Impacts of Pollution
What can air pollution do to our body?
The organs that are most affected by air pollution are the lungs, heart and brain. Air pollution can cause lung problems like asthma and bronchitis, heart problems, headaches and problems concentrating which might make it harder to learn at school.
What can pollution do to our environment?
Air pollution can be harmful to animals and plants. Gases and particulates can affect animals ability to breathe and get into their bodies, like humans. Plants also need the air to survive, so when the gases in the air change, plants' ability to breathe also changes. For example, too much nitrogen dioxide in the air can damage farmers' crops like wheat and barley.
Air pollution can also impact on global warming. Certain gases can trap heat in the atmosphere, contributing to the warming of the planet. This is known as the Greenhouse Effect.
Causes and impacts of air pollution
Look at these two images. One shows the area outside a school before the people were aware of how important air quality is, and one shows the same area afterwards. Can you make a list of the causes of air pollution in the first image, and the positive impacts that being more aware of air quality have had in the second image?
Explore more
Explore more about air quality and climate change, the impacts of air pollution, or even calculate your own air quality impact using our interactive calculator!
