Chapters 12 Air Pollution

I. What Causes Air Pollution A. Primary and Secondary Pollutants 1. Primary = direct pollutants a. CO, SO 2, VOCs etc. 2. Secondary = primary + another pollutant or another substance and a chemical reaction takes place. a. ground level ozone 3. Sources of primary pollutants include household products, power plants, & cars (see table 1 pg 304) B. The History of Air Pollution 1. There is a 2,000 year old record of a Roman complaint about “foul air” , King Edward made the burning of certain coal illegal

C. Motor Vehicle Emissions 1. 1/3 of air pollution comes from vehicles 2. The Clean Air Act regulated emissions and eliminated leaded gasoline 3.Some states (California) require vehicles to have zero tail pipe emissions by 2016 D. Industrial Air Pollution 1. huge amounts SO 2 and NO as well as VOCs 2. The Clean Air Act requires industries to use scrubbers or to remove substances before releasing it 3. Smog involves sunlight, air, auto exhaust, and ozone – temperature inversions often trap pollutants near the Earth’s surface

II. Air, Noise, and Light Pollution A. Short-Term Effects of Air Pollution on Health 1. headaches; nausea; irritation to the eyes, nose, and throat; tightness in the chest; coughing; and upper respiratory infections, such as bronchitis and pneumonia 2. Pollution can also make conditions such as asthma and emphysema worse B. Long-Term Health Effects of Air Pollution 1. Include emphysema, lung cancer, and heart disease 2. May also worsen conditions in older people and damage the lungs of children

C. Indoor Air Pollution 1. due to plastics, chemicals, carpets, paints, radon gas, asbestos, etc. and may be worse than outside 2. “Sick building syndrome” is common in tightly sealed buildings with poor ventilation D. Noise Pollution 1. Noise is any sound – noise pollution is any sound that affects human health 2. Deafness results in exposure to sounds over 120 decibels – most car stereos are played at 140 – 150 decibels!!! E. Light Pollution 1. Light pollution does not pose a direct threat to human health but it does affect the environment through energy waste

III. Acid Precipitation A. Rain, sleet or snow 1. Fossil fuels are burned and oxides of sulfur or nitrogen are released and combined with water in the atmosphere to form sulfuric or nitric acid 2. Can kill plants, animals, and entire ecosystems 4. pH ranges between 4.3 and 5.1 B. Acid Precipitation and Humans 1. Toxic metals such as aluminum and mercury in crops and water can cause serious illness in humans 2. Economic factors such as fishing, forestry, farming, etc are affected by acid precipitation 3. Acid precipitation can dissolve monuments, buildings, etc.

Acid Precipitation  nitrogen oxides  sulfur dioxide  power plants  industry  transportation

Acid rain

Chp 13 - Global Climate Change  Identifiable change in the climate of Earth as a whole that lasts for an extended period of time (decades or longer) When due to natural processes, it is usually referred to as global climate variability When due to natural processes, it is usually referred to as global climate variability Usually refers to changes forced by human activities that change the atmosphere Usually refers to changes forced by human activities that change the atmosphere Play Temp. Puzzle Video

What causes Earth’s climate to change?  Changes in the atmosphere  Natural processes Volcanoes Volcanoes Tectonic plate movement Tectonic plate movement Changes in the sun Changes in the sun  Human activities – any activity that releases “greenhouse gases” into the atmosphere

What are greenhouse gases? Any gases that cause the “greenhouse effect!” Imagine… a car on a cool but sunny day…

Research  1958 – Charles Keeling installed monitors atop Mauna Loa to measure CO 2  Almost 1000 studies dealing with different aspects of climate change have been conducted and published  So… how do we make sense of all this?

Carbon Dioxide Global Warming

Play Earth Right Now Video

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Created in 1988 by the United Nations Environmental Program To provide policy-makers with an objective source of information about climate change 1000 scientists, climatologists, ecologists, atmospheric physicists, and others Review current scientific and technical literature relevant to global climate change Provide reports on their findings at regular intervals Play A Way Forward Video

Observed Changes and Effects

Evidence of Climate Change  Warming of the climate is definitely occurring and can be observed by the: Increases in global sea and air temperatures Increases in global sea and air temperatures Widespread melting of snow and ice Widespread melting of snow and ice Rising global sea level Rising global sea level

Ozone Depletion protects from UV rays

Ozone Depletion  Loss of ozone above Antarctica

Other Evidence (copy all)  89% of current changes in ecosystems are consistent with changes due to global climate change  Carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide levels in atmosphere have increased greatly due to human activities since 1750 and now far exceed previous levels  Carbon dioxide has increased by approximately 80% since 1970

Human-Produced Greenhouse Gas Levels

C onsequences  Rising Sea Levels As ice melts, rising seas could flood coastlines, and bays and estuaries would increase in salinity As ice melts, rising seas could flood coastlines, and bays and estuaries would increase in salinity  Global Weather Patterns The ocean will absorb more heat and slow the Gulf Stream affecting weather The ocean will absorb more heat and slow the Gulf Stream affecting weather  Human Health Problems Increase in pollen could increase allergic reactions, mosquitoes would increase = increase in diseases such as malaria Increase in pollen could increase allergic reactions, mosquitoes would increase = increase in diseases such as malaria  Agriculture Droughts, decreased crop yields, etc. Play Sting Video Droughts, decreased crop yields, etc. Play Sting Video  Ecosystems Altered plant and animal ranges will change food supplies, migration patterns will change, oceans will become more acidic Altered plant and animal ranges will change food supplies, migration patterns will change, oceans will become more acidic

References  IPCC Summary Report for Policy Makers. November 2007  "About IPCC." IPCC - Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. 20 Apr  "Climate Change | U.S. EPA." U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 20 Apr  Rischard, J. F. High noon twenty global problems, twenty years to solve them. New York: Basic Books,  "SVS Animations." NASA Goddard Scientific Visualization Studio. 20 Apr