CONTEMPORARY EURASIA IX ( 2 )
Pollution of the lithosphere is a result of emerging millions of hectares of badlands from the construction process , the disposal of industrial and agricultural waste , pesticides , radioactive garbage , etc . This comprises about one percent of the land on Earth . 12
Polluting the hydrosphere takes place during the disposal of industrial and agricultural waste into rivers , lakes and seas . This , in turn , makes it even more difficult to solve the issue of potable water . Polluting hydrosphere is a serious threat to RES for the rivers of Rhine , Seine , Ohio , Volga , Dnieper , and for such seas as Mediterranean , North , Baltic , Internal Japanese , as well as Mexican and Persian gulfs .
The polluting of the atmosphere is a result of the uncontrolled functioning of different industrial branches of the economy and means of transportation that cause solid elements , carbon fuel and greenhouse gas emissions .
Radioactive pollution of the biosphere is the contamination of the biosphere as a result of testing nuclear weapons or nuclear power plant catastrophes . Compared to other forms the impact of radioactive pollution is almost invisible , spreads over long distances and affects all nature . Radioactive dust blocks the Sun , which in turn may result in the death of all living creatures .
According to Protocol III of the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons , the use of air-dropped incendiary weapons against military objectives within a concentration of civilians is strictly prohibited . White phosphorus munitions can be used on battlefields to make smoke screens , generate illumination , mark targets or burn bunkers and buildings . When a white phosphorus shell explodes , the chemical inside reacts with the air , creating a thick white cloud . 13 When it comes in contact with flesh , it can maim and kill by burning to the bone . White phosphorous weapons spread burning phosphorous , which burns at over 800 degrees centigrade ( about 1,500 degrees Fahrenheit ) over a wide area , up to several hundred square meters . The burning continues until the phosphorous has been completely depleted or until it no longer is exposed to oxygen . According to the International Committee of the Red Cross , the weapon has the potential to cause particularly horrific and painful injuries or slow painful
12
“ Last Call For Tallgrass In North Dakota ,” Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center available at http :// www . npwrc . usgs . gov / resource / plants / tallgras / lastcall . htm .
13
“ FACTBOX : Key facts about white phosphorus munitions ,” Reuters , May 8 , 2009 , https :// www . reuters . com / article / us-afghanistan-phosphorus-facts-sb / factbox-key-factsabout-white-phosphorus-munitions-idUSTRE5471T620090508 .
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