SOIL POLLUTION & IT’S REMEDIESPrepared By:-

Vivek Pathak

PLANET EARTH

Home to millions of species, including humans. Earthis the only place in the universe where life is known to

exist.

What is Soil..??• Soil is the thin layer of organic and inorganic

materials that covers the Earth's rocky surface.

• Soil is composed of particles of broken rock that

have been altered by chemical and mechanical

processes that include weathering and erosion.

• O Horizon – Organic matter

• A Horizon – Top soil

• B Horizon – Subsoil

• C Horizon – Parent Material

Tom McMillan

For 200 years we've been conquering Nature.  Now we're beating it to death. 

SOIL POLLUTION• It is defined as the build-up in soils of

persistent toxic compounds, chemicals, salts,

radioactive materials, or disease causing

agents, which have adverse effects on plant

growth and animal health.

• Soil pollution is also caused by means other

than the direct addition of xenobiotic (man-

made) chemicals such as agricultural runoff

waters, industrial waste materials, acidic

precipitates, and radioactive fallout.

Causes of Soil Pollution• Seepage from a landfill

• Discharge of industrial waste into the soil

• Percolation of contaminated water into the soil

• Rupture of underground storage tanks

• Excess application of pesticides, herbicides or

fertilizer

• Solid waste seepage

• Deforestation and Soil erosion

Causes of Soil Pollution

Excess application of pesticides etc.

Excess use & disposal of Plastics and polyethene wastes

Industrial seepage

Solid waste seepage

How Do We Use Our Land /Soil Today?We use our land today for several things such as:Farming, Mining, Recreation, Highways, Building Cities.

- When land is being used for houses, industries, roads, and businesses it is known as urban land. - Rural land is an area of few people and large open spaces of land. When land is being used for graze livestock and wildlife, it is known as range land.  - We use land in three major ways; woods in forests, crops in farm, and mineral resources! Weather people live in rural or urban cities, we all depend on resources that are being produced in the rural areas.

-Resources being produced by natural andartificial ecosystems is known as ecosystem services.  -Ecosystem Services:      -aesthetic beauty    - purification of water & air      -regulation of climate   -prevention of flood/drought       -movement and cycling of nutrients       -maintenance of biodiversity  -detox wastes      -decompose wastes

The most common chemicals involved in causing soil pollution are:• Petroleum hydrocarbons

• Heavy metals

• Pesticides

• Solvents

“The living sinners on deadly ground.” ― Toba Beta, My Ancestor Was an Ancient Astronaut

Types of Soil Pollution• Agricultural Soil Pollution

i) pollution of surface soil

ii) pollution of underground soil

• Soil pollution by industrial effluents and solid wastes

i) pollution of surface soil

ii) disturbances in soil profile

• Pollution due to urban activities

i) pollution of surface soil

ii) pollution of underground soil

Agricultural Soil Pollution• Plants on which we depend for food are under attack from insects, fungi, bacteria, viruses, rodents and other animals, and must compete with weeds for nutrients.

• To kill unwanted populations living in or on their crops, farmers use pesticides.

• The remnants of such pesticides used on pests may get adsorbed by the soil particles and contaminate root crops grown in that soil.

• The consumption of such crops causes the pesticides remnants to enter human biological systems, affecting them adversely.

Agricultural effects:• Reduced soil fertility

• Reduced nitrogen fixation

• Increased erodibility

• Larger loss of soil and nutrients

• Deposition of silt in tanks and reservoirs

• Reduced crop yield

• Imbalance in soil fauna and flora

Agricultural effects:

Industrial Soil Pollution• Large quantity of solid wastes like unused and

rejected chemicals (like sludge, press mud, saw

dust, bottles, plastic materials etc.), unwanted

industrial wastes generated during manufacturing

processes are dumped over on the surface of soil by

almost all industries with difference in the degree.

• Larger the production base, larger is the generation

of wastes.

• Traditionally, these materials have been dumped

around the factory site or around the entire city.

Rarely, they are put to recycling or safe conversion.

Industrial Soil Pollution

Industrial effects:• Dangerous chemicals entering

underground water.

• Ecological imbalance.

• Release of pollutant gases.

• Increased salinity.

• Reduced vegetation.

Industrial Effects:

Soil pollution due to industrial waste

Polluted land with dangerous chemicals

Soil Pollution due to Urbanization• Urban activities generate large quantities of city

wastes including several Biodegradable materials

(like vegetables, animal wastes, papers, wooden

pieces, carcasses, plant twigs, leaves, cloth wastes

as well as sweepings) and many non-biodegradable

materials (such as plastic bags, plastic bottles,

plastic wastes, glass bottles, glass pieces, stone /

cement pieces).

• On a rough estimate Indian cities are producing solid

city wastes to the tune of 50,000 - 80,000 metric

tons every day.

• If left uncollected and decomposed, they are a cause

of several problems.

The human race will be the cancer of the

planet.Julian Huxley

 

Urbanization effects:• Clogging of drains

• Inundation of areas

• Public health problems

• Pollution of drinking water sources

• Foul smell and release of gases

• Waste management problems

Urbanization effects:Contamination of soil due to

waste water

Some more effects of soil pollution:• Pollution runs off into rivers and kills the fish, plants and

other aquatic life.

• Crops and fodder grown on polluted soil may pass the

pollutants on to the consumers.

• Polluted soil may no longer grow crops and fodder

• Soil structure is damaged (clay ionic structure impaired.)

• Corrosion of foundations and pipelines

• May release vapours and hydrocarbon into buildings and

cellars

• May create toxic dusts

• May poison children playing in the area

Bio magnification• Process in which certain non-biodegradable substances go on accumulating in the food-chain. The most common example is of methyl mercury in fish and mercury in eagles. Not only does bio magnification put the particular species at risk, it puts all the species above and below it at risk, and ultimately affects the food pyramid.

Solid waste composition

Solid waste management hierarchy

Some more effects of soil pollution:

Reason for Misuse of Natural Resourcesa)Commercial interests like trading in products out of natural resources.b) Ignorance on necessity to preserve natural resources.c) Deliberate negligence on destruction of natural resource.d) Entertainment / recreational / aesthetic interest.e) Extreme population pressure.f) Self interest of human beings over the interest to retain natural resources.g) International trade and commitments.h) Misuse of legislation. ….contd

i) Loop holes of provisions of law.j) Protracted legal process.k) Food interestl) Luxuries required for man.m) Increased industrial requirement.n) Improvement of standard of living, GDP, per capita income and purchasing power.o) Expectations of instantaneous returns.

What can be done?

Methods to control Soil Pollution• Reducing chemical fertilizer and pesticide use.

• Recycling is another way to reduce and control soil

pollution. Recycling paper, plastics and other

materials reduces the volume of refuse in landfills,

another common cause of soil pollution.

• Reusing of materials

• De-forestation, the cutting down of trees, causes

erosion, pollution and the loss of fertility in the

topsoil. Planting trees--or re-forestation--helps

prevent soil erosion and pollution.

Methods to control Soil Pollution• Weeds soak up minerals in the soil. Reducing weed

growth helps reduce soil pollution. One of the more

common methods of reducing weed growth is

covering the soil with numerous layers of wet

newspapers or a plastic sheet for several weeks

before cultivation. This prevents light from

reaching the weeds, which kills them.

• Designated pits should be used for the dumping of

soil wastes. These wastes should be treated

chemically and biologically to make them less

toxic and hazardous.

BioremediationA treatment process that uses microorganisms (yeast, fungi, or bacteria) to break down, or degrade, hazardous substances into less toxic or nontoxic substances (carbon dioxide and water)

Methods to control Soil Pollution

Disposal of Wastes• One of the ways of doing this is by separating dry and wet waste. Dry waste should be recycled or it can be burned. On the other hand, wet waste should be decomposed.

Disposal of Wastes• This decomposed waste should be further dumped in pits so that it can be converted into compost and used for agriculture. When disposing of waste, the authorities should treat it with various kinds of chemicals, so that it has a very low level of toxicity.

Recycling and Reuse

• People should buy and use products that have been recycled. For instance, plastic bags should be given up; instead, jute bags should be used. Reusing old items is another good way to reduce the stress on various resources. Clothes, paper, glass, everything should be recycled and reused, as far as possible.

Biodegradable Products• People should buy biodegradable products. Go organic - that's the mantra for avoiding land pollution. Organic farming, lessening the use of pesticides, buying organic fruits and vegetables and other products, will keep land pollution in check.

Grow More Trees• Initiative should be taken to grow more trees. Researches show that trees can actually fertilize the soil. This means that by growing trees, soil will become fertile, agriculture will get boosted and land pollution will greatly reduce.

Efficient Use of Resources• There should be minimal wastage. There should be no littering. Oil and petrol should be used judiciously. So should all the other products and resources made from glass, plastic, metal and paper.

Use organics productsBuy organics products, especially organic cleaners, pesticides, insecticides and fertilizers. The advantage of using organic products is that they are biodegradable and friendly to the environment.

Proper Waste Management• Excessive littering is one of most common reasons for land

pollution.• Take initiative to inform others about the harmful effects of

littering.• Organic wastes must be disposed of in areas that are far from

human or animal habitation. Waste like plastic, metals, glass and paper must be recycled and reused.

• Find land far away from natural environments to dump wastes that cannot be disposed of and are essential to industrial processes.

Improve fertility of the land by reforestingSoil in forested lands are far more fertile than soil without trees, suggesting that trees have the ability to fertilize land.

Compost garden and kitchen waste

Recycle everything.

When we heal the Earth, weheal ourselves.

-David Orr

Compost garden and kitchen waste.

Dispose of trash,properly.

"Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you

by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors, we borrow it

from our Children."

Ancient Native Indian Proverb

Thank You