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Vehicles are considered important agents of environmental pollution. Currently, they appear as essential elements in the functioning of modern societies and urban ecosystems, circulating on the roads of the world millions of vehicles (cars, motorcycles, trucks and buses) that make more and more environmental and health problems. health that all living beings that live with them suffer.
The life cycle of any vehicle is itself polluting, from its production to its destruction or abandonment as waste. Therefore, we must optimize its use and at the same time reduce its impact on the environment, using different preventive measures as the main weapon to combat vehicle pollution.
Continue reading this Green Ecologist article to learn more about the vehicular pollution, what is it, types, causes and consequences.
What is vehicular pollution
Vehicle pollution is the pollution produced by any transport vehicle. It is produced mainly as part of what is known as urban pollution, that which occurs in urban centers, where numerous vehicles are used daily to cover the displacement of people who live in cities and their periphery.
The combustion engines of vehicles are responsible for the emission into the atmosphere of different types of gases and also of particles that pollute the environment or the environment. In this way, the different vehicles used daily in the most developed countries (with a high degree of industrialization and, in general, of economic activity) are responsible for between 30% and 90% of the gases that are pollutants produced by vehicular traffic Worldwide.
However, vehicular pollution includes different pollutants that affect the environment and human beings on a daily basis. Let's see in more detail the different types of vehicular pollution that exist below.
Types of vehicular pollution
Among the different types of vehicular pollution, we can find the one that is produced in the air by the gases expelled, the one that occurs in the soil and the water by the discharged oils and by the accumulation of the pieces as waste, and so on.
For this reason, they give so much air pollution problems, such as soil and water. It is also responsible for noise or noise or noise pollution, as well as numerous diseases and health problems in humans.
It is essential to make society aware of the different environmental problems that vehicles cause on a daily basis, negatively intervening in the functioning of urban ecosystems. Let's analyze in more detail in the next section the main causes of the different types of vehicle pollution.
Causes of vehicular pollution
The main cause of an inordinate and inconceivable amount of pollution from cars is that they exist too many circulating around the world constantly. There are even places, and in these there are several cases, in which many multi-seater vehicles are always used by only one person. For this reason, they insist on using public transport more and filling private cars with passengers whenever possible (for example, sharing a car trip with someone to go to work).
Apart from this obvious problem since automotive technology advanced dramatically during the Industrial Revolution, we can also talk about the pollutants that cause vehicular pollution, that is, the elements that come from cars and that pollute:
Ccauses of vehicular air pollution
Among the main causes of vehicular air pollution, the products of vehicular emissions that are deposited in the atmosphere in the greatest quantity are:
- Nitrous oxides.
- Carbon monoxide (CO).
- Carbon dioxide (CO2).
- Lead compounds.
- Small amounts of sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide, and asbestos.
All these polluting gases are produced during the internal combustion of fossil fuels (diesel, gasoline and their impurities) that occurs in vehicle engines.
In this other post, we talk more about what are the air pollutants.
Causes of vehicular contamination of soil and water
On the other hand, the agents that cause vehicular contamination of the soil and water are the residues of the tires on the pavements, as well as oils from the vehicles that are discharged both to the ground and to the waters. Also pollution agents are the degradation of the different parts (plastic, metallic and other materials) that make up the vehicles and that end up deposited on the ground; in addition to highly toxic organic solvents used for painting and finishing vehicles, and air conditioning equipment (responsible for the emission of greenhouse gases that are harmful to the ozone layer).
Here you can find out more about Oil Pollution from cars.
Consequences of vehicular pollution
Vehicle pollution has various consequences, both in terms of our health and for the rest of the planet, that is, the environment.
Health consequences of car pollution
This type of pollution has serious and varied consequences for the health of human beings who are exposed to its pollutants.
Mainly, the pollution of the air we breathe is responsible for the increase in symptoms of people who already suffer from asthma and others Lung diseases, being always more vulnerable to vehicular pollution.
Specifically, due to prolonged exposure to nitrogen dioxide from internal combustion of vehicles, there is a 25% probability within the population of suffering COPD, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease.
In this other article you can learn more about air pollution and health problems, and even consult an infographic with a variety of data.
Effects of car pollution on the environment
On the other hand, regarding the consequences of vehicular pollution in the environment, these are summarized in the soil contamination and in the water contamination with toxic substances from liquid spills (oils and fuels), as well as from the degradation of the parts that make up the vehicles and their permanence in nature as pollutant macro and microparticles.
If you want to read more articles similar to Vehicle pollution: what is it, types, causes and consequences, we recommend that you enter our Pollution category.
Bibliography- M. R. Alfaro (2000) Air pollution: vehicular emissions, current situation and alternatives. Editorial State Distance University.
- O. Ravella et. al, (2003) Emission of vehicular pollutants of energy origin in urban centers. IDEHAB, Institute for Habitat Studies, National University of La Plata, Argentina.
- G. Osorio & R. Viganó (2007) Proposal for a bimodal solution to the problem of urban vehicular pollution. Engineering and Research Magazine. Vol 27, 143-148.
- M. Romero Placeres et. al, (2006) Air pollution: its impact as a health problem. Cuban Journal of Hygiene and Epidemiology.
