Question

Discuss the steps to be taken to minimise environmental degradation by industry.

Answer 1

Every litre of waste water discharged by our industry pollutes eight times the quantity of freshwater

• Treating effluents and hot water before releasing them in ponds and rivers.
• By recycling and reusing water in two or more stages, water usage can be minimised.
• To meet water requirements, it is important to carry out rainwater harvesting.
• Mechanical means are the primary treatment. This involves sedimentation, flocculation, grinding, screening.
• Biological process is the secondary treatment.
• Physical, chemical and biological is the Tertiary treatment. Recycling wastewater is also involved.
• There needs to be legal regulation of groundwater resources, wherever there is threat of overdrawing groundwater resources by the industry.
• Using inertial separators, scrubbers, fabric filters, factories with electrostatic precipitators can be fitted with smoke stacks to reduce particulate matter in the air.
• In factories, smoke can be reduced by using gas or oil instead of coal.
• Generators should be fitted with silencers.
• To reduce noise and increase energy efficiency, machineries must be redesigned.
• Apart from making use of earplugs, noise absorbing materials may be used.
• There needs to be integration of environmental concerns and economic development to address the challenges of sustainable development.