Environmental Impacts

Air pollutants may be transferred via dry and wet deposition to other media such as soil, surface waters, vegetation, and buildings. These pollutants may then contaminate these surfaces and have adverse impacts on ecosystems, vegetation, and the built environment. In addition, some chemical species that do not have any adverse health effects via inhalation may become toxic via bioaccumulation in the food chain and subsequent ingestion. This chapter describes briefly the impacts of air pollutant deposition on ecosystems, agricultural crops, and buildings, as well as the indirect adverse effects on human health via the food chain.