The two aspects of our environment most commonly invoked when we talk about keeping the environment clean are litter and water pollution. We will talk about both in this article.
Litter
Litter is ugly and can harm people and wildlife. Picking up trash can be expensive for cities and highway departments.
Dog fouling in public places (another form of litter) is a serious health risk, especially for young children.
Cigarette butts are another unsightly form of litter. They may seem small, but with several billion cigarette butts thrown in the trash every year, they are the number one source of litter in this county. Cigarette butts make up a large part of urban litter and can take up to 12 years to decompose.
So how do we keep litter out of our public places and keep the environment clean?
The answer is, of course, first of all, to educate the public to take their rubbish home and, when they do not, it is necessary to ensure that efficient street cleaning is carried out.
Street cleaning is controlled by the Department of Public Works in all towns and cities and is usually carried out by appointed contractors or the Council’s own direct labor. When it’s working well, you’ll often find that local businesses take an active interest in helping to streamline the process, and also do additional regular consultation with the community. Street cleaning is often, but not always, carried out at extended hours, and these hours can range from 8 in the morning to 12 or 2 in the afternoon in our large cities. Street cleaning is an absolute necessity in all modern, well-run cities.
Street cleaning is a manual task and labor is a significant cost. Satisfaction with the cleanliness of streets and commercial areas has improved in the UK since privatisation. One likely reason for this is that previously Council staff had to be the policeman who ensured the efficiency of their own work. Human nature is such that being on both sides of such a role rarely works efficiently.
Street cleaning is only part of city cleaning, which in this article is only part of how to keep the environment clean. The business of the council (municipal) health department is to see that all people have clean air, clean water, clean food and are protected from contagious diseases.
Street cleaning is an important element of city cleaning and is increasingly done with highly mechanized equipment, such as the use of street sweepers and flushers. Cleaning of most streets is scheduled at least five times a year, and paved alleys are cleaned once.
Street cleanliness should always be strictly enforced and react to events where litter accumulates more quickly, but without clean water in the city’s rivers and streams it can hardly be said that municipal authorities are keeping the environment clean. .
river pollution
Preventing the pollution of rivers is, if anything, more essential than cleaning the streets, especially where the poorest population must rely on river water for domestic use and even drinking water.
If asked how to keep the environment clean from river pollution, we would have to say by collecting all sewage and treating it before allowing it to be discharged downstream.
River pollution is the most devastating phenomenon for the health of the poor and developing countries. Contamination occurs when the water presents an alteration of physical and chemical parameters such as smell, taste, color, turbidity.
If the contaminated water is tested at a water quality testing lab, you will notice a number of telltale changes. These are exemplified by changes in total hardness, pH, chlorides, etc. Expect to see BOD and COD in greater numbers as well, among others.
River pollution is a serious problem. In recent years there has been an increased awareness of the issues involved but, at the same time, continuing urbanization and industrialization and continuing population growth are producing ever-increasing amounts of waste for disposal.
Dangerously, river pollution is concentrated around urban areas. River pollution is a major environmental problem today, but we don’t seem to be making as much progress as we should. Perhaps the reason is ideological?
Where wastewater treatment plants have been installed, levels of indicator bacteria and nitrogen in the discharge should be monitored to measure management performance. If a discharge quality failure occurs, municipal authorities must act to determine the necessary changes in the monitoring protocol to prevent further occurrence. It is also important to report on progress and recommendations to inform those responsible for planning and management. The levels of any contaminant can be measured by water quality testing methods and once analysis has been provided it is always important to check the data carefully against legal standards. For example, the State of Florida sets the safe health standard for bacteria at less than 1,000 fecal coliform bacteria per 100 milliliters.
The most common sources of pollution are domestic water discharges from houses in the catchment area and uncontrolled dumping of solid domestic waste along the banks of tributaries and in dry creeks. Industrial discharges can be one of the main causes of pollution. Every industrial discharge often contains chemical and organic compounds that can enter the bodies of many aquatic animals. Even groundwater can be contaminated by soak wells, septic tanks, manure, garbage, etc. and which eventually discharges into rivers further worsening the problem.
Industrial pollutants from smaller units continue to be a problem. While most of the large and medium-sized industrial units have installed treatment plants and are using them. Forty percent of the industrial waste seen in one example, a whopping $4bn, comes from small-scale industries in cities and suburbs.
