Human Impact on Atmospheric Composition
- Human activities impact the atmospheric composition through altering inputs and outputs of the system
- Changes in the concentrations of atmospheric gases such as ozone, carbon dioxide and water vapour have significant effects on ecosystems
Human Activities Impacting the Atmosphere
| Atmospheric component affected by human activity | Activities affecting atmospheric component | Effects on ecosystems |
| Ozone | Release of ozone-depleting substances (e.g. CFCs used in aerosols, gas-blown plastics, pesticides, flame retardants and refrigerants) reduces the amount of atmospheric ozone | Increases UV radiation reaching the Earth's surface, harming organisms, including phytoplankton, plants, and humans |
| Carbon dioxide | Burning fossil fuels, deforestation and industrial processes all increase atmospheric carbon dioxide | Enhances the greenhouse effect, leading to global warming and climate change, affecting ecosystems and biodiversity |
| Water vapour | Land use changes, agriculture and industrial processes can disturb atmospheric water vapour concentrations | Alters precipitation patterns, contributing to droughts or excessive rainfall in certain regions, impacting ecosystems, agriculture, and water availability |
| Methane | Agriculture (livestock and rice production), fossil fuel extraction and use, and waste management (landfill sites) can increase atmospheric methane | Enhances the greenhouse effect, leading to global warming and climate change, affecting ecosystems, melting permafrost (resulting in positive feedback) and ice caps, and contributing to sea-level rise |
| Nitrous oxide | Agriculture (fertiliser use, animal waste), combustion processes (e.g. in vehicle engines) and industrial activities all increase atmospheric nitrous oxide | Contributes to global warming and climate change, and affects air quality |
| Aerosols | Aerosols (e.g. fine particles, such as soot and dust, as well as gases like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides) are produced by industrial processes, biomass burning and vehicle emissions | Alters radiative properties of atmosphere, affects air quality, and can influence cloud formation and precipitation patterns, impacting ecosystems and human health (fine particulate matter can be inhaled by humans and animals, leading to respiratory problems and other health issues) - atmospheric sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides lead to acid rain formation |
- It is important to recognise that the impacts of these human activities on atmospheric composition are interconnected and can have cascading effects on ecosystems, biodiversity, and human well-being
- The table above provides a simplified overview of some key human-induced changes in atmospheric composition and their general effects on ecosystems
