In the 1958 short story La nuvola di smog (The Smog Cloud), the Italian author Italo Calvino described an imaginary city wrapped in, as the title suggests, a large cloud of smog: pollution here becomes a metaphor for everything bad in life. It is a literary account that demonstrates how environmental pollution has, since the second half of the twentieth century, entered collective consciousness as one of the major problems that characterize our time. What is environmental pollution Environmental pollution is the introduction of foreign and potentially harmful elements into the environment. The consequences are particularly important when they damage ecosystems and human societies, especially with regard to health. Pollution is not a human prerogative: volcanoes, for example, also emit pollutants. It is, however, certain that our species is contributing massively to environmental pollution, and this has increased over the past centuries. Types of pollution There are different types of pollution. The first to be studied were those in which pollutants had physical elements: air pollution, water pollution and land pollution. Later, by analogy, definitions were provided for noise pollution, light pollution, thermal pollution, and electromagnetic pollution: in these cases, no material substances are introduced into the environment, but intangible agents – such as electromagnetic waves (including light) or sound – are. Often the different types of pollution interact with each other: for example, some pollutants in the atmosphere fall back to earth in the form of acid rain, thereby contaminating soils and oceans. Air pollution Air pollution is the most prominent case. The most visible phenomenon is smog (a portmanteau word, a combination of “smoke” and “fog”), formed by gases such as nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide. Even when it cannot be seen, however, pollution is both present and harmful. In the long run, the most dangerous pollutants are the greenhouse gases (mainly carbon dioxide), which are responsible for climate change. The air in our cities is also polluted by other gases (such as carbon monoxide) and atmospheric particulate matter (i.e., fine particulate matter), which can be classified into PM10 (particles smaller than 10 microns in size) and PM2,5 (smaller than 2.5 microns). Finally, the air is often polluted inside homes as well, due to cigarette smoke, insecticide sprays, and especially, in many countries, kitchens with ovens fueled by coal or other highly polluting fuels. Water Pollution Water pollution now affects virtually all the world's seas, oceans, lakes and rivers. In the sea, the most egregious cases are oil spills from shipping disasters, but the problem of pollution from plastics and particularly microplastics is becoming increasingly urgent. Fresh water accounts for only 2.5% of all water on Earth – it is the most precious resource for human life. Very often, however, running water is contaminated with chemicals, particularly those known as PFAS (Perfluorinated and Polyfluorinated Alkyl Substances). Soil Pollution Pollution, along with erosion, is now the main threat to soil on our planet, and it has now reached every corner of the world: it has even been found in the most uninhabited areas, such as Antarctica. Soil pollution is caused both by macroscopic objects such as waste left by humans and by substances that are present in the form of microscopic and therefore invisible particles. Electromagnetic pollution Electromagnetic fields are often of natural origin: for example, the Earth's magnetic field, or the electric field generated by lightning. Today, however, we speak of electromagnetic pollution when the causes are human: even if they do not contaminate the environment with harmful substances, they still alter the natural conditions on the planet. This is the case, for example, with broadcasting and telecommunications equipment (including cell phones), which are in fact designed to emit electromagnetic waves. Light Pollution Since light is transmitted as electromagnetic waves, a special case of electromagnetic pollution comes in the form of light pollution. Artificial lighting systems often emit excessive brightness into the environment due to inefficient lamp design, so light is not concentrated downward, on streets or where it is most useful, but is scattered in all directions. In addition to depriving urban dwellers of stargazing, light pollution makes astronomical observations problematic and, above all, it interferes with the life cycles of many animals. Noise Pollution Like light pollution, noise pollution is also caused by human activities that do not emit material substances into the environment but waves, in this case sound. This mostly affects city dwellers (e.g., in nightlife districts) but also, in general, anyone living in areas with a high density of road, rail or aviation traffic, as well as in industrial areas. And, as is the case with light pollution, noise pollution also creates more or less severe disturbances for many animal species. Thermal Pollution Last but not least, thermal pollution occurs when human activities affect the environmental temperature. The effect is direct when heat is emitted: for example, water poured by many industries into waterways. It isn’t necessarily polluted but is at a high temperature. Heat pollution is indirect when the increase in heat is a consequence of other activities: e.g., deforestation, which reduces the cooling effect of vegetation, or overbuilding, so much so that we speak of an "urban heat island" in cities, where the temperature is significantly higher than in surrounding areas. In the long run, the most worrisome indirect consequence is climate change triggered by greenhouse gases. The main causes of pollution Virtually every human activity produces some form of pollution. The oldest economic activity, agriculture, today makes extensive use of substances such as pesticides and fertilizers, which are among the main contributors to soil and water pollution. Industries, and especially large factories, are a major source of air pollution due to gaseous emissions, but also, with their solid and liquid wastes, soil and water pollution. Furthermore, they are among the main contributors to noise and thermal pollution. The energy sector has historically relied on fossil fuels, which are among the main contributors to climate change. Today the contribution of renewable sources is increasing, but in many countries, such as China, the use of coal, the most polluting fuel, is still predominant. Another significant contributor to the greenhouse effect comes from transportation, but it also emits other polluting gases, such as carbon monoxide produced by vehicular traffic. Moreover, transportation is one of the leading causes of noise pollution. Waste – industrial waste but also waste produced by individuals – has a major impact on the environment, especially if it isn’t managed properly. At a local level, landfills are a major source of soil pollution, while on a larger scale so is waste (such as plastic) that reaches the sea via waterways. The effects of environmental pollution Environmental pollution has a harmful effect on human health. According to World Health Organization (WHO) estimates, air pollution is responsible for 7 million premature deaths a year due to respiratory, cardiovascular, and immune system ailments. The damage caused by polluted indoor air must also be taken into consideration. Water pollution is so widespread that nearly two billion people, or a quarter of the world's population, drink contaminated water on a daily basis. Furthermore, pollutants such as waste from the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries, when dispersed into the environment, cause an increase in bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Climate change also means an increase in extreme events such as cyclones, floods and drought. On a planetary scale, the most lasting effects of environmental pollution are on biodiversity, so much so that there is talk of a new mass extinction that is already underway. The main causes, alongside intensive hunting and fishing, include climate change, but all other forms of pollution, from soil pollution to plastic contamination in the oceans, as well as thermal, noise and light pollution, also contribute to a lesser extent. The Global SCENARIO While smog used to be associated with more developed metropolises such as London, over the past 10 years or so air quality in European cities has improved, as European Environmental Agency (EEA) data attest – although exposure to so-called fine particulate matter remains a problem – while it is very precarious in cities in developing countries. Rivers in Asia are also often highly polluted, such as the Ganges (India), the Citarum (Indonesia), the Buriganga (Bangladesh), and the Huang-Ho or Yellow River (China). It’s difficult to rank them with unambiguous criteria, but the River Sarno in the Italian region of Campania also appears in many of these rankings. With regard to marine pollution, the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" (which covers an larger than Australia) in the North Pacific is famous, but similar phenomena can be found in other oceans: these are marine areas where, due to currents, microplastics accumulate in abnormal concentrations (although they aren’t visible to the naked eye). How can we reduce pollution? Reducing pollution is possible; it is something that is being done at an intergovernmental level, for example, with the many climate summits, despite sluggishness and uncertainty. In actual fact, companies are setting goals that go beyond institutional ones: in the energy sector, the most advanced companies are moving to an electricity generation fleet increasingly based on clean sources, which are now fully competitive, thanks to technological innovation, particularly in materials science. The Enel Group is a major player in this field, and we are setting our sights even higher: our new Strategic Plan for 2024-2026 allocates €12.1 billion of investment for renewables, with the goal of adding another 13.4 GW of renewable capacity by 2026, bringing the total to 73 GW. We thus expect that our share of zero-emission generation will rise from 74% in 2023 to 86% in 2026, reaching 100% by 2040. Renewable energy is part of the more general framework of the circular economy. This approach isn’t limited to the simple practice of reuse and recycling, but also involves extending the useful life of various products and making them circular from the design stage onwards. This cuts down on waste generation and reduces pollution related to the extraction of raw materials. Another improvement we are seeing is electrification in areas such as heating, cooking, and transportation. This is decreasing greenhouse gas emissions and improving air quality in cities and homes. Moreover, compared to the situation some time ago, even internal combustion vehicles are now less polluting. This is due to technological innovation, as well as fuel diversification. At a local level, there are an increasing number of actions being taken by governments, especially in more developed countries, particularly to reduce traffic and encourage sustainable waste management. Individuals and communities can also play an important role in reducing environmental pollution: for example, by favoring travel by public transportation (especially rail), paying to the sorting of waste, reducing energy consumption, as well as, of course, avoiding dispersing plastics or other polluting materials into the environment. The responsibility is everyone's, the importance is paramount and the mission is possible: namely, to curb all forms of anthropogenic pollution to protect human health, natural ecosystems and the environment in general.
