Environmental History Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Environmental History - Essay Example The major cause of air pollutant in urban areas is transportation. The continuous increase in the number of vehicles leads to an increase in the quantity of petroleum usage resulting to production of high quantity of fumes. Among the gases produced, carbon dioxide stands out as major environmental pollutant. The high concentration of CO2 has been mainly attributed to deforestation and burning of fossil fuels in the industries. Smog has been another notable form of air pollution in the history of environmental pollution. It may be defined as the fog which is generated when nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons undergo a photochemical reaction with the sunlight. This kind of pollution usually intensifies when abundant smoke particles are released into the atmosphere. During industrial revolution, a lot of smoke was produced leading to immense air pollution. So far, the worst kind of air pollution in the entire environmental history is the global warming. It may be described as the rise in the average temperature of the air on the oceans and on the surface near the earth. The rise in temperature has been observed from about 1950BC and is believed to be caused by human activity like deforestation and combustion of the fossil fuel. Its effects are devastating including changes in precipitation patterns, rise in sea level, glaciers retreat, and extinctions of species among others. To manage this menace, measures have stepped up to ensure that the concentration of the greenhouse gas is stabilized.