thus even fertile lands can become barren and unfit for cultivation. This issue could be circled under the group of soil pollution.

The Air Act of 1981 considers burning crops and farm residues an unacceptable and punishable act and can be tried under a judicial lens. But strict enforcement of laws by authorities at the grassroots level is almost absent, making it easy for farmers to continue with their unscientific acts. A simple remedy to this burning issue could be to find alternate rises of farm residues to avoid burning them.

Indian Transportation of Pollution

As chocolates are to children, so is motor pollution to vehicles plying on Indian roads, especially city and urban areas. The environment is degraded by pollutants emitted out from the fumes of exhausts fitted to vehicles. They have ill effects on plant life, animal life and destroy the delicate balance present in the ecosystem. The motor or vehicular pollutants include carbon monoxide, toxic nitrogen oxide, ammonia, high hydrogen, and sulphur dioxide levels. Economic liberation in urban areas has made people more outgoing in their choices of vehicles.

A small family of four now has all four members having four different vehicles to use. It is not about necessity; it is a question of luxury. So the amount of pollution previously caused by a family vehicle has proportionately increased to nearly four-fold. The term ‘car pollution’ is commonly used in urban areas for obvious reasons. The greenhouse emissions can cause a lot of destruction to our atmosphere.

Petrol and diesel, when burnt, release harmful by-products into the environment. The smoke released from cars contains a huge list of pollutants. Particulate matter can choke our lungs and lead to deadly diseases like cancer. The fuel that silently escapes fuel tanks in vehicles is very toxic. They can silently deplete the protective layers of the atmosphere and add to the greenhouse effect.

Better Management of Resources

The primary and most prominent form of pollution in urban areas that reduces the green belt and improves specific contamination is air pollution . We cannot just blame vehicles for pollution. In our day-to-day lives, we depend on plastic items for almost every other need.

We have plastic toothbrushes, plastic mugs, plastic pens, etc. Our whole life revolves around plastic usage! Plastic, after being thrown, does not decay and can cause major health hazards that can’t be cured. Every year along big seashores, we find whales falling dead on the shore with a stomach filled with tons of plastic. So plastic is not a good choice, and we can replace it with other alternatives.

When we step outside our rooms, we forget to turn off lights and fans, leading to energy wastage. Every house, be it in urban or rural background, churns out piles of waste from their homes every day. A scientific way of waste disposal could end soil pollution and attract better ways of handling and treating waste and disposed of resources.

Paper can be recycled, but plastic cannot be recycled. So we can replace our plastic bags and use paper bags in their place. We have to ensure the safe disposal of paints, varnishes, worn-out batteries. Not disposing of them could pollute the air in the immediate environment/neighbourhood and cause further pollution.

Pollution and Loss to National Income

As we begin to put more things into our wardrobe, we should also consciously understand that we are adding to the heap of pollutants around us. When we don’t recycle items and litter our places, we congest our environment and degrade the quality of life. We cause pollution to the air and water sources. Industrial pollution adds debris and creates more havoc than we think. For every such pollution activity, there are associated costs that escalate now and then.

The costs associated with pollution are not directly assessed when a country’s GDP is taken into account. Yet, if we go by relative figures, we can see the same reflected in our national income. Take a simple example: every tourist who visited the sacred Ganges at Varanasi polluted or contributed to pollution. It could be plastic wastes or contaminating water sources.

When all this piled up and was no longer tolerable, the action was essential, and thus it took thousands of crores to clean up the river. This comes from the taxpayer’s money. With every such source of pollution at various other points, national income is seriously affected by pollution factors. Environmental woes add to the problem of pollution plus eat up into the taxpayer’s money since huge sums of relief funds need to be necessitated for welfare activities. Citizens charters have risen to bring about awareness, and we as responsible citizens should stop tolerating this menace.

International Reputation

Pollution, filth, and dirt are common sights when we visit public places in urban areas. Be its railway stations, airports, or bus stands, awareness and consciousness regarding cleanliness are less. When international delegates visit our country to explore business possibilities, they fight for space and greenery in a contaminated and germ-laden atmosphere. So, often the name we achieve in an international scene gets clutched and results in poor remarks in international arenas due to pollution and environmental degradation.

Threat of Diseases

Paying a casual visit to a nearby slum area will give you glaring images of filth, uncleared garbage, poor sanitation facilities, and above all, the spring of diseases and the thriving of life risky viruses and bacteria. Pollution can cause many deadly diseases to both humans and animals. Bronchitis and asthma are becoming common ailments in cities. Not just the older people, even younger generations are falling prey to it.

Smoking is a very normal activity in public places in cities. Smoking can cause cancer of the lungs. The onset of respiratory disease is mainly due to high levels of pollution in cities. Water-borne contaminants can easily cause cholera and diphtheria. Dysentery is a common problem in children when accidentally fed with polluted water. The sewage water mixed with good, potable water can cause mutations to genes and alter the specific creation of progeny in human beings.

Not just that, the high levels of adulterants and toxic minerals and chemicals present in the food we eat can cause gastrointestinal disorders and give way to incurable diseases. Mutations causing cancer are one of the most common things we get to hear, and the loss of lives due to pollution is undoubtedly on a steady rise.

WHO Reports

Some of the recent reports cited, formulated, and land out to the Indian public have shortlisted cities with very high pollution levels and threaten the people living there. Gwalior is one of those prominent cities where levels of air pollution are just unacceptable. The WHO also prescribes safety levels and permissible levels of air pollution. Cities like Delhi are much higher than these permissible levels. The cause of such high levels of toxic pollution can be attributed to a rich concentration of particulate matter.

The Kashmir region and neighbouring Himalayan states are also slowly creeping into the list, given their shift from slow pollution to high contamination levels in air matter. Global reports published by WHO every year collect research data from nearly thousands of Indian cities, say around 3000 and more, and then come up with the final list of most polluted cities. The Indian government has also set up committees to act upon this data and monitor pollution.

Ranking of Indian Cities

It is strange to find many Indian cities making their way into the world’s most polluted cities. The numbers are not just ones or twos; they have a major share in terms of pollution. Gwalior leads the list, followed by Allahabad, Patna, and Raipur. Delhi comes a close next. The power plants and industries in these cities contribute maximum to pollution.

All three categories of pollution – air, water, and land were taken into account while listing cities for pollution. Severe health issues and more effective laws to curb pollution in these cities are called for to enforce norms. Environmental degradation and the eruption of health hazards are some of the other threats and risks that can be expected due to pollution.

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Analysis of the impact of urban infrastructure on urbanization processes at different levels from a spatiotemporal perspective, 1. introduction, 2. materials and methods, 2.1. study area and data source, 2.2. index system construction, 2.3. methods, 2.3.1. fuzzy entropy weight method, 2.3.2. mann–kendall test and theil–sen median trend analysis, 2.3.3. multiple linear regression model, 2.3.4. spatial autocorrelation, 2.3.5. panel data model, 3. results and analysis, 3.1. analysis of spatiotemporal differentiation of the urbanization development level, 3.2. urbanization center of the gravity evolution track, 3.3. urbanization trend, 3.4. influencing factors of spatiotemporal differentiation, 4. discussions, 4.1. urbanization development at different levels has certain heterogeneity, 4.2. different regions should operationalize their local advantages and strengthen the construction of public infrastructure, 5. conclusions, author contributions, data availability statement, acknowledgments, conflicts of interest.

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Click here to enlarge figure

	Index	Weight	Basic Indicator Layer	Nature	Weight
Urbanization(Y)	Urbanization of the population	0.1866	Proportion of urban population(X1)	+	0.0618
			Proportion of employees in the secondary industry(X2)	+	0.0626
			Proportion of employed persons in urban units(X3)	+	0.0622
	Urbanization of the economy	0.2359	GDP per capita(X4)	+	0.0612
			Local fiscal revenues(X5)	+	0.0584
			Urban Maintenance Construction Tax(X6)	+	0.0582
			Investment in fixed assets for urban construction(X7)	+	0.0581
	Spatial urbanization	0.2298	The area of the road(X8)	+	0.0577
			Area of built-up area(X9)	+	0.0578
			Number of bridges(X10)	+	0.057
			Residential land(X11)	+	0.0573
	Urbanization of society	0.1728	Number of full-time teachers in
			primary and secondary schools(X12)	+	0.0577
			Number of hospitals(X13)	+	0.0571
			The length of the water supply pipe(X14)	+	0.058
	Ecological urbanization	0.1748	Wastewater treatment capacity(X15)	+	0.0582
			Gardens and green space per capita(X16)	+	0.0607
			Harmless treatment plant for domestic waste(X17)	+	0.0559

Year	I		E (I)		Sd (I)		Z		p-Value *
Year	P	C	P	C	P	C	P	C	P	C
2000	−0.006	0.022	−0.034	−0.004	0.033	0.005	0.865	4.923	0.194	0
2001	−0.006	0.017	−0.034	−0.004	0.033	0.005	0.879	3.944	0.19	0
2002	0.018	0.02	−0.034	−0.004	0.033	0.005	1.614	4.654	0.053	0
2003	0.027	0.025	−0.034	−0.004	0.033	0.005	1.862	5.512	0.31	0
2004	0.015	0.026	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.524	5.853	0.064	0
2005	0.017	0.025	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.624	5.667	0.052	0
2006	0.017	0.027	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.584	5.984	0.057	0
2007	0.014	0.03	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.495	6.477	0.067	0
2008	0.012	0.028	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.421	6.08	0.078	0
2009	0.004	0.032	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.191	6.9	0.117	0
2010	0.018	0.034	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.651	7.26	0.049	0
2011	0.009	0.031	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.378	6.833	0.084	0
2012	0.012	0.032	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.458	6.896	0.072	0
2013	0.005	0.033	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.242	7.228	0.107	0
2014	0.006	0.036	−0.034	−0.004	0.031	0.005	1.284	7.679	0.1	0
2015	0.018	0.037	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.676	7.871	0.047	0
2016	0.01	0.032	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.362	6.959	0.087	0
2017	0.02	0.028	−0.034	−0.004	0.033	0.005	1.644	6.237	0.05	0
2018	0.022	0.022	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	1.756	4.981	0.04	0
2019	0.053	0.026	−0.034	−0.004	0.032	0.005	2.7	5.875	0.003	0

	Y	X 3	X 5	X 6	X 7	X 8	X 9	X 10	X 11	X 12	X 13	X 14	X 15	X 17	_Cons
Co	C	2.028		1.325		2.998	2.377	0.996		0.562			1.861	1.607	0.326
Co	E		1.688		0.590	3.277		1.011	1.903		0.780	1.943		0.328	3.308
Std. err.	C	0.897		0.093		0.439	0.430	0.191		0.857			0.275	0.130	2.154
Std. err.	E		0.188		0.299	0.496		0.199	0.399		0.161	0.412		0.203	0.190
t	C	2.26		14.27		6.84	5.52	5.21		0.66			6.76	12.41	0.15
t	E	8.96		1.98		6.61		5.07	4.77	4.85		4.71		1.62	17.43
P > t	C	0.045		0.000		0.000	0.000	0.000		0.526			0.000	0.000	0.882
P > t	E		0.000		0.052	0.000		0.000	0.000		0.000	0.000		0.110	0.000
[95% conf.	C	0.053		1.121		2.033	1.429	0.575		−1.324			1.255	1.322	−4.414
[95% conf.	E		1.313		−0.006	2.288		0.613	1.107		0.460	1.121		−0.076	2.930
interval]	C	4.003		1.529		3.963	3.324	1.416		2.447			2.467	1.892	5.066
interval]	E		2.064		1.186	4.265		1.409	2.698		1.101	2.765		0.731	3.686
R2	C	0.9999
R2	E	0.9978
Adjusted R2	C	0.9997
Adjusted R2	E	0.9975
Prob > F	C	0.0000
Prob > F	E	0.0000

LnY	Direct	Indirect	Total
LnX3	0.008334 (0.000)	0.0398636 (0.621)	0.0419742 (0.000)
LnX4	0.0063389 (0.000)	0.030271 (0.339)	0.0295545 (0.000)
LnX5	0.0074874 (0.000)	0.0327016 (0.000)	0.0317856 (0.012)
LnX6	0.0040833 (0.000)	0.0199224 (0.195)	0.0202554 (0.520)
LnX8	0.0093091 (0.000)	0.0497065 (0.497)	0.0511489 (0.017)
LnX10	0.0053998 (0.000)	0.0266281 (0.792)	0.0275088 (0.109)
LnX11	0.007508 (0.000)	0.0387957 (0.066)	0.0407836 (0.000)
LnX13	0.0061769 (0.000)	0.034655 (0.014)	0.0351763 (0.000)
LnX14	0.0096057 (0.000)	0.0396047 (0.124)	0.0389068 (0.000)
LnX16	0.0042768 (0.000)	0.0271136 (0.045)	0.027372 (0.000)

LnY	Coef.	Std.err	z	p > z	[95%conf.	Interval]
LnX1	0.1642427	0.004613	35.60	0.000	0.1552014	0.173284
LnX2	0.1278136	0.0075145	17.01	0.000	0.1130853	0.1425418
LnX3	0.387113	0.0047476	81.54	0.000	0.3778078	0.3964181
LnX4	0.0738984	0.0045163	16.36	0.000	0.0650466	0.0827502
LnX6	0.0380991	0.0091024	4.19	0.000	0.0202588	0.0559395
LnX7	0.0568898	0.0109798	5.18	0.000	0.0353698	0.0784099
LnX9	0.1180554	0.0174556	6.76	0.000	0.083843	0.1522678
LnX10	−0.001877	0.0100432	−0.19	0.852	−0.021561	0.017807
LnX14	0.0208432	0.0169454	1.23	0.219	−0.012369	0.0540556
LnX16	0.2435274	0.0066932	36.38	0.000	0.230409	0.2566458
Spatial lambda	0.3482605	0.1971565	1.77	0.077	−0.038159	0.7346801
Variance sigma2_e	0.0025867	0.0000971	26.63	0.000	0.0023963	0.002777

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Share and Cite

Wu, Y.; Qian, P.; Yang, L.; Tian, Z.; Luo, J. Analysis of the Impact of Urban Infrastructure on Urbanization Processes at Different Levels from a Spatiotemporal Perspective. Sustainability 2024 , 16 , 6888. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16166888

Wu Y, Qian P, Yang L, Tian Z, Luo J. Analysis of the Impact of Urban Infrastructure on Urbanization Processes at Different Levels from a Spatiotemporal Perspective. Sustainability . 2024; 16(16):6888. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16166888

Wu, Yunjie, Peng Qian, Lei Yang, Zhuang Tian, and Jieqiong Luo. 2024. "Analysis of the Impact of Urban Infrastructure on Urbanization Processes at Different Levels from a Spatiotemporal Perspective" Sustainability 16, no. 16: 6888. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16166888

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Project dimming Canberra's street lights shows 25 per cent reduction in light pollution

A close-up photo of a man's face. He looks at the camera.

By Victor Petrovic

Topic: Science and Technology

A graphic of a street with streetlights changing their intensity. Stars in the sky become more visible as the lights are dimmed.

Lights on Canberra's streets were turned up and down for the project, revealing more of the night sky. ( ABC: Phil Jaiyawong )

An "adaptive lighting" project in Canberra, which reduced the brightness of streetlights by up to half, showed a 25 per cent reduction in light pollution.

The project used around 30,000 "smart" streetlights in Canberra during off-peak times, and also found a reduction in carbon emissions.

What's next?

It's hoped the approach can be applied elsewhere, with the New Zealand cities of Auckland and Christchurch already looking into it.

Looking up at the thousands of street lights that illuminate our cities, former town planner and designer Danny Bettay has always asked one simple question: "Do we really need this, or is this overkill?".

"Historically, street lights were designed, indirectly for people, but designed for technologies, essentially for horse and carriage," Mr Bettay said.

"And over 200 years of having these infrastructures embedded in our environment, we have slowly come to realise that there's some environmental harms of technologies that we've created in the past."

In order to reduce the impact street lighting has on the environment, Mr Bettay initiated a trial in Canberra of something called "adaptive lighting" — dimming or brightening street lights to match people's needs at the time.

A man wearing glasses sits at a table in front of a laptop.

Danny Bettay hopes the adaptive lighting project can be applied to reduce light pollution in cities. ( ABC News: Victor Petrovic )

Of Canberra's roughly 83,000 streetlights, more than 30,000 have been fitted with LED globes and "smart nodes", which allow their brightness to be controlled remotely from a laptop.

So between 11pm and 5am during the first half of 2024, the streetlights, mainly in areas less used at night, were dimmed 10 per cent every 15 minutes until they were at half of their usual brightness.

Clearing the sky

Up at Canberra's Mt Stromlo Observatory, astronomer Brad Tucker was monitoring cameras measuring how bright the night sky was, and along with satellite data, looking to see whether the dimming was revealing more of the night sky.

"So what we were finding during this dimming is that as the lights would dim, we could definitively ... measure a reduction of light pollution," Dr Tucker said.

"So for every 10 per cent the lights are dimmed, it's about a 5 per cent change in the glow of the sky.

"So when we dim all the way to about 50 per cent, that means the sky has been reduced by about 25 per cent in terms of brightness."

Adjust these suburban lights and see how they change the night sky (notes)

Dr Tucker said with even a 25 per cent clearer view of the night sky, the amount of extra detail was profound.

"So as that gets to that 25 per cent level, we're seeing 25 per cent 'darker-ness' of the sky, so we'll see more stars," Dr Tucker said.

"We'll see the fainter stars will be a bit brighter, the brighter stars will get even brighter, and some new stars pop out that were previously lost.

"Things like the Milky Way, detail of the Milky Way got a little bit more better resolved as that sky dropped."

A man with curly hair sits at a table in front of a laptop, and on the screen code is visible.

The adaptive lighting project can be controlled from Mr Bettay's laptop. ( ABC News: Victor Petrovic )

On top of the reduction in light pollution, the scientists found the reduction in brightness of the lights reduced their carbon emissions by 1,085 tonnes.

The scientists also hope a reduction in light can also help animals who've been disrupted by growing cities and towns.

'Scalable in any context'

The Australian-first trial was started when Mr Bettay was working for private company Omexom, which is contracted by the ACT government and is now the focus of Mr Bettay's PhD at the Australian National University.

Mr Bettay said he hopes the results of their trial can be applied in other jurisdictions, but that the ACT was uniquely placed to embark on the project as its government owns the street-lighting infrastructure, which is not the case in other major cities in Australia.

A streetlight illuminating a dark residential street at night.

One of the LED streetlights in a quieter part of Canberra that was part of the trial. ( ABC News: Victor Petrovic )

He's already in discussions with the New Zealand cities of Auckland and Christchurch about the results.

"I guess it's up to the other jurisdictions to think about why they want to use adaptive lighting, but the technology and the approach itself is scalable in any context," Mr Bettay said.

"Auckland is a much bigger city than Canberra, but they have 110,000 lights that are equipped with smart nodes that have been equipped for a while, they just haven't used them.

"They're a city much more akin to Sydney as opposed to Canberra, so they have a night-time economy that they need to take into consideration, so it's a little bit different to Canberra."

Mr Bettay said part of the trial involves monitoring the risk to safety, crime and traffic by reducing light on streets, but that the reduction is often hard for the human eye to detect.

"We've had engineers and other street lighting practitioners who've had 30 plus years experience, who sat out and looked at street lights with us, and they were unable to distinguish between 70 per cent and 100 per cent," Mr Bettay said.

"So I think it's hard for the human eye to detect that change, although some people have, some people say they can detect the change between 50 per cent and 100 per cent."

Dr Brad Tucker said the adaptive lighting project helped to reveal more of the night sky. ( Supplied )

Regaining connection

Dr Tucker hopes reducing light pollution through things like adaptive lighting can help build back our connection to the night sky.

"Humans have been around on this earth for hundreds of thousands of years, but we've kind of erased our connection to the sky in about 100 years," Dr Tucker said.

"We've kind of erased a part of human culture and human history, not just for people like Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders with their deep connection to land and sky, but for all of us who, we like to go out and enjoy the views, we like to enjoy out and see what's above.

"We go away camping and we go away into dark skies so we can, you know, escape and disconnect, and if you start losing that ability, we're never going to be disconnected."

Interactive notes and credits: The interactive is based on the Bortle scale, as well as results from Dr Tucker's experiments in Canberra. The lighting change interactive is based on a hypothetical suburban area with a Bortle scale level of 7 with light pollution sources: street lights (50 per cent); house lights (40 per cent); sport lights (10 per cent). Solutions to light pollution: changing street lights to LED (50 per cent reduction in light pollution from that source); dimming street lights to 70 per cent (15 per cent reduction); changing sport lights from cool to warm LEDs (15 per cent reduction); shielding outside lights (50 per cent reduction).

Concept and production: Kylie Andrews; Development: Andrew Hystek-Dunk, Matthew Heffernan; Production: Chloe Brice; Expert advice: Dr Brad Tucker. Return to lighting change interactive

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Air	Lung cancer, heart disease, asthma and respiratory problems	Lung cancer, heart diseases, asthma and respiratory problems
Water	Oil spills, rapid urbanisation, improper sewage system, chemical and radioactive waste dumping.	Cholera, Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Polio, Dysentery and Diarrhea
Noise	Man-made noises like construction, loudspeakers, etc. and natural noises like thunderstorms and animals.	Headaches, high blood pressure, loss of hearing, problems with reasoning and behavioural changes
Soil	Waste disposal, industrial and agricultural activities, excessive use of fertilisers and pesticides.	Loss of fertility, cancer, damage to the nervous system and kidney and liver failure

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