The impact of urbanization and industrialization

What is URBANIZATION??It refers to the process whereby a society changes from a rural to an urban way of life. It refers also to the gradual increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas.

What is INDUSTRIALIZATION??It refers to the development of industry on an extensive scale.

Why there is rapid urbanization & industrialization?Since there is rapid growth in human population, so the demand for the expansion of the existing boundaries of urban areas is great.Modern agriculture involves more machinery and fewer labourers than before. Farmers lose their jobs and lands and are forced to move to urban areas with their families.Economic growth and advancement in technology result in the shift of agricultural societies to those based on manufacturing, commerce and services. This also accounts for the increasing demands for lands for commercial, industrial and tourism development

Industrialization in the name of growth has loaded tremendous pressure on environment. Industrialization & environment in the developing countries tries to run hand to hand. But knowingly or unknowingly, industrialization ran faster without caring for environment to win the race. The pace of industrialization has increased several fold in last decade.

Rapid industrialization to meet the public need has deteriorated the environment to its fullest extent during last two decade. Industrial effluents, polluted air, noise pollution, Green House gas effect etc not only a concern for human habitat but also a concern for the forthcoming disasters.

Environmental disasters such as Bhopal tragedy, Rhine pollution, Chernobyl disaster, acid rain damage, Ozone Layer Depletion has led to growing public pressures on governments all over the world which started imposing stringent legislation with severe penalties in environmental issues environmental & safety system.

The continued increase in the pollution coupled with the industrial revolution has had the vital impact on natural resources. The resultant deterioration of environment and fast depletion of natural resources threaten the sustainability of economic development.Environmental impact

Pollution

Today industries are one of the major sources of pollution. Pollution, in its simplest sense can be defined as any adverse change or modification made to the natural environment by the activities of man. Water, air and noise pollution are the major types of pollution for which industry is responsible.

Water Pollution :

It is calculated that viscose rayon industry requires 1600 litres of water per kg. of fibre.

Pulp and paper industry which is one among the major water polluting industries require 270-450 litres water per kg of paper.

Industrial waste-water contributes only about one fourth of India's total waste-water by volume, but is over one half of the total water pollutant load. Most industrial waste water comes from large and medium size facilities, especially in the chemical industry and related sectors.

According to a study, much stretch of the Yamuna which flows through Delhi receives about 5 lakh litre of DDT waste per day.

The industrialization of the modern world has led to the proliferation in our environment of many different metal compounds.

Some metals, such as zinc and iron are required in trace amounts for many biological functions. Other metals such as lead and mercury have had significant toxic effects on development.

There are historic examples of large scale disasters, for example the mercury poisoning of waterways in Japan .

Mercury poisoning (by methyl mercury) or Minamata disease had substantial neurological effects similar to Hunter Russell syndrome. In addition to their direct toxic effects, the potential reduction in fetal growth and long-term effects should also be considered

Air Pollution

Air pollution is as old as industrialization. Pollution of the air is more widespread in its effect than other forms of pollution, becasue people have to breath air.

If water is polluted one can avoid drinking polluted water. But such choice is not possible as far as air is concerned.

All industries which consume energy in any form cause air pollution. Sulphur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and suspended particulate matter have been identified to be the major pollutant in industrial regions.

Today air pollution in urban area is a severe problem. Recent statistics show that an estimated 600 million people, i-e., 11.3% of the total world population (world population in live in cities where sulphur dioxide levels exceeds WHO health guidelines) and 1,200 million (22.6% of world population) live in cities where particulate matter exceeds WHO health guidelines.

Land Pollution

Vast quantities of solid waste are produced in industries.Soil from construction sites washes away during rainfall and clogs natural water systems. This leads to sewer overflows which release waste, oil, litter and other toxic materials into areas coastal environment

Health risks to the public

Health risks vary considerably for the public living and working outside the factory. They include the distance from the factory, the relationship with the factory workers and the susceptibility to pollutants.

The family members of the workers may get exposure to toxic substances such as lead brought home on Exposure is often higher for people who live close to industries. Industrial pollution has many indirect health effects.

The liquid waste from the industries cause reduced fish catches. The toxic substances will enter into the body of human beings who consume the fish. The slum dwellers often take their bath in this contaminated water, and this may cause skin diseases to them.

An excellent example of urban sprawl within our country is that of the city of Bangalore. After the establishment of IT industry in Bangalore, the population exploded from 24,76,355 in 1980 to 42,92,223 in 2001 with influx of 18 lakh immigrants within twodecades.

The growing population has increased pressure on several resources including civic amenities residential availability cost of living local infrastructure transport traffic and administration

Bangalore has lost many if its water bodies (lakes) and consequently the fragile ecosystem has been disturbed due to the ever-increasing need for space, to cater to residences and business establishments.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF URBANIZATION

Temperature - Due to factors such as paving over formerly vegetated land, increasing number of residences and high-rise apartments and industries, temperature increases drastically.

Air pollution - Factories and automobiles are symbols of urbanization. Due to harmful emissions of gases and smoke from factories and vehicles, air pollution occurs.

Current research shows high amount of suspended particulate matter in air, particularly in cities, which contributes to allergies and respiratory problems thereby becoming a huge health hazard.

Water issues - When urbanization takes place, water cycle changes as cities have more precipitation than surrounding areas. Due to dumping of sewage from factories in water bodies, water pollution occurs which can lead to outbreaks of epidemics.

Destruction of Habitats - To make an area urbanized, a lot of forested areas are destroyed. Usually these areas would have been habitats to many birds and animals.

Adverse effects of UrbanizationThere is increasing competition for facilities due to the high standard of living in urban areas, which has triggered several negative effects. Many people including farmers who move to cities in search of a better life end up as casual laborers as they lack adequate education. This leads to one of the worst problems of urbanization - the growth of slums.SlumsThey are urban areas that are heavily populated with substandard housing and very poorliving conditions. As a result several problems arise.

Land insecurity - Slums are usually located on land, which are not owned by the slum dwellers. They can be evicted at any time by the landowners.

Poor living conditions - Crowding and lack of sanitation are main problems. This contributes to outbreak of diseases. Utilities such as water, electricity and sewage disposal are also scarce.

Unemployment - Since the number of people competing for jobs is more than jobs available, unemployment is an inevitable problem.

Crime - Slum conditions make maintenance of law and order difficult. Patrolling of slums is not a priority of law enforcing officers. Unemployment and poverty force people into anti-social activities. Slums become a breeding ground for criminal activities.

Development has altered the natural flow of water through the watershed.

Before the watershed was developed, most precipitation would soak into the soil or evaporate from plants and trees. The remaining runoff would slowly make its way through a network of streams, lakes and wetlands and eventually end up in the ocean.

As more people moved to the watershed, houses, roads, stores and parking lots replaced natural vegetation with many surfaces that do not absorb water.

These impervious surfaces prevent water from soaking into the soil and cause a larger amount of water to run off into nearby streams or be carried to those streams through the storm sewer system, which greatly impacts streamflow.

Agricultural Revolution :

With the introduction of science and technology the method of agricultural production has changed a lot.

As the mouths to feed are increasing day by day it is the responsibility of the nation to produce more with less area of cultivation. This has been made possible by the over-application of fertilizers and pesticides and the introduction of High Yielding Varieties (HYV).

Fertilizer use in India during 1950-51 was just 0.55 kg per hectare. By the early 1990s Indian farmers were using about 72 kg fertilizer per hectare.

Many of the small scale farmers are not much aware of the optimum quantity of pesticides that has to be used for getting better results.

In India this type of danger is very alarming as many of the farmers are illiterate and are not exposed to any training programme.

According to WHO, agro-chemicals alone lead to about 4 million poisoning each year around the world.

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