This document discusses soil pollution, its causes, effects, and methods of control. It outlines various pollutants like plastics, agrochemicals, fertilizers, biological agents, and industrial wastes that contaminate soils. Soil pollution adversely impacts human health, plant growth, biodiversity, air and water quality. To reduce pollution, solid and industrial wastes must be properly disposed of, and effluents treated before being released into soils. Agricultural practices like contour farming and crop rotation can also help control pollution.

1. SOIL
POLLUTION

2. CONTENT
• Introduction
• Soil pollutants
• Sources of Soil pollution
• Effects of soil Pollution
• Control of Soil Pollution

3. INTRODUCTION:
•Soil contains organic,
inorganic constituents &
microbes which makes it
suitable for production of
food.
•Dumping of various types
of materials especially
domestic and industrial
wastes causes soil
pollution.

5. SOIL POLLUTANTS
•Plastics
•Agro chemicals
•Fertilizers
•Biological Agents
•Industrial Wastes
•Radioactive substances

6. Plastics :
Major part of global domestic and industrial waste
Not easily biodegraded.
Waste plastic accumulates much thus adds to severe
pollution problem.
Takes several years to disintegrate – 400 years to degrade
mineral water bottles.
Use of biodegradable plastic solves the problem of
pollution.

7. Agrochemical pollution
•Include pesticides, herbicides, fungicides
•Pesticides applied reach the soil ultimately
•Accumulation of pesticide residues in biosphere
creates ecological stress causing soil, water and food
contamination .
•Persisting chemicals are hazardous to human health.
•Reduction of residue levels through redeeming
technology (desirable)

8. Fertilizer pollution
• Continuous application – Deterioration in soil properties,
cultivated soils lose their characteristics.
• Application of Amm. sulphate, Amm. chloride & Urea
reduce soil pH.
• Crops – potato, grapes, citrus, beans – sensitive to chloride
toxicity.
• While , Application of organic manures and biofertilizers
reduce the soil from pollution.

9. Biological Agents:
•Soil gets a large amount of human, animal and bird
excreta which constitute a major source of land
pollution by biological agents.

10. Industrial Wastes:
•Industrial wastes are the effluents discharged from
chemical industries, paper and pulp mills, tanneries,
textile mills, steel industries, distilleries, refineries,
pesticides and fertilizer industries, pharmaceutical
industries, food processing industries, cement
industries, thermal and nuclear power plants, mining
industries etc.

11. Industrial Wastes:
•Industrial wastes also contain some organic and
inorganic compounds that are refractory and non-
biodegradable. Industrial sludge may contain
various salts, toxic substances, metals like mercury,
lead, cadmium, arsenic etc.

12. Radioactive Substances:
•The Toxic metals , radioactive substances in soil are
wastes discharged from nuclear activities and
laboratories, aerial fall out etc.
• Isotopes of radium, uranium, thorium, strontium,
iodine, and of many other elements reach the soil
and persist there for a long time and keep on
emitting radiations.

13. Solid waste composition

14. Effects of Soil Pollution
Impacts of soil pollution are not confined to soil and
its biota but it carried over to every aspect of the
environment and affect every organism.
Some of the adverse effects are as follows:
• Human Health , Since we are dependent on the land
for our food, pollution from the soil is transferred to
us in this manner. Bio accumulation of toxins occurs
in our bodies, causing chronic poisoning, and leading
to various diseases. Reproductive health, birth and
developmental defects, neurologic effects.

15. Effects of Soil Pollution
•Growth of Plants , plants will not be able to adapt to
sudden changes occurring in the soil.
•Fungi and bacteria found in the soils cannot bind the
soil due to chemical changes and this causes soil
erosion.
•The fertility slowly diminishes, making land unsuitable
for agriculture and any local vegetation to survive.

16. Effects of Soil Pollution
• Large tracts of land become barren; unable to support
any life on it. Even the plants that do grow on these
lands will absorb the toxins and transfer to the food
chain.
•Effect on Ecosystem and Biodiversity , Soil pollution can
lead to the lack of biodiversity in an ecosystem. The life
of bird, insect, mammal and reptile species that live in
the soil can get affected by pollution.

17. Effects of Soil Pollution
•Air pollution , Toxic dust rises from landfills along
with foul odour , pollutes the air and causes adverse
effects to the people who live near them.
• Contamination of Water Sources , When it rains,
surface run-off carries contaminated soil into water
sources causing water pollution.

18. Control on soil pollution :::::
• Solid wastes should be properly collected and
disposed off by appropriate method.
• From the wastes, recovery of useful products should
be done.
• Biodegradable organic waste should be used for
generation of biogas.
•Cattle dung should be used in the biogas plant to
produce inflammable methane gas.
•Effluents should be properly treated before
discharging them on the soil.

19. Control methods :
 Agronomic practices
 Contour farming
 Mulching
 crop rotation
 Strip cropping
 Afforestation