PollutionThelitterproblem on the coast ofGuyana, 2010Pollutionis the introduction ofcontaminantsinto the natural environment that cause adverse change.[1]Pollution can take the form ofchemical substancesorenergy, such as noise, heat or light.Pollutants, the components of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring contaminants. Pollution is often classed aspoint sourceornonpoint source pollution.Ancient culturesAir pollutionhas always accompanied civilizations. Pollution started from prehistoric times when man created the first fires. According to a 1983 article in the journalScience,"sootfound on ceilings of prehistoric caves provides ample evidence of the high levels of pollution that was associated with inadequate ventilation of open fires."Urban pollutionThe burning of coal and wood, and the presence of many horses in concentrated areas made the cities the cesspools of pollution. The Industrial Revolution brought an infusion of untreated chemicals and wastes into local streams that served as the water supply.Forms of pollutionTheLachine CanalinMontrealCanada, is polluted.The major forms of pollution are listed below along with the particular contaminant relevant to each of them:Air pollution: the release of chemicals and particulates into the atmosphere. Common gaseous pollutants includecarbon monoxide,sulfur dioxide,chlorofluorocarbons(CFCs) andnitrogen oxidesproduced byindustryand motor vehicles. Photochemicalozoneandsmogare created as nitrogen oxides andhydrocarbonsreact to sunlight.Particulate matter, or fine dust is characterized by theirmicrometresize PM10to PM2.5.PollutantsA pollutant is a waste material that pollutes air, water or soil. Three factors determine the severity of a pollutant: its chemical nature, the concentration and the persistence.Cost of pollutionPollution has cost. Manufacturing activities that causeair pollutionimpose health and clean-up costs on the whole society, whereas the neighbors of an individual who chooses to fire-proof his home may benefit from a reduced risk of a fire spreading to their own houses. If external costs exist, such as pollution, the producer may choose to produce more of the product than would be produced if the producer were required to pay all associated environmental costsEffectsHuman healthOverview of main health effects on humans from some common types of pollution.[36][37][38]Adverseair qualitycan kill many organisms including humans. Ozone pollution can causerespiratory disease,cardiovascular disease,throatinflammation, chest pain, andcongestion.Role of GovernmentThe IT infrastructures significance to the country has gained visibility in the recent years due to cyber attacks and rapid growth in identity theft and financial frauds. These events have made it increasingly clear that the security of the IT infrastructure has become a key strategic interest to the Government. Although the industry now making investments in security-related infrastructure, their actions are directed primarily at short-term efforts driven by market demands to address immediate security problems.The Government has a different but equally important role to play in cyber security assurance in the form of long-term strategies. In this direction, the deliberations of the National Information Board (NIB), National Security Council (NSC) have stressed the importance of a national strategy on cyber security, development of national capabilities for ensuring adequate protection of critical information infrastructures including rapid response and remediation to security incidents, long term investments in infrastructure facilities, capacity building and R&D. Governments responsibilities in long-term investment and fundamental research will enable development of new concepts, technologies, infrastructure prototypes, and trained personnel needed to spur on next-generation security solutions.Government leadership catalyzes activities of strategic importance to the Nation. In cyber security assurance, such leadership can energize a broad collaboration with private-sector partners and stakeholders to generate fundamental technological advances in the security of the Nations IT infrastructure. First, in support of national and economic security, the Government should identify the most dangerous classes of cyber security assurance threats to the Nation, the most critical IT infrastructure vulnerabilities, and the most difficult cyber security assurance problems. Second, the Government can use these findings to develop and implement a coordinated R&D effort focused on the key research needs that can only be addressed with such leadership. While these needs will evolve over time, this Cyber Security Strategy provides a starting point for such an effort.Public-private partnership is a key component of Cyber Security Strategy. These partnerships can usefully confront coordination problems. They can significantly enhance information exchange and cooperation. Public-private engagement will take a variety of forms and will address awareness, training, technological improvements, vulnerability remediation, and recovery operations. '' |