Based on the time taken to breakdown into their ingredients, degradable pollutants are classified as rapidly degradable (non-persistent) and slowly degradable (persistent).
1. Rapidly degradable or non-persistent pollutants: These can be broken down by natural processes. Domestic sewage and vegetable waste are examples of such pollutants.
2. “Slowly degradable or persistent pollutants: These are pollutants that remain in the environment for many years in an unchanged condition and take decades or longer to degrade, as in the case of DDT.
