A major issue plaguing the entire world is pollution. It originates from a multitude of sectors, including the industrial, commercial, and transportation sectors, and takes many different forms, such as air, land, and water pollution. Apart from affecting humans directly or through water, there are some effects of soil pollution on plants.
According to Pollution Issues, soil pollution can cause water pollution if toxic chemicals leach into groundwater or if contaminated runoff or sewage, which can contain dangerous heavy metals, reaches streams, lakes, or oceans. Soil pollution naturally contributes to air pollution by releasing volatile compounds into the atmosphere, so the more toxic compounds soil contains, the greater the air pollution it creates.
Plants cannot adjust to the chemical change in the soil in such a short period of time. The soil’s fungi and bacteria that hold them together begin to deteriorate, It causes a new issue with soil erosion.
Regular application of chemical fertilizers, inorganic fertilizers, and pesticides will reduce soil fertility and change the soil’s structure. This will result in a decline in soil quality and subpar crops. Slowly declining soil fertility renders land unusable for farming and the survival of any indigenous vegetation.
Plant life stops thriving in such soils because soil contamination is frequently accompanied by a reduction in the availability of nutrients. Plants may become poisonous from inorganic aluminum-contaminated soil. Additionally, this kind of pollution frequently raises the soil’s salinity, which makes it unsuitable for the development of plant life.
Through a process called bioaccumulation, plants grown in polluted soil may collect significant amounts of soil pollutants. All the accumulated contaminants are transferred up the food chain when herbivores eat these plants.
This may cause numerous beneficial animal species to disappear or go extinct. Additionally, these toxins have the potential to ascend the food chain and eventually appear as diseases in people.
Plants are living things that rely on their surroundings in various ways to survive. These include the right amount of heat and light, food supplies, water, air, physical space, and the preferred growing medium (different types of soil or water).
They absorb elements from the soil and air through their roots and leaves in order to develop and reproduce. Plants then employ these compounds to develop body tissues and provide energy for bodily cells to function.
Because plants lack the mobility of animals, they must digest all substances that come into their vicinity through their metabolic processes, including contaminants.
All types of pollution affect plants negatively and leave them vulnerable. Numerous variables that vary from location to location or between plant species (such as soil type, pollutant concentration, age of a plant, temperature, season, etc.) impact how much each plant will be affected.
Direct introduction of contaminants into the soil is possible. When precipitation deposits acidic substances like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, soil can get contaminated by air pollution.
Acidic drainage can be released by human activities like mining and have a wide range of effects. Whatever the origin, soil contamination harms not only the species that depend on plants and flora but also the plants and flora themselves. Here are some of the causes of soil pollution.
1. Micro-organisms
Acidic soils are produced when acidic substances, such as sulfur dioxide, are deposited on the soil surface. Microorganisms, which improve soil structure by decomposing organic matter and facilitating water movement, cannot survive in acidic environments.
2. Photosynthesis
Acid rain-polluted soils affect plants by altering the chemistry of the soil and lowering the capacity of plants to absorb nutrients and perform photosynthesis.
3. Aluminum
While organic forms of aluminum are present in the environment naturally, soil pollution can release inorganic versions that are extremely harmful to plants and may possibly leach into groundwater, intensifying their negative effects.
4. Algae Blooms
High amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus in contaminated soils can seep into streams, resulting in algal blooms that kill aquatic vegetation by depleting dissolved oxygen.
5. pH
Acidic deposition into the soil can hinder its capacity to buffer fluctuations in soil pH, leading to a decline in plant life as a result of unfavorable environmental conditions.
Table of Contents
Effects of Soil Pollution on Plants
The following are the effects of soil pollution on plants
1. Enhance Soil Structure
These heavy metals can build up in soils to the point that they are unable to support plant growth when applied frequently or in excessive amounts.
The decomposition of organic molecules in the soil can release sulfur dioxide and other sulfur compounds, which results in acid rain, and soil pollution also allows significant amounts of nitrogen to escape through ammonia volatilization and denitrification.
In addition, acidic soils produced by the deposition of acidic substances, such as sulfur dioxide brought on by the burning of fossil fuels, generate an acidic environment that is harmful to microorganisms, which improves the soil structure by breaking down organic material and assisting in water flow.
It is well recognized that soil pollutants harm plants and vegetation cover with high salinity, acidity, alkalinity, or accessible metals, which results in stunted growth and low crop yield.
The amount of vegetation/plant cover is lower in industrial wastelands. In agricultural settings, soil contamination significantly affected crop growth and production.
2. Changes in Plant Metabolism
Soil contamination may affect plant metabolism, lower agricultural yields, and cause trees and other plants that can absorb toxins from the soil to pass those contaminants up the food chain.
3. Prevention of Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis is prevented by acid rain-polluted soils because they alter the chemistry of the soil and make it harder for plants to absorb nutrients and engage in photosynthesis.
4. Disruption of Flora and Fauna Balance
In addition to causing soil erosion, soil pollution also depletes the soil of its natural nutrients, which makes it difficult for plants to grow and disturbs the balance of flora and fauna that lives there.
5. Production of Poisonous Plants
Soil pollution makes the soil more saline, rendering it unsuitable for supporting plants and rendering the soil useless and arid. If certain crops are able to flourish in these conditions, they will be so poisonous that eating them will result in major health issues.
6. Plant Death
Another possible consequence of soil pollution is the production of hazardous dust. High amounts of nitrogen and phosphorus in contaminated soils can seep into streams, resulting in algal blooms that kill aquatic vegetation by depleting dissolved oxygen.
Finally, the addition of acids to the soil might reduce its capacity to buffer pH variations, leading to a decline in plant life owing to unfavorable environmental conditions.
7. Other Physical Damages
Toxic chemicals kept in polluted soils poison plants. Pesticides, for instance, can severely burn plant leaves when they come into touch with them or, worse, intoxicate the plants and kill them when they do.
Similar risks are presented by oil spills. The majority of plant life is harmful, but oil also plugs soil pores, preventing aeration. Thus, oxygen cannot reach the roots of plants.
The inability to properly photosynthesize, which results in stunted growth and declining production, poor development, root damage, and leaf damage (yellowing, falling leaves, or injuries) are some of the observable symptoms of these processes.
8. Bioaccumulation
Pesticides, toxic metals, and edible plant components can all bioaccumulate in plant biomass. Consequently, these polluted crops have serious long-term repercussions on both human and animal health.
When poisonous substances penetrate into the ground and deplete the soil’s nutritional value, plants suffer. These dangerous compounds frequently build up in the soil, altering its chemical composition and the elements’ availability, which harms plant cells and keeps them from absorbing nutrients and growing.
Lead is one significant heavy metal that builds up in soils as a pollutant. Due to high levels of lead in the soil, other elements that are required in the proper concentrations for the health of plants are less readily available. Lead prevents photosynthesis in plants with significant damage. Plants do not prosper and finally die.
9. Increased Susceptibility to Disease or Pest Infestation
While certain types of pollution are obvious to the naked eye, others are not. Pollution has numerous detrimental consequences on plants in addition to animals and people. In actuality, plants make toxins more visible to the environment than they do to our health.
This is due to the fact that most often pollutants affect plant metabolism, weakening them and making them more susceptible to illness or pest infestation.
10. Metal Toxicity Increase in Plants
Metal toxicity in plants is brought on by the bioleaching of metals that results from the acidity of the soil brought on by toxic waste disposal or acid precipitation. Severe forest damage is frequently observed in various forest areas as a result of high soil acidity.
Acidification of the soil is frequently caused by the continued use of inorganic fertilizers in agricultural fields. Because of the abundant availability of some metals, crop growth and yields are affected.
Conclusion
It is important to handle the complex problem of soil pollution. It’s critical that we all comprehend how vital soil is to our survival. The sooner we identify the issue, the easier it will be to find a solution to the soil pollution issue. Everyone, from individuals to the government, must participate in solving this complex issue. Here are a few strategies for lessening soil contamination.
- Use less Chemical Fertilizers
- It is important to encourage reforestation and afforestation.
- Reuse and Recycle Products
- Encourage the use of organic manure
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A passion-driven environmentalist by heart. Lead content writer at EnvironmentGo.
I strive to educate the public about the environment and its problems.
It has always been about nature, we ought to protect not destroy.