11 Facts About Pollution

Welcome to DoSomething.org, a global movement of millions of young people making positive change, online and off! The 11 facts you want are below, and the sources for the facts are at the very bottom of the page. After you learn something, Do Something! Find out how to take action here.

1. Pollution is one of the biggest global killers, affecting over 100 million people. That’s comparable to global diseases like malaria and HIV.^[World Health Organization. "Climate change and health." 2014. Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
2. Cleanups can save animals’ lives and discourage people from littering in the future. Take initiative and host a cleanup -- wearing anything but clothes! -- at a park near you. Sign up for ABC Cleanup.^[Keep America Beautiful. “LITTER IN AMERICA.” 2010. Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
3. In 1975, the National Academy of Sciences estimated that ocean-based sources, such as cargo ships and cruise liners had dumped 14 billion pounds of garbage into the ocean.^[California Coastal Commission. "Marine Debris." State of California. Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
4. Over 1 million seabirds and 100,000 sea mammals are killed by pollution every year.^[United Nations Environment Programme. "Marine Liter: Trash that Kills." Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
5. People who live in places with high levels of air pollutants have a 20% higher risk of death from lung cancer than people who live in less-polluted areas.^[Grens, Kerry. "Air pollution tied to lung cancer in non-smokers." Thomas Reuters, 2011. Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
6. The Mississippi River carries an estimated 1.5 million metric tons of nitrogen pollution into the Gulf of Mexico each year, creating a “dead zone” in the Gulf each summer about the size of New Jersey.^[Bradford, Alina. "Pollution Facts & Types of Pollution." LiveScience. Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
7. Approximately 40% of the lakes in America are too polluted for fishing, aquatic life, or swimming.^[U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Nonpoint Source Pollution: The Nation's Largest Water Quality Problem." Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
8. Americans make up an estimated 5% of the world’s population. However, the US uses 25% of the world’s resources - burning up nearly 25% of the coal, 26% of the oil, and 27% of the world’s natural gas.^[Worldwatch Institute. "The State of Consumption Today." Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
9. Each year 1.2 trillion gallons of untreated sewage, stormwater, and industrial waste are dumped into US water.^[Chambers, Neil B. "How Infastructure Makes Water Work for Us." Palgrave Macmillan, 2011.]
10. While children make up 10% of the world’s population, over 40% of the global burden of disease falls on them. More than 3 million children under age five die annually from environmental factors.^[Blacksmith Institute, Green Cross. "The World's Worst Pollution Problems: The Top Ten of the Toxic Twenty." Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]
11. Recycling and composting prevented 85 million tons of material away from being disposed of in 2010, up from 18 million tons in 1980.^[U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. "Non-Hazardous Waste | Basic Information." Web Accessed April 25, 2015.]