Human Settlement, Settlements can broadly be divided into two types – rural and urban. Contamination, Sources of Wastes, Classification of Wastes . Impacts of Waste Accumulation, Water Contamination via Improper Wastes
HUMAN SETTLEMENT AND CONTAMINATION DUE TO WASTE DISPOSAL AND AGRO-INDUSTRIES
1. HUMAN SETTLEMENT AND CONTAMINATION
DUE TO
WASTE DISPOSAL AND AGRO-
INDUSTRIES
SANDEEP PATRE
2. Human Settlement
In geography, statistics and archaeology, a settlement, locality or
populated place is a community in which people live. The complexity
of a settlement can range from a small number of dwellings grouped
together to the largest of cities with surrounding urbanized areas.
Settlements may include hamlets, villages, towns and cities.
A settlement may have known historical properties such as the date or
era in which it was first settled, or first settled by particular people.
In the field of geospatial predictive modeling, settlements are "a city,
town, village or other agglomeration of buildings where people live and
work".
A settlement conventionally includes its constructed facilities such
as roads, enclosures, field systems, boundary banks
and ditches, ponds, parks and woods, wind and water
mills, houses, and churches.
3. Human Settlement
Settlements can broadly be divided into two types –
rural and urban.
Before discussing about meaning and types of rural and
urban settlement in India, we should know some basic
differences between rural and urban areas in general.
(i) The major difference between rural and urban areas is
the function. Rural areas have predominantly primary
activities, whereas urban areas have domination of
secondary and tertiary activities.
(ii) Generally the rural areas have low density of
population than urban.
5. Compact Settlements: As the name suggests, these
settlements have closely built up area. Therefore in such
settlements all the dwellings are concentrated in one
central sites and these inhabited area is distinct and
separated from the farms and pastures. Maximum
settlements of our country comes under this category.
They are spread over almost every part of the country.
Five major patterns.
These patterns are: (i) Linear pattern (ii) Rectangular
pattern (iii) Circular pattern
(iv) Square pattern (v) Radial pattern
6. Semi- Compact Settlement: As the name
suggests, the dwellings or houses are not well-knitted.
Such settlements are characterized by a small but
compact nuclears around which hamlets are dispersed.
It covers more area than the compact settlements. These
settlements are found both in plains and plateaus
depending upon the environmental conditions prevailing
in that area.
Such settlements are situated along streams in Manipur
Mandla and Balaghat districts of Madhya Pradesh, and
Rajgarh district of Chhattisgarh.
semi-compact settlements may also have different
patterns. Some of the patterns are (i) checker board
pattern (ii) Elongated pattern (iii) Fan shaped pattern.
7. Hamleted Settlements: These type of settlements, are
fragmented into several small units. The main settlement does not
have much influence on the other units. Very often the original site is
not easily distinguishable and these hamlets are often spread over
the area with intervening fields. This segregation is often influenced
by social and ethnic factors. The hamlets are locally named as
faliya, para, dhana,dhani, nanglay etc. These settlements are
generally found in West Bengal, eastern Uttar Pradesh, Madhya
Pradesh and coastal plains. Geographically it covers lower Ganga
plain, lower valleys of the Himalayas and central plateau or upland
region of the country.
Dispersed Settlements: This is also known as isolated
settlements. Here the settlement is characterized by units of small
size which may consist of a single house to a small group of houses.
It varies from two to seven huts. Such type of settlements are found
in tribal areas of central part of India covering Chhota Nagpur
plateau, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, etc. Such patterns are also
common in the hills of north Bengal, Jammu & Kashmir, Tamil Nadu
and Kerala.
8. URBAN SETTLEMENTS
Classification of urban settlement
Class - Population
Class I - 1,00,000 and above
Class II - 50,000 – 99,999
Class III - 20,000 – 49,999
Class IV - 10,000 – 19,999
Class V - 5,000 – 9,999
Class VI - less than 5,000
There is another classification of urban settlements. The classification is as
follows:
Town Places which have less than one lakh population
City Urban centres having population between one lakh to one m.
Metropolitan Cities Cities having population in between 1m to 5m.
Mega cities Cities having more than 5 million population
9. Contamination
Contamination is the presence of a
constituent, impurity, or some other undesirable
element that spoils, corrupts, infects, makes
unfit, or makes inferior a material, physical
body, natural environment, workplace, etc
Pollution is when the contaminant causes HARM
to organisms or infrastructure. Therefore you
can have a contaminated environment without
it being polluted but you cannot have
a polluted environment without it
being contaminated.
10. Wastes: Sources, Classification and Impact
Human society produces some unwanted
and discarded materials which are called
wastes.
Wastes are produced from different
activities such as household activities,
agricultural activities industrial act.
11. Solid wastes:
The solid wastes are the useless and unwanted substances
discarded by human society. These include urban wastes, industrial
wastes, agricultural wastes, biomedical wastes and radioactive
wastes. The term refuse is also used for solid waste.
Liquid wastes:
Wastes generated from washing, flushing or manufacturing
processes of industries are called liquid wastes. Such a waste is
called sewage. The most common practice is to discharge it on the
ground, nallahs, rivers and other water bodies, often without any
treatment.
Gaseous wastes:
These wastes are released in the form of gases from automobiles,
factories, burning of fossil fuels etc. and get mixed in the
atmosphere. These gases include carbon monoxide, CO , sulphur
dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, methane, etc.
12. Sources of Wastes:
Wastes produced from different sources, are
classified as follows:
1. Urban or Municipal wastes.
2. Industrial wastes.
3. Commercial wastes.
4. Agricultural wastes.
13. Classification of Wastes:
In general, the wastes are classified on the basis of their biological, chemical and
physical properties and also on the basis of nature.
Biodegradable Wastes:
These wastes are natural organic compounds which are degraded or decomposed by
biological or microbial action. Biodegradable wastes are generated in food processing
units, cotton mills, paper mills, sugar mills, textile factories and sewage Waste of
slaughterhouses is biodegradable and some part of it is used, for example, skin is
used to make shoes. Most of the wastes from these industries are reused. When
these wastes are in excess they act as pollutants and are not easily
decomposed and they take much time for their decomposition.
Non-Biodegradable Wastes:
These are not decomposed by microbes but are oxidized and dissociated
automatically. Coal stone, metal scraps, sludge are generated from colliery
operations Refineries produce inert dry solids and varieties of sludge containing oil.
Fly, ash is the major solid waste from thermal power plants. Generally, these wastes
are not reused and accumulate in the ecosystem and some of it move through
biogeochemical cycles. Non-biodegradable wastes also include DDT, pesticides,
lead, plastics, mercuric salts etc.
14. Hazardous wastes:
Many chemical, biological, explosive or radioactive
wastes, which are highly reactive and toxic, pose a
severe danger to human, plants or animal life and are
called hazardous wastes. They are highly toxic in nature.
They are generated primarily by chemical production,
manufacturing and other industrial activities. The
important hazardous wastes are lead, mercury,
cadmium, chromium, many drugs leather, pesticides,
dye, rubber and effluents from different industries. They
may cause danger during inadequate storage,
transportation, treatment or disposal operations. The
hazardous waste materials may be toxic,reactive,
ignitable, explosive, corrosive, infectious or radioactive.
15. Impacts of Waste Accumulation:
Industrialization on a massive scale, increasing
urbanization, advance technology in agriculture and
changing life pattern have resulted in the production of
huge amount of wastes. The improper waste disposal
creates many ecological and social problems, for
instance, accumulation of wastes in the densely
populated areas, disposal of urban sewage and
industrial wastes discharged into rivers etc. affect soil, air
and water ecosystem. Chemical, biological and
explosive wastes pose immediate or long run danger to
the life of man, plants and animals. The dumping of solid
wastes is hazardous to human health.
17. Negative effects of improper waste management not only ends in a
disgusting view but also affects the overall economy of a country.
State has to spend a lot of money to counter the effects of improper
waste management. Moreover, animals depended on the
environment also face a great threat due to the oil spills and
leaching of chemicals which directly cause soil and water
contamination. Burning of any disposed waste and plastic materials
results in air and environmental pollution. Though we all are familiar
with common methods of waste management like landfills,
incineration, recycling, biological processing or energy conservation;
we find ourselves living in a world filled with waste. Renewable
energy and recycling took us to newer heights, but the adverse
effects of improper waste management continue to plague us.
18. Waste Management & Soil
Contamination
our plastic, glass, metal and paper waste to end
up at a recycling facility. It then returns to us as a
renewable product. But the reality is entirely
different.
Contamination occurs by spilling and burying
hazardous components in soil. So, we need to
be watchful of how we process petroleum
hydrocarbons, solvents,pesticides, heavy metals
and lead.
19.
20.
21. Water Contamination via Improper
Wastes
Water is an excellent solvent; it can contain numerous
dissolved chemicals. As a result, while moving through,
water picks up pollution along the way. It often has
dissolved substances like various chemicals and gases.
Rainfall easily mixes to toxic liquid substances and
seeps into the water streams to end up in nearby water
bodies. Thus, the neigh bourhood fountain, pond, lake or
even drinking water taps are susceptible to the dangers
of contamination. The victims? All living organisms
including us, humans.
22.
23. How The Air is Contaminated
On the occasions paper and plastic are burned
at the landfill, causing landfill gas, the chemicals
released which accumulate and contribute to the
ozone layer and also hurt the surrounding
human population. Methane gas adds to it as
well. Besides, with chemicals such as dioxin out
there, the air has been proven to have harmful
effectson us. All of it, and especially when
improper waste management is concerned, play
a significant role in causing global warming.
24.
25. Agro-industry
“Agro-based industry” is an omnibus expression. It could
cover a variety of industrial, manufacturing and processing
activities based on agricultural raw materials as also
activities and services that go as inputs to agriculture.
"Agro-based industries are those, which are involved in
supplying the farm with agricultural inputs besides handling
the products of the farm.“
Agro-based industries are those industries which have
either direct or indirect links with agriculture.“
Agricultural pollution is the contamination we release into
the environment as a by-product of growing and raising
livestock, food crops, animal feed, and bio fuel crops.
26. Agro-processing industry can be classified based on raw material or
final product. Classification of Agro-Processing industry based on raw
material.
27. What Are the Causes of Agricultural Pollution?
Modern agricultural practices have started the process of
agricultural pollution. This process causes
the degradation of the ecosystem, land,
and environment due to the modern-day by-products of
agriculture. No single cause can be attributed to the
widespread agricultural pollution we face today.
Agriculture is a complex activity in which the growth of
crops and livestock have to be balanced perfectly. The
process of agricultural pollution stems from the many
stages their growth goes through. Agricultural pollution
has many different sources. Nitrogen-based fertilizers
produce potent greenhouse gases and can overload
waterways with dangerous pollutants; chemical
pesticides with varying toxicological effects can
contaminate our air and water or reside directly on our
food.
28. Causes of Agricultural Pollution
1. Pesticides and Fertilizer
Pesticides and herbicides are applied to agricultural land to control pests that
disrupt crop production. Soil contamination can occur when
pesticides persist and accumulate in soils, which can alter microbial processes,
increase plant uptake of the chemical, and are toxic to soil organisms.
Pesticide leaching
Pesticide leaching occurs when pesticides mix with water and move through the
soil, ultimately contaminating groundwater. The amount of leaching is correlated
with particular soil and pesticide characteristics and the degree of rainfall and
irrigation. Leaching is most likely to happen if using a water-soluble pesticide,
when the soil tends to be sandy in texture; if excessive watering occurs just after
pesticide application; if the adsorption ability of the pesticide to the soil is low.
Leaching may not only originate from treated fields, but also from pesticide
mixing areas, pesticide application machinery washing sites, or disposal areas.
Fertilizers
Fertilizers are used to provide crops with additional sources of nutrients, such as
Nitrogen, Phosphorus, and Potassium, that promote plant growth and increase
crop yields. While they are beneficial for plant growth, they can also disrupt
natural nutrient and mineral biogeochemical cycles and pose risks to human and
ecological health.
29. Nitrogen
Nitrogen fertilizers supply plants with forms of nitrogen
that are biologically available for plant uptake; namely
NO3- (nitrate) and NH4+ (ammonium). This increases
crop yield and agricultural productivity, but it also
negatively affects groundwater and surface waters,
pollutes the atmosphere, and degrades soil health. Not
all of the fertilizer that is applied are taken up by the
crops, and the remainder accumulates in the soil or is
lost as runoff. Nitrate fertilizers are much more likely to
be lost to the soil profile through runoff because of its
high solubility and like charges between the molecule
and negatively charged clay particles. High application
rates of nitrogen-containing fertilizers combined with the
high water-solubility of nitrate leads to increased runoff
into surface water as well as leaching into groundwater,
thereby causing groundwater pollution.
30. Fluoride
Phosphate rocks contain high levels of fluoride. Consequently, the
widespread use of phosphate fertilizers has increased soil fluoride
concentrations. It has been found that food contamination from
fertilizer is of little concern as plants accumulate little fluoride from
the soil; of greater concern is the possibility of fluoride toxicity to
livestock that ingest contaminated soils.
Soil erosion and sedimentation
Soil erosion: soil has washed from a ploughed field through this gate
and into a watercourse beyond. Agriculture contributes greatly to soil
erosion and sediment deposition through intensive management or
inefficient land cover. It is estimated that agricultural land
degradation is leading to an irreversible decline in fertility on about 6
million ha of fertile land each year. The accumulation
of sediments (i.e. sedimentation) in runoff water affects water quality
in various ways. Sedimentation can decrease the transport capacity
of ditches, streams, rivers, and navigation channels.
31. Animal Agriculture Pollution
Livestock Water Pollution
Cows, pigs, chickens, and turkeys do what all other animals do: poop. don’t
treat animal waste in the same way we treat human waste, by sending it to
a wastewater treatment plant via a municipal sewer system. Instead, this
waste is disposed of by spreading it, untreated, on land. Operators are
supposed to apply only the amount that crops can use, but in reality, there is
often too much manure—so it is applied beyond the ground’s natural
absorption rate, leading to runoff into water sources. To make matters
worse, before it is applied it to land, the manure usually sits on-site in vast
manure lagoons that can grow to the size of a football field.
The lagoons contain a toxic stew of antibiotics residue, chemicals, and
bacteria decomposing the waste, a medley that can take on a sickly hue.
They’re often unlined and are prone to overflows, leaks, and spills, often
causing the contents to leach into the soil and groundwater. And once this
mixture, chock-full of phosphorus and nitrogen, gets into a water body, it
causes a cascading reaction called eutrophication, or the destructive
overgrowth of algae.
32. Similar problems arise with poultry
waste, which is mostly dry litter, a
combination of the birds’ bedding
materials (such as shavings), their
feces, and loose feathers, which is
stored in exposed, giant mounds.
Because chicken manure contains
a higher percentage of
phosphorus than other animal manure,
it’s also prone to harming waterways
with phosphorus runoff.