Environmental Hazards
With the current environmental risks and warnings presented to the public, many are now weary as to how man-made items could cause environmental hazards and risks to themselves and their families. There are at least four main categories of environmental hazards that are prominent in most societies at the present time: cultural, physical, chemical, and biological hazards. According to the Ontario Ministry of Labour (2012), physical hazards are the most common environmental hazard a person can be exposed into as it can result to injury, illness or fatalities. Some of the notable examples of physical hazards are loud noises, high exposure to sunlight and ultraviolet rays from computers and machinery; and electrical hazards . Biological hazards, according to Dutta and Sachdeva (2007), are mostly hazards caused from microorganisms that can transfer diseases or contaminate a system it inhabits. Some of the common biological hazards come from bacteria and viruses from plants and humans, blood or any other body fluid, fungi, and even bites from insects.
Chemical hazards, on the other hand, come from harmful chemicals coming from air, water, soil, food and even in some human-made products. Some of the notable examples of chemical hazards are aerosols, chlorine, acetic acid, and mercury. If a person is affected by these types of hazards, he or she may contract diseases such as lung cancer, anemia, ulcer, and leukemia . Finally, according to Miller and Spoolman (2011), cultural hazards are mostly hazards which are already present in one’s environment or living condition. These hazards can also be influenced by the other radical environmental hazards, creating the hazards already present in one’s community. Some notable examples of cultural hazards are unsafe highways, poverty, and criminal assault .
References
Dutta, A., & Sachdeva, A. (2007). Advances in Pediatrics. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers.
Miller, G. T., & Spoolman, S. (2011). Living in the Environment. Belmont: Cengage Learning.
Ontario Ministry of Labour. (2012, September 18). What is a hazard? Retrieved September 20, 2012, from Ontario Ministry of Labour Website: http://www.worksmartontario.gov.on.ca/scripts/default.asp?contentID=2-6-1&mcategory=health
