By 202380261
Discussion
Chemicals released into the environment rarely remain in the form, or at the location, of release.
For example, agricultural chemicals used as sprays may drift from the point of application as air contaminants or enter run-off water as water contaminants.
Many of these chemicals are susceptible to fungal or bacterial degradation and are rapidly detoxified, frequently being broken down to products that can enter the carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen cycles.
Other agricultural chemicals, particularly halogenated organic compounds, are recalcitrant to a greater or lesser degree to metabolism by microorganisms and persist in soil and water as contaminants; they may enter biologic food chains and move to higher trophic levels or persist in processed crops as food contaminants. This same scenario is applicable to any toxicant released into the environment either for a specific use or as a result of industrial processes, combustion, and so on.
Chemicals released into the environment are also susceptible to chemical degradation, a process often stimulated by ultraviolet light.
SO₂ acid rain and acid deposition coal-fired power plant
NO logging drilling rig photochemical smog erosion mine
NO oil woll farmland cars and highways toxic runoff sediment loading algal bloom nitrogen (N) and lake toxic runoff wastewater plastics phosphorus (P) surface runoff algal bloom ocean effluent
N and P runoff toxic seepage (from surface)
toxic runoff oil spills petroleum seepage (from surface)
oxygen depletion plastic pollution ocean acidification groundwater contamination seepage petroleum seepage fracking
(associated with drill pipe)
Figure 4 Fate and transport of chemical contaminants in the environment
Source: https://rupiperlab.engr.ucr.edu/enve-135-fate-and-transport-contaminants-environment