Pollution in Croatia 2

POLLUTION IN CROATIA Petar Danijel Isić, Mihael Prelec, 7.B, OŠ Sesvete

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 • The major kinds of pollution, usually classified by environment, are air pollution, water pollution, and land pollution • Modern society is also concerned about specific types of pollutants, such as noise pollution, light pollution, and plastic pollution.

AIR POLLUTION • according to IQAir World‘ s most polluted countries Croatia ranked 35th in 2020 • https://www.iqair.com/us/world- most-polluted-countries the cleanest city was Plitvice Lakes and the most polluted Slavonski brod

Contributors to poor air quality in Croatia include: • vehicle emissions • combustion plants • oil and gas refining • the chemicals and plastics industries Available data indicates that SLAVONSKI BROD, VELIKA GORICA, ZAGREB, LUG, AND DESINIC GORA are experience high levels of air pollution.

SYMPTOMS Short term symptoms resulting from exposure to air pollution include itchy eyes, nose and throat, wheezing, coughing, shortness of breath, chest pain, headaches, nausea, and upper respiratory infections (bronchitis and pneumonia). It also exacerbates asthma and emphysema. Long term effects include lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory illness, and developing allergies. Air pollution is also associated with heart attacks and strokes.

WATER POLLUTION Croatia is one of the few countries that still has drinking tap water, while Germany and America, for example, have to drink bottled water

SEA POLLUTION Tourism is a key pillar of the Croatian economy, representing around 20% of the country’s gross domestic product (2016 Cities along the Adriatic coastline of figure). However, the inadequate disposal and management Croatia boast a sizable and fast of wastewater in the coastal area was threatening the quality growing tourism industry that is one of of the Adriatic Sea coastal waters and hindering sustainable the key pillars of the country’s economic development in the Adriatic coastline. In line with economy. this, it was essential to reduce the amount of wastewater pollution loads entering the Adriatic Sea. However, the practice of discharging untreated sewage directly into the Wastewater treatment facilities, such as this one in Adriatic Sea resulted in serious threats Opatija, were built to combat pollution in Croatia’s of environmental degradation of coastal areas. coastal waters https://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2 018/01/04/croatia-reducing- wastewater-pollution-in-sensitive- coastal-areas-of-the-adriatic-sea

ALTHOUGH USEFUL AND AGRICULTURE IS A WATER POLLUTANT Mineral fertilizers pollute water, first of all, with nutrients : nitrogen and phosphorus. The nutrients contained in mineral fertilizers are very easily soluble in water. By straining water into the deeper layers of the soil, nutrients are directly introduced into groundwater. Nitrogenous substances (nitrates and ammonium) are very mobile in an aqueous solution of the soil and easily end up in groundwater.

LIGHT POLLUTION • light pollution is a serious problem: it negatively affects the environment, as well as human and animal health. • light pollution above Zagreb is level with much larger cities, such as Vienna or Budapest. A large part of the problem is public lighting • the pollution of the night sky has been witnessed by astronomers for years. The Višnjan Observatory has changed locations once before due to pollution, and they warned that this could happen again.

IN RECENT DECADES, HUNDREDS OF STUDIES HAVE BEEN DONE TO CONFIRM THE BAD INFLUENCE OF ARTIFICIAL LIGHT, MOST NOTABLY THAT OF THE BLUE SPECTRUM, ON HUMAN, PLANT AND ANIMAL LIFE • In humans, it affects the circadian • Too strong lighting also threatens insects rhythm, which is associated with the that often die near the bulb. Fireflies exchange of day and night and has an shade the mating signal, and nocturnal impact on psychological, mental and animals are disturbed by migrations. A behavioral changes within a 24-hour 2016 study found that trees are cycle. Artificial light, such as too bright increasingly blooming in the off-season, lighting and screen light, affects the as lighting encourages buds to bloom secretion of melatonin (the hormone prematurely, making them more that regulates sleep cycles) and can vulnerable to damage by cold interfere with normal sleep, and there temperatures before the right start to are studies showing how light from spring. screens and mobile phones can affect depression and anxiety https://faktograf.hr/2021/02/03/svj etlosno-zagadenje-u-hrvatskoj-je- ozbiljan-problem/

HUMAN ACTIVITY IS A MAJOR CAUSE OF AIR POLLUTION Citizens can help solve environmental problems by reducing pollution at the source, before it is created. We can all apply pollution prevention in our daily lives START TODAY!

CROATIAN PLANS TO REDUCE POLLUTION Croatia has adapted its IN FUTURE: development strategies to the principles of sustainability, focusing on Croatia will have to work more intensively to concrete: instead of landfilling, switch to separate collection and recycling. Since 2014, • a significantly higher share of gradually increases the amount of municipal renewable energy production waste generated but is still always lower than the EU average • higher energy efficiency and a reduction in greenhouse gas Urban transport is responsible for emissions approximately a quarter of CO2 emissions from transport, so Croatia will have to improve • the Integrated National Energy and its public transport service Climate Plan (NECP) for 2021-2030 report_hr_hr.pdf (europa.eu)

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