What is the primary source of pollution in the most polluted cities on earth?
February 27th, 2010 | 
Author: Are these sources directly attributable to what pollution individuals produce or are they from industries or government projects?
Are these sources directly attributable to what pollution individuals produce or are they from industries or government projects?
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There are a number of different kinds of pollution, which come from different sources and so this is not an easy question to answer.
For example sewage is a severe problem in many third-world cities and is responsible in some cases for most of the pollution related deaths. Individuals are clearly the primary source in that case. This was true of London and all other large cities for example before sewer systems were reinvented.
In other cities, such as in the former Soviet Union Eastern Europe, Krakow Poland for example, industrial pollution is likely to be the most severe issue. Industry was the clear culprit.
Some places have severe problems associated with the side effects of water projects. Keeler California is a town that was rendered uninhabitable by the Owens Valley water project, which diverted the entire flow of the Owens River to supply water needs in Los Angeles. Toxic dust from Owens Lake as it dried up made the town of Keeler uninhabitable and so it is now a ghost town. That is a government project.
I live about 60 miles north of Detroit (the 5th most polluted city) so my guess here would be the auto industry. If you have ever been through Detroit it is nothing but factories spewing out those toxic fumes. Luckily I live far enough away I don’t have to see it, but I’m sure the effects make their way up here.
Then there’s Chemical Valley in Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. That’s a whole other story…
In the most most polluted cities on Earth? Probably factories in China.
Poor engineering is the primary cause of all polution caused by human activity. If good engineering was used polution would be controlled and no doubt reduced.