National Pollution Prevention Day: Know the History, Significance and Ways to Control Pollution

Every year, National Pollution Prevention Day is observed on December 2 to remember the people who lost their lives during the 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. In 1984, at the night of December 2–3, the tragic disaster happened due to the leakage of Methyl Isocyanate gas in the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant. It is believed that Bhopal gas tragedy is one of the world’s most tragic industrial disasters till date. 

Significance 

 The day is observed to create an awareness among people and industries regarding the importance of pollution control acts and about the prevention of natural resources like air, soil, noise, and water pollution.

As per the National Health Portal of India, "around 7 million people across the globe die every year due to air pollution. It also says that the condition of air pollution is so worse that nine among ten people globally do not have access to safe or pure air, especially children and older people are highly affected by air pollution." 

Ways to Control Pollution 

Public Transport 

Try to opt for carpool and rideshare, and consider taking public transit instead of your own vehicle. This way the emission would be much lesser in the air. 

Plant Trees 

Plants and trees emit Oxygen which is necessary for us to breathe. They provide the nutrients to the air to make it cleaner. 

Opt for Recycle and Reuse 

In order to save natural resources and utilize them wisely, opt for recycling and reusing of the products as much as possible. It not only minimizes pollution and waste emissions, it also needs less energy to manufacture the recycled items than non-recycled ones.

Stop using Plastic 

Stop using items made up of plastic as it could be hazardous to the environment. Plastic take a very long time to degrade and it is responsible for land pollution which ultimately impacts our health through the food grown in the soil. 

Proper disposal of Garbage 

Make sure to dispose off the waste efficiently. Garbage disposal, whether for industrial or domestic trash, is one of the most effective means of reducing land contamination.