What are the main environmental problems of our time. Is it possible to solve modern environmental problems on a global scale?

At the moment, the creation of a completely eco-friendly city is not available to mankind. If you try to imagine how a city that is ecologically inscribed in nature should look like, then only 100% harmless materials should be used for construction there, similar in their properties to wood and stone.

Naturally, such a city should be much more reminiscent of a park or a reserve than an industrial metropolis, and the houses in it should be drowned in trees, and animals and birds should calmly walk along the streets. But the creation of such a metropolis is a complex process.

It is easier, on the contrary, to disperse human settlements and begin to settle in natural landscapes practically untouched by human hands. Settlements dispersed in space reduce the load on the biosphere in individual places. Naturally, life in new places should include the observance of environmental safety.

Holzer biocenosis

The possibility of such a natural, almost heavenly life without losing the comfort that the achievements of modern civilization give, was proved by the famous Austrian farmer Sepp Holzer. On his farm, he does not use irrigation, reclamation, pesticides, or herbicides. He has only one employee (despite the scale of the farm of 45 hectares), only one tractor and his own power plant.

Holzer created a natural biocenosis, where, in addition to cultivated plants, animals, birds, fish, and insects live. Almost the only work that the owner and mistress do is sowing and harvesting.

Everything else is done by nature with the correct organization of natural environmental conditions. Holzer managed to grow even rare species of plants that do not grow in the high alpine regions, as well as plants characteristic of much warmer countries (kiwi, lemon, cherry, orange, cherry, grapes).

All of Austria is lining up for vegetables, fruits, fish, Holzer meat. The farmer believes that today's food production is completely meaningless, because it consumes an exorbitant amount of energy. It is enough just to study natural patterns and create the most natural conditions for the existence of plants and animals.

The right to a favorable environment is enshrined in the Constitution of the Russian Federation. This regulation is enforced by a number of authorities:

• Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia;
• Rosprirodnadzor and its territorial departments;
• environmental prosecutor's office;
• executive authorities of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation in the field of ecology;
• a number of other departments.

But it would be more logical to consolidate the obligation of everyone to conserve natural resources, minimize consumption waste, and respect nature. A person has many rights. What does nature have? Nothing. Only the obligation to satisfy ever-growing human needs. And this consumer attitude leads to environmental problems. Let's take a look at what it is and how to improve the status quo.

The concept and types of environmental problems

Ecological problems are interpreted in different ways. But the essence of the concept comes down to one thing: it is the result of a thoughtless, soulless anthropogenic impact on the environment, which leads to a change in the properties of landscapes, depletion or loss of natural resources (minerals, flora and fauna). And a boomerang is reflected in the life and health of a person.

Environmental problems affect the entire natural system. Based on this, several types of this problem are distinguished:

• Atmospheric. In the atmospheric air, most often in urban areas, there is an increased concentration of pollutants, including particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and oxide, and carbon monoxide. Sources - road transport and stationary objects (industrial enterprises). Although, according to the State Report “On the state and protection of the environment of the Russian Federation in 2014”, the total amount of emissions decreased from 35 million tons / year in 2007 to 31 million tons / year in 2014, the air is not getting cleaner. The dirtiest Russian cities by this indicator are Birobidzhan, Blagoveshchensk, Bratsk, Dzerzhinsk, Yekaterinburg, and the cleanest are Salekhard, Volgograd, Orenburg, Krasnodar, Bryansk, Belgorod, Kyzyl, Murmansk, Yaroslavl, Kazan.
• Water. There is depletion and pollution of not only surface, but also groundwater. Take, for example, the "great Russian" river Volga. The waters in it are characterized as "dirty". The norm of the content of copper, iron, phenol, sulfates, organic substances is exceeded. This is due to the operation of industrial facilities that throw untreated or insufficiently treated effluents into the river, the urbanization of the population - a large proportion of domestic effluents through biological treatment facilities. The decrease in fish resources was influenced not only by the pollution of rivers, but also by the construction of a cascade of hydroelectric power stations. Even 30 years ago, even near the city of Cheboksary, it was possible to catch the Caspian beluga, but now nothing larger than a catfish will come across. It is possible that the annual actions of hydropower engineers to launch fry of valuable fish species, such as sterlet, will someday bring tangible results.
• Biological. Resources such as forests and pastures are degrading. They mentioned fish resources. As for the forest, we have the right to call our country the largest forest nation: a quarter of the area of ​​​​all forests in the world grows in our country, half of the country's territory is occupied by tree vegetation. We need to learn how to treat this wealth more carefully in order to save it from fires, to identify and punish “black” lumberjacks in a timely manner.

Fires are most often the work of human hands. It is possible that in this way someone is trying to hide traces of the illegal use of forest resources. Perhaps it is no coincidence that Rosleskhoz includes the Zabaikalsky, Khabarovsk, Primorsky, Krasnoyarsk Territories, the Republics of Tyva, Khakassia, Buryatia, Yakutia, the Irkutsk, Amur Regions, and the Jewish Autonomous Region as the most “burning” areas. At the same time, huge funds are spent on extinguishing fires: for example, over 1.5 billion rubles were spent in 2015. There are also good examples. Thus, the republics of Tatarstan and Chuvashia did not allow a single forest fire in 2015. There is someone to take an example from!

• Land . We are talking about the depletion of the subsoil, the development of minerals. To save at least part of these resources, it is enough to recycle waste as much as possible and send it for reuse. Thus, we will contribute to the reduction of landfill area, and enterprises can save on quarrying by using recycled materials in production.
• Soil - geomorphological. Active agriculture and deforestation lead to gully formation, soil erosion, and salinization. According to the Ministry of Agriculture of Russia, as of January 1, 2014, almost 9 million hectares of agricultural land were subject to degradation, of which over 2 million hectares were degraded. If erosion occurs as a result of land use, then the soil can be helped: by terracing, creating forest belts to protect against wind, changing the type, density and age of vegetation.
• Landscape. Deterioration of the state of individual natural-territorial complexes.

Modern world environmental problems

Local and global environmental problems are closely interrelated. What happens in a particular region is ultimately reflected in the general situation around the world. Therefore, the solution of environmental issues must be approached comprehensively. First, let's highlight the main global environmental problems:

• Destruction of the ozone layer. As a result, protection from ultraviolet radiation is reduced, which leads to various diseases in the population, including skin cancer.
• Global warming. Over the past 100 years, there has been an increase in the temperature of the surface layer of the atmosphere by 0.3-0.8°C. The area of ​​snow in the north has decreased by 8%. There was a rise in the level of the world ocean up to 20 cm. For 10 years, the growth rate of the average annual temperature in Russia amounted to 0.42°C. This is twice as much as the rate of increase in the global temperature of the Earth.
• Air pollution. Every day we inhale about 20 thousand liters of air saturated not only with oxygen, but also containing harmful suspended particles and gases. So, if we take into account that there are 600 million cars in the world, each of which emits up to 4 kg of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, soot and zinc into the atmosphere every day, then by simple mathematical calculations we come to the conclusion that the fleet emits 2.4 billion kg of harmful substances. We should not forget about emissions from stationary sources. Therefore, it is not surprising that every year over 12.5 million people (and this is the population of the whole of Moscow!) die from diseases associated with poor ecology.

• Acid rain. This problem leads to pollution of water bodies and soils with nitric and sulfuric acids, cobalt and aluminum compounds. As a result, crop yields are falling and forests are dying. Toxic metals get into drinking water and poison us.
• Soil pollution. 85 billion tons of waste per year, humanity needs to be stored somewhere. As a result, the soil under authorized and unauthorized landfills is contaminated with solid and liquid industrial waste, pesticides, and household waste.
• Water pollution. The main pollutants are oil and oil products, heavy metals and complex organic compounds. In Russia, the ecosystems of rivers, lakes, reservoirs are preserved at a stable level. The taxonomic composition and structure of communities do not undergo significant changes.

Ways to improve the environment

No matter how deep modern environmental problems penetrate, their solution depends on each of us. So what can we do to help nature?

• Use of an alternative fuel or alternative vehicle. To reduce harmful emissions into the atmospheric air, it is enough to switch the car to gas or transfer to an electric car. A very environmentally friendly way to travel by bike.
• Separate collection. It is enough to install two waste containers at home in order to effectively introduce separate collection. The first is for non-recyclable waste, and the second is for subsequent transfer to recycling. The cost of plastic bottles, waste paper, glass is becoming more expensive, so separate collection is not only environmentally friendly, but also economical. By the way, while in Russia the volume of waste generation is twice as high as the volume of waste use. As a result, the amount of waste in landfills triples in five years.
• Moderation. In everything and everywhere. An effective solution to environmental problems involves the rejection of the consumer society model. A person does not need 10 boots, 5 coats, 3 cars, etc. to live. It is easy to switch from plastic bags to eco-bags: they are stronger, the service life is much longer, and the cost is about 20 rubles. Many hypermarkets offer eco-bags under their own brand: Magnit, Auchan, Lenta, Karusel, etc. Everyone can independently evaluate what he can easily refuse.
• Ecological education of the population. Participate in environmental campaigns: plant a tree in the yard, go to the restoration of forests affected by fires. Take part in the Saturday. And nature will thank you with the rustle of leaves, a light breeze ... Raise in your children a love for all living things and teach competent behavior on a walk in the forest, on the street.
• Join the ranks of environmental organizations. Do not know how to help nature and preserve a favorable environment? Join the ranks of environmental organizations! These can be the global environmental movements Greenpeace, the Wildlife Fund, the Green Cross; Russian: All-Russian Society for Conservation of Nature, Russian Geographical Society, ECA, Separate COLLECTION, Green Patrol, RosEco, Non-Governmental Environmental Fund named after V.I. you!

Nature is one, there will never be another. Already today, by starting to solve environmental problems together, by combining the efforts of citizens, the state, public organizations and commercial enterprises, it is possible to improve the world around us. Many people are concerned about environmental issues, because how we treat them today depends on the conditions in which our children will live tomorrow.

Forests enrich the atmosphere with oxygen, which is so necessary for life, absorb carbon dioxide released by animals and humans in the process of breathing, as well as by industrial enterprises in the process of work. They play a major role in the water cycle. Trees take water from the soil, filter it, purifying it from impurities, and release it into the atmosphere, increasing the humidity of the climate. Forests influence the water cycle. Trees raise groundwater, enriching soils and keeping them from desertification and erosion - it is not for nothing that rivers instantly become shallow during deforestation.

According to reports from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, deforestation continues around the world at a rapid pace. Every year, 13 million hectares of forest are lost, while only 6 hectares grow.

It means that every second a forest the size of a football field disappears from the face of the planet.

A significant problem is that the organization receives these data directly from the governments of countries, and governments prefer not to indicate in their reports the losses associated, for example, with illegal logging.

Destruction of the ozone layer

About twenty kilometers above the planet extends the ozone layer - the Earth's ultraviolet shield.

Fluorinated and chlorinated hydrocarbons and halogen compounds emitted into the atmosphere destroy the layer structure. It is depleted and this leads to the formation of ozone holes. The destructive ultraviolet rays penetrating through them are dangerous for all life on Earth. They have a particularly negative effect on human health, their immune and gene systems, causing skin cancer and cataracts. Ultraviolet rays are dangerous for plankton - the basis of the food chain, higher vegetation, animals.

Today, under the influence of the Montreal Protocol, alternatives have been found for almost all technologies that use ozone-depleting substances, and the production, trade and use of these substances is rapidly decreasing.

As you know, everything in nature is interconnected. The destruction of the ozone layer and, as a result, the deviation of some seemingly insignificant environmental parameter can lead to unpredictable and irreversible consequences for all living things.

Decline in biodiversity

According to experts, 10-15 thousand species of organisms disappear annually. This means that over the next 50 years, the planet will lose, according to various estimates, from a quarter to a half of its biological diversity. The depletion of the species composition of flora and fauna significantly reduces the stability of ecosystems and the biosphere as a whole, which also poses a serious danger to humanity. The process of biodiversity reduction is characterized by an avalanche-like acceleration. The less biodiversity of the planet, the worse the conditions for survival in it.

As of 2000, 415 species of animals are listed in the Red Book of Russia. This list of animals in recent years has increased by one and a half times and does not stop growing.

Mankind, as a species with a huge population and habitat, does not leave a suitable habitat for other species. It is necessary to intensively expand the area of ​​specially protected natural areas for the conservation of endangered species, as well as strict regulation of the extermination of commercially valuable species.

Water pollution

Pollution of the aquatic environment has occurred throughout the history of mankind: from time immemorial, people have used any river as a sewer. The greatest danger to the hydrosphere arose in the 20th century with the emergence of large multi-million cities and the development of industry. Over the past decades, most of the world's rivers and lakes have been turned into sewers and sewage pits. Despite hundreds of billions of investments in treatment facilities that are able to prevent the transformation of a river or lake into a fetid slurry, but are not able to return the water to its former natural purity: the growing volumes of industrial effluents and solid waste that dissolve in water turn out to be stronger than the most powerful treatment units.

The danger of water pollution is that a person largely consists of water and, in order to remain a person, he must consume exactly water, which in most cities of the planet can hardly be called drinkable. About half of the population of developing countries does not have access to sources of clean water, is forced to drink contaminated with pathogenic microbes and is therefore doomed to premature death from epidemic diseases.

overpopulation

Humanity today perceives its huge numbers as the norm, believing that people, with all their numbers and all their life activities, do not harm the planet's ecosystem, and that people can continue to increase their numbers, and that this supposedly does not affect the ecology, animals and plants. world, as well as the life of mankind itself. But in fact, already today, already now, humanity has crossed all the boundaries and lines that the planet could tolerate. The earth cannot support such a huge number of people. According to scientists, 500 thousand is the maximum allowable number of people for our planet. Today, this limit figure has been exceeded 12 times, and according to scientists' forecasts, by 2100 it may almost double. At the same time, the modern human population of the Earth, for the most part, does not even think about the global harm that further growth in the number of people brings.

But the growth in the number of people is also an increase in the use of natural resources, an increase in areas for agricultural and industrial needs, an increase in the amount of harmful emissions, an increase in the amount of household waste and areas for their storage, an increase in the intensity of human expansion into nature and an increase in the intensity of the destruction of natural biodiversity.

Mankind today is simply obliged to restrain its growth rates, rethink its role in the ecological system of the Planet, and take up the construction of human civilization on the basis of a harmless and meaningful existence, and not on the basis of animal instincts of reproduction and absorption.

Oil pollution

Oil is a natural oily combustible liquid, common in the sedimentary shell of the Earth; the most important mineral. A complex mixture of alkanes, some cycloalkanes and arenes, as well as oxygen, sulfur and nitrogen compounds. Today, oil, as an energy resource, is one of the main factors in the development of the economy. But oil production, its transportation and processing are invariably accompanied by its losses, emissions and discharges of harmful substances, the consequence of which is environmental pollution. In terms of scale and degree of toxicity, oil pollution is a planetary danger. Oil and oil products cause poisoning, death of organisms and soil degradation. Natural self-purification of natural objects from oil pollution is a long process, especially at low temperatures. The enterprises of the fuel and energy complex are the largest source of environmental pollutants in the industry. They account for about 48% of emissions of harmful substances into the atmosphere, 27% of polluted wastewater discharges, over 30% of solid waste and up to 70% of total greenhouse gases.

land degradation

The soil is the custodian of fertility and life on Earth. It takes 100 years to form its layer 1 cm thick. But it can be lost in just one season of man's thoughtless exploitation of the earth. According to geologists, before man began to engage in agricultural activities, rivers annually carried 9 billion tons of soil into the ocean. With the assistance of man, this figure has increased to 25 billion tons per year. The phenomenon of soil erosion is becoming increasingly dangerous, because. There are fewer and fewer fertile soils on the planet, and it is vital to preserve at least what is available at the moment, to prevent the disappearance of this only layer of the earth's lithosphere on which plants can grow.

Under natural conditions, there are several reasons for soil erosion (weathering and washing out of the upper fertile layer), which are further exacerbated by humans. Millions of hectares of soil are being lost

More than 50 billion tons of waste from energy, industrial, agricultural production and the public sector are released into nature annually, including more than 150 million tons from industrial enterprises. About 100 thousand artificial chemicals are emitted into the environment, of which 15 thousand require special attention.

All these wastes are a source of environmental pollution instead of being a source for the production of secondary products.

Continuous technological progress, the continuing enslavement of nature by man, industrialization, which has changed the surface of the Earth beyond recognition, have become the causes of the global ecological crisis. Currently, the population of the planet is particularly acute environmental problems such as atmospheric pollution, ozone depletion, acid rain, greenhouse effect, soil pollution, pollution of the world's oceans and overpopulation.

Global Environmental Issue #1: Air Pollution

Every day, the average person inhales about 20,000 liters of air, which contains, in addition to vital oxygen, a whole list of harmful suspended particles and gases. Air pollutants are conditionally divided into 2 types: natural and anthropogenic. The latter prevail.

The chemical industry is not doing well. Factories emit such harmful substances as dust, oil ash, various chemical compounds, nitrogen oxides and much more. Air measurements showed the catastrophic state of the atmospheric layer, polluted air causes many chronic diseases.

Atmospheric pollution is an environmental problem, familiar to the inhabitants of absolutely all corners of the earth. It is especially acutely felt by representatives of cities where ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, energy, chemical, petrochemical, construction and pulp and paper industries operate. In some cities, the atmosphere is also heavily poisoned by vehicles and boilers. These are all examples of anthropogenic air pollution.

As for the natural sources of chemical elements that pollute the atmosphere, they include forest fires, volcanic eruptions, wind erosion (dispersal of soil and rock particles), the spread of pollen, evaporation of organic compounds and natural radiation.

Consequences of atmospheric pollution

Atmospheric air pollution adversely affects human health, contributing to the development of heart and lung diseases (in particular, bronchitis). In addition, atmospheric pollutants such as ozone, nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide destroy natural ecosystems, destroying plants and causing the death of living creatures (particularly river fish).

The global environmental problem of atmospheric pollution, according to scientists and government officials, can be solved in the following ways:

• limiting population growth;
• reduction in energy use;
• improving energy efficiency;
• waste reduction;
• transition to environmentally friendly renewable energy sources;
• air purification in highly polluted areas.

Global Environmental Issue #2: Ozone Depletion

The ozone layer is a thin strip of the stratosphere that protects all life on Earth from the harmful ultraviolet rays of the sun.

Causes of the environmental problem

Back in the 1970s. environmentalists have discovered that the ozone layer is destroyed by exposure to chlorofluorocarbons. These chemicals are found in coolants in refrigerators and air conditioners, as well as solvents, aerosols/sprays, and fire extinguishers. To a lesser extent, other anthropogenic influences also contribute to the thinning of the ozone layer: the launch of space rockets, the flights of jet aircraft in high layers of the atmosphere, nuclear weapons testing, and the reduction of the planet's forest lands. There is also a theory that global warming contributes to the thinning of the ozone layer.

Consequences of ozone depletion

As a result of the destruction of the ozone layer, ultraviolet radiation passes unhindered through the atmosphere and reaches the earth's surface. Exposure to direct UV rays adversely affects people's health by weakening the immune system and causing diseases such as skin cancer and cataracts.

World Environmental Issue #3: Global Warming

Like the glass walls of a greenhouse, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and water vapor allow the sun to heat our planet and at the same time prevent infrared radiation reflected from the earth's surface from escaping into space. All these gases are responsible for maintaining the temperature acceptable for life on earth. However, an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide, methane, nitrogen oxide and water vapor in the atmosphere is another global environmental problem, called global warming (or the greenhouse effect).

Causes of global warming

During the 20th century, the average temperature on earth increased by 0.5 - 1?C. The main cause of global warming is considered to be an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to an increase in the volume of fossil fuels burned by people (coal, oil and their derivatives). However, according to the statement Alexey Kokorin, head of climate programs WWF(WWF) Russia, “the largest amount of greenhouse gases is generated by the operation of power plants and methane emissions during the extraction and delivery of energy resources, while road transport or the burning of associated petroleum gas in flaring causes relatively little environmental damage”.

Other prerequisites for global warming are overpopulation of the planet, deforestation, ozone depletion and littering. However, not all ecologists place the responsibility for the increase in average annual temperatures entirely on anthropogenic activities. Some believe that the natural increase in the abundance of oceanic plankton also contributes to global warming, leading to an increase in the concentration of the same carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.

Consequences of the greenhouse effect

If the temperature during the 21st century increases by another 1 ? C - 3.5 ? C, as scientists predict, the consequences will be very sad:

• the level of the world ocean will rise (due to the melting of polar ice), the number of droughts will increase and the process of land desertification will intensify,
• many species of plants and animals adapted to existence in a narrow range of temperatures and humidity will disappear,
• hurricanes will increase.

Solving an environmental problem

To slow down the process of global warming, according to environmentalists, the following measures will help:

• rising prices for fossil fuels,
• replacement of fossil fuels with environmentally friendly ones (solar energy, wind energy and sea currents),
• development of energy-saving and waste-free technologies,
• taxation of emissions into the environment,
• minimization of methane losses during its production, transportation through pipelines, distribution in cities and villages and use at heat supply stations and power plants,
• introduction of carbon dioxide absorption and binding technologies,
• tree planting,
• reduction in family size
• environmental education,
• application of phytomelioration in agriculture.

Global Environmental Issue #4: Acid Rain

Acid rain, containing fuel combustion products, also poses a threat to the environment, human health, and even to the integrity of architectural monuments.

The effects of acid rain

Solutions of sulfuric and nitric acids, aluminum and cobalt compounds contained in polluted precipitation and fog pollute the soil and water bodies, adversely affect vegetation, causing dry tops of deciduous trees and oppressing conifers. Due to acid rain, crop yields are falling, people are drinking water enriched with toxic metals (mercury, cadmium, lead), marble architectural monuments are turning into gypsum and eroding.

Solving an environmental problem

In order to save nature and architecture from acid rain, it is necessary to minimize the emissions of sulfur and nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.

Global Environmental Issue #5: Soil Pollution

Every year people pollute the environment with 85 billion tons of waste. Among them are solid and liquid waste from industrial enterprises and transport, agricultural waste (including pesticides), household waste and atmospheric fallout of harmful substances.

The main role in soil pollution is played by such components of industrial waste as heavy metals (lead, mercury, cadmium, arsenic, thallium, bismuth, tin, vanadium, antimony), pesticides and petroleum products. From the soil, they penetrate into plants and water, even spring water. In a chain, toxic metals enter the human body and are not always quickly and completely removed from it. Some of them tend to accumulate over many years, provoking the development of serious diseases.

Global Environmental Issue #6: Water Pollution

Pollution of the oceans, underground and surface waters of land is a global environmental problem, the responsibility for which lies entirely with man.

Causes of the environmental problem

The main pollutants of the hydrosphere today are oil and oil products. These substances penetrate into the waters of the oceans as a result of the collapse of tankers and regular discharges of wastewater from industrial enterprises.

In addition to anthropogenic oil products, industrial and domestic facilities pollute the hydrosphere with heavy metals and complex organic compounds. Agriculture and the food industry are recognized as the leaders in poisoning the waters of the oceans with minerals and biogenic elements.

The hydrosphere does not bypass such a global environmental problem as radioactive contamination. The prerequisite for its formation was the disposal of radioactive waste in the waters of the oceans. From the 1949s to the 1970s, many powers with a developed nuclear industry and atomic fleet purposefully stockpiled harmful radioactive substances into the seas and oceans. In the places of burial of radioactive containers, the level of cesium often goes off scale even today. But "underwater polygons" are not the only radioactive source of pollution of the hydrosphere. The waters of the seas and oceans are enriched with radiation as a result of underwater and surface nuclear explosions.

Global environmental problems are problems whose negative impact is felt anywhere in the world and affects the entire structure, structure and parts of the biosphere. These are all-encompassing and all-encompassing issues. The complexity of their perception by an individual is that he may not feel them or feel them insufficiently. These are problems shared by all the inhabitants of the Earth, all living organisms and the natural environment. A little bit of everything. But here the impact of the problem cannot be divided or distributed among everyone. In the case of global problems, the effect of them must be added up, and the consequences of such an addition will be much greater.

These problems can be conditionally divided into two types, which correspond to two stages in the history of our planet. The first is natural. The second is artificial. The first type refers to the existence of the Earth before the appearance of man on it, or, more precisely, before he made some scientific discoveries. Second, these are the problems that arose immediately after the introduction of these discoveries. With the first, nature, as a system striving for a stable existence, coped on its own. She adapted, adapted, resisted, changed. With the second, too, she could fight for some time, but over time her possibilities were practically exhausted.

Modern problems and their differences

Modern environmental problems are problems that have arisen as a result of the active influence of man on the natural processes occurring in nature. Such influence became possible in connection with the development of the scientific and technical potential of mankind, aimed at ensuring the life of people. At the same time, the existence of the surrounding animate and inanimate nature is not taken into account. Their consequence will be that the biosphere will gradually turn from a natural system into an artificial one. For a person, this means only one thing, that, like any ecosystem created by him, it cannot exist without a person, without his help and close attention. The ecological problems of our time will become, if they have not yet become, the ecological problems of mankind. Can a person cope with such a task?

Man-made disasters and accidents are examples of global environmental problems from which no one doubts. These incidents receive international condemnation. They become an impetus for the improvement of security systems. Measures are being taken to eliminate the destruction and other consequences. The environmental problems of our time are that they are trying to deal with the consequences that occurred in the immediate vicinity of the epicenter of the accident. No one can eliminate the consequences resulting from the biosphere. If the Earth's biosphere is compared with glass, and an accident, such as at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, with a hole from a stone that fell into it, then the cracks that spread from it are the consequences that still render all glass unusable. A person can and should increase safety, but cannot eliminate the consequences. This is the key difference between an artificial ecosystem and a natural one. Natural can reverse the effects and does so itself.

Global and their types

Relates to global environmental problems and the reduction of natural resources, primarily those that are the main sources of energy production. The amount of energy necessary for the existence of mankind is growing, and alternatives to natural energy sources in sufficient quantities have not yet been created. The existing energy complexes - hydro, heat and nuclear power plants are not only dependent on natural sources of raw materials - water, coal, gas, chemical elements, but also pose a danger to the environment. They pollute water, air and soil, change or destroy adjacent ecosystems, thereby contributing to the loosening and destabilization of the entire biosphere of the Earth. And this applies not only to catastrophes and accidents that periodically occur at stations, the consequences of which are known to the whole world. Hydraulic structures that change the natural circulation of rivers, technological warm waters discharged into reservoirs at stations, and much more, which may seem insignificant and small from the point of view of the problems of the entire planet, but still contributes to the imbalance of the biosphere. By changing the ecosystem of a pond, river, reservoir or lake, an integral part of the entire ecosystem of the Earth changes. And since this is not a one-time phenomenon, but a massive one, the effect is global.

"Global environmental problems" is a concept that requires not only universal understanding and scientific research, but also actions, joint and equally global.

It is believed that the main environmental problems of our time are global warming caused by the "greenhouse effect" and the appearance of "ozone holes", "acid" rains, a decrease in the number of forests and an increase in desert areas, a decrease in the amount of natural resources, primarily fresh water.
The consequences of warming will be climate change, accelerated melting of glaciers, rise in the level of the World Ocean, land flooding, increased evaporation of surface water, the “offensive” of deserts, a change in the species diversity of living organisms and their balance in favor of heat-loving ones, and so on. Warming causes, on the one hand, a decrease in the amount of ozone in the upper atmosphere, due to which more ultraviolet radiation begins to enter the planet. On the other hand, the heat emitted by the Earth and living organisms is retained in excess in the lower layers of the atmosphere. There is an effect of "excessive" energy. The question is whether the consequences described and assumed by scientists are all possible, or there are "cracks" that we do not know about and do not even assume.

pollution

Environmental problems of mankind have always been and will be associated with environmental pollution. A special role in this is played not only by the quantity of pollutants, but also by their "quality". In some regions, where for one reason or another, the process of getting foreign elements into the environment stops, nature gradually “puts things in order” and restores itself. The situation is worse with the so-called xenobiotics - substances that do not occur in the natural environment and therefore cannot be processed in a natural way.

The most obvious environmental problems of our time are the decrease in the number of forests, which occurs with the direct participation of man. Cutting down for timber extraction, liberation of territories for construction and for agricultural needs, destruction of forests due to careless or negligent behavior of people - all this primarily leads to a decrease in the green mass of the biosphere, and hence to a possible oxygen deficiency. This is becoming increasingly possible thanks to the active combustion of oxygen in industrial production and vehicles.

Humanity is becoming more and more dependent on artificially produced energy and food. More and more land is being devoted to agricultural land, and existing ones are being increasingly filled with mineral fertilizers, pesticides, pest control agents and similar chemicals. The efficiency of such soil filling rarely exceeds 5%. The remaining 95% is washed away by storm and melt waters into the oceans. Nitrogen and phosphorus are the main components of these chemicals, when they enter natural ecosystems, they stimulate the growth of green mass, especially algae. Violation of the biological balance of water bodies leads to their disappearance. In addition, chemical elements contained in plant protection products rise with water vapor to the upper atmosphere, where they combine with oxygen and turn into acids. And then they fall out as "acid" rains on soils that may not require acidity. Violation of the pH balance leads to the destruction of soils and the loss of their fertility.

Is it possible to include the process of urbanization in the main environmental problems of our time? The increasing concentration of people in confined spaces should have given more space for wildlife. That is, there could be hope that the Earth's ecosystem could adapt to such internal changes. But urban "aquariums", and in fact, the ecosystem of cities, especially large ones, megacities and agglomerations, is nothing more than an artificial ecosystem, they require a huge amount of energy and water. Back they "throw out" from themselves no less waste and effluents. All this includes the surrounding lands in the "aquarium" ecosystem of cities. As a result, wildlife exists in small areas that are temporarily not involved in the provision of "aquariums". And this means that nature does not have a resource for its restoration, species richness, sufficient energy, a full-fledged food chain, and so on.

Thus, the main environmental problems of our time are the totality of all the problems that have arisen in nature in connection with the vigorous activity of man in his life support.

Video - Problems of ecology. Chemical weapon. fires