Usually people don't think garbage would cause environmental pollution. In fact, garbage can cause the drop of air quality, water pollution and waste of resource. Besides, it influences the economic development.
Thus, prevention and management of garbage becomes a new important task for us. Therefore we need to know where the garbage comes from first.
First, it comes from industries. Industries produce various waster water, gas, toxic substances and chemical wastes. If they are placed in the open air or dumped or illegally poured into the river. As a result, the environment is damaged.
Second, domestic garbage: As citizens have weak awareness of environmental protection, they scatter waste paper and glasses. They use a lot of disposable products at will. Thus, much pollution is caused such as dust pollution.
Third, medical garbage: special products with a lot of bacteria have been leaved behind, including medical polluted water, medical wastes, one- shot injectors and so on. If they are not careful handled and directly poured into the river or simply placed or even illegally resold, some communicable disease would spread.
Garbage brings lots of damages to the environment:
First, water pollution: garbage produces a large amount of acidic, basic, toxic wastes. Some waste water contains mercury, lead, and cadmium which pollute the underground water once they penetrate into the ground. Most rivers are polluted by ammonia nitrogen, volatile phenol, and permanganate. Some rivers lose the self- cleaning function and thus, influence the reproduction of aquatic life.
Second, air pollution: in trash area, because of the burning and placing of garbage, there are various toxic gases containing sulfur. Dusts and small particles fly with the wind and thus, sulfur dioxide in the air significantly increases. Thus, acid rain frequently happens, so does the particle pollution.
Third, soil pollution: many areas are used to place garbage and thus, land degradation and desertification happen. Because of a large amount of plastic bags, waste metals are leaved in the soil, the soil is hardened, and not suitable for planting crops.
Fourth, harmful to human beings' health: toxic gases are released by garbage and fly everywhere with the wind. As a result, sulfur dioxide, lead in the air arise and cause many respiratory diseases. When underground water is polluted, people may get diarrhea, trachoma and other diseases.
Fifth, harmful to the economic development: according to researches, 70% of garbage can be recycled. If it is recycled, it can create many profits, very helpful to the economic development and employment rate. Otherwise, it causes resource waste and ecological disruption which absolutely influence economic development.