Pollution indicators and
pollution control strategies
INTRODUCTION
Pollution has become one of the most
frequently talked about of all environmental
problems by the world at large and yet, in many
respects, it can often remain one of the least
understood.
The word itself has a familiar ring to it and the
concept of pollution has entered the wide
consciousness as a significant part of the
burgeoning ‘greening’ of society in general.
POLLUTION
The UK Environmental Protection Act (EPA)
1990, offers the following:
“Pollution of the environment’ means
contamination of the environment due to the
release (into any environmental medium) from
any process of substances which are capable of
causing harm to man or any other living
organisms supported by the environment.”
(EPA, Introduction)……….
CLASSIFYING POLLUTION
Classification may be made on the basis of the
chemical or physical nature of the substance, its
source, the environmental pathway used, the target
organism affected or simply its gross effect.
Figure below shows one possible example of such a
categorization system and clearly many others are
possible.
Figure : Pollution classification
The consideration of a pollutant’s properties is
a particularly valuable approach when
examining real-life pollution effects, since such
an assessment requires both the evaluation of
its general properties and the local
environment. This may include factors such as:
toxicity;
persistence;
mobility;
ease of control;
bioaccumulation;
chemistry.
Toxicity
Toxicity represents the potential damage to life and can
be both short and long term.
It is related to the concentration of pollutant and the
time of exposure to it, though this relationship is not an
easy one.
highly toxic substances can kill in a short time, while
less toxic ones require a longer period of exposure to do
damage.
Persistence
This is the duration of effect.
Environmental persistence is a particularly important
factor in pollution and is often linked to mobility and
bioaccumulation.
Highly toxic chemicals which are environmentally
unstable and break down rapidly are less harmful than
persistent substances, even though these may be less
toxic.
Mobility
The tendency of a pollutant to disperse or dilute is a
very important factor in its overall effect, since this
affects concentration.
Some pollutants are not readily mobile and tend to
remain in ‘hot-spots’ near to their point of origin.
Others spread readily and can cause widespread
contamination, though often the distribution is not
uniform.
• Ease of control
Many factors contribute to the overall ease with which
any given example of pollution can be controlled,
including the mobility of the pollutant, the nature,
extent or duration of the pollution event and local
site-specific considerations.
Bioaccumulation
some pollutants, when present in very small amounts
within the environment, can be taken up by living
organisms and become concentrated in their tissues
over time.
This tendency of some chemicals to be taken up and
then concentrated by living organisms is a major
consideration, since even relatively low background
levels of contamination may accumulate up the food
chain.
INDICATORS
In general environmental
monitoring deals with two methods
for the detection and quantification
of the extent of pollution:
1. Physiochemical method
2. Biological method
PHYSIOCHEMICAL METHODS
In the past decades, environmental
monitoring programs concentrated on the
physiochemical variables.
These involve the use of analytical equipment
having as limitations their cost and the lack of
hazard and toxicological information.
This led to an increasing demand for an early-
warning systems to detect the pollutants.
BIOLOGICAL METHODS
Bioindicators
Biosensors
Immunoassays
•BIOINDICATORS
Each organism within an ecosystem has the ability
to report on the health of its environment.
Bioindicators are used to :
1. detect changes in the natural environment
2. monitor for the presence of pollution and its
effect on the ecosystem in which the organism
lives
3. monitor the progress of environmental cleanup
and test substances like drinking water for the
presence of contaminants
Types of Bioindicators
There are three types of
bioindicators:
1. Microbial Indicators
2. Plant Indicators
3. Animal Indicators
1. MICROBIAL INDICATORS
Microorganisms can be used as indicators of aquatic
or terrestrial ecosystem health.
Found in large quantities, microorganisms are easier
to sample than other organisms.
Some microorganisms will produce new proteins
called stress proteins when exposed to contaminants
like cadmium & benzene.
These stress proteins can be used as an early warning
system.
Microbial indicators can be used for testing
water.
EXAMPLE: Bioluminescent bacteria are
being used to test water for environmental
toxins. If there are toxins present in the
water, the cellular metabolism of the
bacteria is inhibited or disrupted. This
affects either the bacteria or the amount of
light emitted by the bacteria.
2. PLANT INDICATORS
The presence or absence of certain plant or other
vegetative life in an ecosystem can provide important
clues about the health of the environment.
EXAMPLE: Lichens, often found on rocks and tree
trunks, are organisms consisting of both fungi &
algae. They respond to environmental changes in
forests, including changes in forest structures, air
quality and climate. The disappearance of lichens in
a forest may indicate environmental stresses such as
high levels of sulphur- based pollutants & nitrogen.
3. ANIMAL INDICATORS
An increase or decrease in an animal population
may indicate damage to ecosystem caused by
pollution.
If pollution causes the depletion of important
food sources, animal species dependent upon these
food sources will also be reduced in number.
Other indications may include the monitoring of
the concentration of toxins in animal tissues or
monitoring the rate at which deformities arise in
animal population.
EXAMPLE:1 Invertebrates can be
bioindicators. Aquatic invertebrates live
in the bottom parts of waters. They are
also called as benthic or benthos
invertebrates and make good indicators
of watershed health because they are easy
to identify in a lab, have limited mobility
and are integrators of environmental
condition.
EXAMPLE 2: Frogs can be bioindicators of
environmental quality and change. Frogs are
likely to be affected by changes that occur in
terrestrial & freshwater habitats and to be
exposed to contaminants in air, sediment
and water.
Three species that can be used to examine
both ecological and human health include
Mourning Doves, Raccoons & fish.
•BIOSENSORS
Most biosensors are a combination of biological and
electronic devices - often built onto a microchip. The
biological component might be simply an enzyme or
antibody, or even a colony of bacteria, a membrane, or
an entire organism.
Immobilized on a substrate, their properties change in
response to some environmental effect in a way that is
electronically or optically detectable.
It is then possible to make quantitative measurements
of pollutants with extreme precision or to very high
sensitivities.
The sensors can be designed to be very
selective, or sensitive to a broad range of
compounds.
EXAMPLE: A wide range of herbicides can
be detected in river water using algal-based
biosensors; the stresses inflicted on the
organisms being measured as changes in the
optical properties of the plant’s chlorophyll.
Microbial biosensors are micro-organisms which produce
a reaction upon contact with the substance to be sensed.
Usually they produce light but cease to do so upon contact
with substances which are toxic to them.
Both naturally occurring light emitting microorganisms as
well as specially developed ones are used.
Positively acting bacterial biosensors have been
constructed which start emitting light upon contact (and
subsequent reaction) with a specific pollutant.
In the USA such a light emitting bacterium has been
approved for the detection of polyhalogenated aromatic
hydrocarbons in field tests.
•IMMUNOASSAYS
Immunoassays use labeled antibodies (complex
proteins produced in biological response to specific
agents) and enzymes to measure pollutant levels.
If a pollutant is present, the antibody attaches itself to
it; the label making it detectable either through color
change, fluorescence or radioactivity.
Immunoassays of various types have been developed
for the continuous, automated and inexpensive
monitoring of pesticides such as dieldrin and
parathion.
The nature of these techniques, the results of
which can be as simple as a color change, make
them particularly suitable for highly sensitive field
testing where the time and large equipment
needed for more traditional testing is impractical.
Their use is however limited to pollutants which
can trigger biological antibodies.
If the pollutants are too reactive, they will either
destroy the antibody or suppress its activity and so
also the effectiveness of the test.
POLLUTION CONTROL
CLEAN TECHNOLOGY
Biotechnology with respect to
environmental protection has three levels of
application:
1. POLLUTION CLEAN-UP
2. POLLUTION CONTROL
3. POLLUTION PROTECTION
1. POLLUTION CLEAN-UP
It involves
the clean-up of oil spills
detoxification of contaminated
soil;
treatment of domestic and
industrial waste-water supplies.
2. POLLUTION CONTROL
It involves
the recovery of heavy metals
from mining water;
use of enzymes rather than
chlorine in pulp and paper
manufacture.
3. POLLUTION PROTECTION
It involves the closed cycling
practice at enzyme production
plants where raw materials are
renewable and waste material is a
biodegradable sludge which can be
used as a local fertilizer.
POLLUTION CONTROL STRATEGIES
Two main strategies were present
earlier:
1) Dilution & Dispersal
2) Concentration & Containment
1. Dilution & Dispersal
It involves the attenuation of pollutants by
permitting them to become physically
spread out, thereby reducing their effective
point concentration.
The dispersal and the consequent dilution
of a given substance depends on its nature
and the characteristics of the specific
pathway used to achieve this.
It may take place, with varying degrees of
effectiveness, in air, water or soil.
AIR: Air movement gives good dispersal and
dilution of gaseous emissions.
WATER: There is good dispersal and dilution
potential in large bodies of water or rivers, but
smaller watercourses clearly have a
correspondingly lower capacity.
SOIL: Movement through the soil represents
another opportunity for the dilute and disperse
approach, often with soil water playing a
significant part, and typically aided by the
activities of resident flora and fauna.
2. Concentration & Containment
The principle behind this is
diametrically opposed to the previous
approach, in that instead of relying on
the pollutant becoming attenuated and
spread over a wide area, it is an attempt
to gather together the offending
substance and prevent its escape into
the surrounding environment.
AIR CONTROL TECHNOLOGY
Many industrial processes cause volatile organic and inorganic
odorous compounds to be emitted in large quantities. These
compounds create hazards to ecosystem and to humans. The
demand for odor and air pollution control systems therefore
growing.
Biotechnology offers one of the most economical and
environmentally friendly methods for controlling odor and air
pollution.
1. BIOFILTERS
2. BIOTRICKLING FILTERS
3. BIOSCRUBBERS
1. BIOFILTERS
The system consists of a relatively large vessel or container, typically made of
cast concrete, metal or durable plastic, which holds a filter medium of
organic material such as peat, heather and bark chips.
The gas to be treated is forced, or drawn, through the filter. The medium offers
good water-holding capacity and soluble chemicals within the waste gas,
dissolve into the film of moisture around the matrix.
Bacteria, and other micro-organisms present, degrade components of the
resultant solution, thereby bringing about the desired effect.
The medium itself provides physical support for microbial growth, with a
large surface area to volume ratio, high in internal void spaces and rich in
nutrients to stimulate and sustain bacterial activity.
Biofilters need to be watered sufficiently to maintain optimum
internal conditions, but water logging is to be avoided as this leads to
compaction, and hence, reduced efficiency.
Properly maintained, biofilters can reduce odor release by 95% or more.
2.BIOTRICKLING FILTERS
Once again, an engineered vessel holds a quantity of filter medium,
but in this case, it is an inert material, often cement or slag.
Being highly resistant to compaction, this also provides a large number
of void spaces between particles and a high surface area relative to the
overall volume of the filter.
The microbes form an attached growth biofilm on the surfaces of the
medium. The odorous air is again forced through the filter, while water
simultaneously recirculates through it, trickling down from the top,
hence the name.
Thus a counter-current flow is established between the rising gas and
the falling water, which improves the efficiency of dissolution. The
biofilm communities feed on substances in the solution passing over
them, biodegrading the constituents of the smell.
Process monitoring can be achieved relatively simply by directly
sampling the water recirculating within the filter vessel.
3. BIOSCRUBBERS
A biological treatment system and a highly efficient method
of removing odor components by dissolving them.
Unsurprisingly, then, it is most appropriate for hydrophilic
compounds like acetone or methanol.
The gas to be treated passes through a fine water spray
generated as a mist or curtain within the body of the
bioscrubber vessel. The contaminant is absorbed into the water,
which subsequently pools to form a reservoir at the bottom.
The contaminant solution is then removed to a secondary
bioreactor where the actual process of biodegradation takes
place. In practice, activated sludge systems are often used in
this role.
process control can be achieved by monitoring the water phase
and adding nutrients, buffers or fresh water as appropriate.
OTHER TECHNOLOGY
Absorption: Absorbing the compound in a
suitable liquid; this may oxidize or neutralize it in
the process.
Adsorption: Activated carbon preferentially
adsorbs organic molecules; this can be tailored to
give contaminant-specific optimum performance.
Incineration: High temperature oxidation;
effective against most contaminants, but costly.
Ozonation: Use of ozone to oxidize some
contaminants, like hydrogen sulphide; effective
but can be costly.
The main advantages of biotechnological approaches
to the issue of air contamination can be summarized as:
i. competitive capital costs;
ii. low running costs;
iii. low maintenance costs;
iv. low noise;
v. no carbon monoxide production;
vi. avoids high temperature requirement;
vii. safe processes with highly ‘green’ profile;
viii. robust and tolerant of fluctuation.
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