Rotaract Club of College of Chemical Sciences

Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe What are polythene and plastics? Why were they introduced to the world?  Would you believe that polythene was introduced with a good motive?  Earlier before the introduction of polythene, people were using bags made from paper. In fact there had been environmental pollution due to cutting down of trees not only for timber, but cutting down small trees for the manufacture of paper. As an alternative, the people were enthusiastic to hear about a synthetic material which was pretty cheap & could be used in place of paper. The black liquor made during the paper manufacturing is another toxic substance which had been of concern. Hence polythene was seen as a replacement to eliminate the issue of black liquor. But the scientists had failed to visualize the impact of polythene to the environment after they have been used. Though polythene is having a very good ability to be reused, degradability of polythene had not been thought of, when it was first introduced.  Do

Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe We have been discussing the causes of global warming and its exponential increase during the last few decades. What are the consequences of global warming?  Often observed direct and indirect consequences are spanning from health to economic and social effects. The extreme weather conditions are resulting in causing many health issues and natural hazards. Health issues related to polluted water and food are few major headlines and many others such as diseases spread by mosquitoes (dengue, malaria) and pathogens are also observed to severely fluctuate throughout the year in certain countries.  Due to climate changes, extreme floods and droughts occur & changes in rain patterns affect the persistence of clean drinking water in some areas. As drinking water becomes scarce as a result of global warming, people are compelled to depend on polluted and contaminated sources. This also increases the number of diseases spread by water and is a cause for many health iss

Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe The increasing average  air temperature  near the surface of  earth is the simplest meaning of this issue, on which we are going to give our readers a ‘wake-up call’.  Why do we have to care about the rise in temperature? Is it a significant rise? What are the causative factors of global warming? And what are the effects of this phenomena?  The global warming is aligned with the term known as the ‘Green House Effect’. As we know, the sun as well as the earth can emit radiation which is simply called as the emission of energy. Global warming is a result of the reduction in the emission of radiation out of the earth’s atmosphere and increase in accumulation of that energy. This simply results in an increment in the heat, thus the temperature in the earth’s atmosphere.  Greenhouse gases play an important role in accumulating the heat energy within our earth. Some of the greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, water vapor and methane.  Does the global war

Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe We have been discussing the adverse effects of pollution. One of such major issue is the phenomena called Acid Rain. It is rain or a form of precipitation that is more acidic than regular, meaning that the water contains more hydrogen ions.  The causes for the increased acidity in water are gases such as sulphur and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere. These, when mixed with oxygen and water in the atmosphere can form strong acids such as sulphuric and Nitric, which result in the increased acidity in water. The emission of sulphur and nitrogen containing gases occurs due to the burning of fossil fuels. Most of these Sulphur and Nitrogen containing gases are emitted by Electricity generations and burning of fuels in vehicles. Natural processes such as Volcanic eruptions also release such gases to the atmosphere but human activities have been the main causes especially after the industrial revolution. Acid rain affects almost everything. It results in t

Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe   We have been concentrating on the various types and causes of environmental pollution so far, giving our readers a “Wake Up call” about the different aspects of pollution. Another important feature of environmental pollution is their direct and indirect consequences.  It should be understood that pollution cannot be completely terminated at once. But what we can do as the general public is to reduce the pollution that is taking place with the consent of humans. Why should we mitigate the environmental pollution and move towards a sustainable lifestyle?  ‘Is it because we need to protect the environment?’  The next question coming in to your mind then would be, ‘Why should we protect the environment?’ is it because ‘environment is notable to be protected?’ or ‘humans need the environment for their own survival?’ The answers to these questions will be the most important piece of knowledge in mitigating the pollution. If people do not understand the

  by Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe “Man is the only animal that fouls its own nest”                                                            -Unknown Pollution is the introduction of harmful materials into the environment. The harmful materials are called the ‘pollutants’. Pollutants are often resulting from human activities but it can be from natural phenomena such as ash produced by volcanic eruptions. In fact, pollution refers to any harmful substance that contributes negatively to the environment.  Pollution consists of five major types. These can be classified as air, soil, water, light and sound pollution. Air pollution is caused by the burning of fossil fuels. Mainly vehicles and factories contribute to air pollution.   WHO has identified that air pollution kills over 7 million people worldwide each year. It also states that nine, out of ten people breath air, consisting of pollutants. These air pollutants are therefore resulting in many diseases to the humans. Other

By Rtr. Dilhan Jayasinghe  Edited by Rtr. Pevindra Ratnayake  “The ultimate test of man’s conscience may be his willingness to sacrifice something today for future generations whose words of thanks will not be heard”.                                                                                                 - Gaylord Nelson Even though humans are part of the natural world just like all other living beings, people often try to define and understand human activities as a separate category from other natural phenomena. This itself has led to a deviation of human lifestyles from their natural practices.  People depend on the environment for food, water, timber and natural gases etc. The demand for natural resources has been increasing since the Industrial Revolution as the human population continues to increase exponentially. Hence, we tend to modify and change nature and in turn natural phenomena, in order to fulfil not just our needs but our greed in this competiti