Three-quarters of the trash found off Australian beaches is plastic, a new study says, warning that the rubbish is entangling and being swallowed by wildlife.

Air pollution occurs when the air contains gases, dust, fumes or odour in harmful amounts. That is, amounts which could be harmful to the health or comfort of humans and animals or which could cause damage to plants and materials.

Pollution is in our air, rivers and oceans, and is creating havoc with our climate and environment – all because our economy is too dependent on polluting energy sources.

What many commuters choking on smog have long suspected has finally been scientifically validated: air pollution causes lung cancer.

pollution, also called environmental pollution, the addition of any substance (solid, liquid, or gas) or any form of energy (such as heat, sound, or radioactivity) to the environment at a rate faster than it can be dispersed, diluted, decomposed, recycled, or stored in some harmless form.

Air pollution, contamination of the air by noxious gases and minute particles of solid and liquid matter (particulates) in concentrations that endanger health. The major sources of air pollution are transportation engines, power and heat generation, industrial processes, and the burning of solid waste.

Pollution is one of the most visible effects of human occupation across the planet. Whether in the most remote of deserts or the busiest of cities, we see the discarded signs of human habitation everywhere. Vehicle exhaust emissions, sewage, household refuse and chemicals litter the landscapes and pollute the oceans.

The article focuses on high levels of air pollution being produced by China's booming industry, which is being carried around the world by prevailing winds. Atmospheric chemist Dan Jaffe has been researching the phenomenon, finding pollution in Washington state that originated in Asia. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency took note of his research and showed concern over mercury found in air samples, which can have a health impact on fetuses, among other effects.

Industrial pollution has adversely affected biodiversity for the last two centuries and continues to increase globally. The effect most closely correlated with loss of ecosystem services is toxification of environmental sites, whereby the organisms living in the ecosystem are damaged because of the poisonous nature of many pollutants.

The article discusses the global effects of air pollution, regardless of where it originates from. Scientists who conducted field tests in Mexico City, Mexico determined that pollutants such as diesel emissions, organic aerosols and secondary organic aerosols can remain in the atmosphere for long periods of time. These pollutants do not remain stationary, but rather float throughout the atmosphere, effecting areas far away from the source.

Air pollution contributes to mortality and morbidity. We estimated the impact of outdoor (total) and traffic-related air pollution on public health in Austria, France, and Switzerland. Attributable cases of morbidity and mortality were estimated.