Environmental Protection Cost benefit trade offs SOL 6.9 Environmental Protection Cost benefit trade offs

Why? People, as well as other living organisms, are dependent upon the availability of clean water and air and a healthy environment. Local, state, and federal governments have significant roles in managing and protecting air, water, plant, and wildlife resources.

Why? Modern industrial society is dependent upon energy. Fossil fuels are the major sources of energy in developed and industrialized nations and should be managed to minimize adverse impacts. Many renewable and nonrenewable resources are managed by the private sector (private individuals and corporations).

HOW! Regulations, incentives, and voluntary efforts help conserve resources and protect environmental quality. Conservation of resources and environmental protection begin with individual acts of stewardship.

Cost/ Benefit Trade offs Use of renewable (water, air, soil, plant life, animal life) and nonrenewable resources (coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear power, and mineral resources) must be considered in terms of their cost/benefit tradeoffs. Preventive measures, such as pollution prevention or thoughtfully planned and enforced land-use restrictions, can reduce the impact of potential problems in the future.

Land and Soil: Causes People use land for three different purposes; Agriculture Mining Development

Soil Management Soil is a renewable natural resource It can take hundreds of years to make just a few centimeters of new soil Soil is necessary for life on Earth Poor soil management can result in three problems: Erosion, nutrient depletion and desertification

Soil Problems: Causes Erosion: Plants removed by logging, mining, and over plowing can increase wind and water erosion removing the topsoil. Nutrient Depletion: Planting the same crops on the same land year after year can deplete nitrogen and other minerals from the soil. Desertification: When an area becomes depleted of moisture and nutrients it can become desert like.

Soil Management : Solutions Erosion: no or low till planting, terracing and contour plowing reduce erosion. Nutrient Depletion: Fertilizing, leaving a field fallow and rotating crops can help put nutrients back in the soil. Desertification: little or no solution for this as it is mostly caused by climate.

Mining: Strip Mining Strip mining involved removing the soil layer by layer to remove the coal or other material from the layers. Land Reclamation: Returning the areas to normal as much as possible for agriculture, and wildlife.

Solutions: Solid Waste Pollution prevention and waste management are less costly than cleanup.  Recycling often costs less than making new materials. Major categories for recycling are Metals, Glass, Paper and Plastics. Landfills: Sanitary landfills help communities dispose of solid waste while controlling the polluted water that could end up in streams and lakes or drinking water.

Solutions Incineration: burning waste takes up less space than landfills and does not produce water pollution however it does create air pollution. Burning solid waste can be used to produce electricity. Hazardous waste: any waste materials that can be harmful to humans: Those that cannot be incinerated or placed in landfills are buried deep underground in rock layers.

Causes: Air pollution Factories and power plants that burn coal. Emissions from motor vehicles Methane released by live animals. Photochemical Smog: A mixture of emissions from motor vehicle and ozone. Acid Rain: Occurs when gases from anything that burns fossil fuels mixes with water vapor in the air and makes nitrous and sulfuric acid.

Causes: Air pollution Indoor air pollution: Carbon monoxide Dust Pet hair Cigarette smoke Cooking smoke Household cleaners Glues Radon

Causes: Ozone Layer The ozone Layer protects us from harmful ultraviolet rays from the Sun. Ozone is a molecule with 3 oxygen atoms bonded together O3 Gases called chlorofluorohydrocarbons destroy the ozone layer by breaking the bonds between the oxygen molecules.

Air Pollution: Radon Radon is a colorless, odorless gas that is radioactive formed from rocks underground. It can buildup in homes and buildings. It can cause serious health problems.

Solutions: Air pollution Ozone depletion: Reduce the use of CFC’s in aerosol cans, refrigerators and air conditioning units. Reduce the use of some chemicals used in making plastics. Reduce emissions from factors by installing filters and scrubbers in smoke stacks. Reducing emissions from vehicles by installing catalytic converters.

Water pollution: Causes Agricultural Waste: Pesticides, fertilizers and manure . Household sewage Industry and mining wastes Sediments Heat Oil and gasoline

Solution: Water Pollution Oil and Gasoline: Certain bacteria can clean up some of these materials Sewage treatment: Septic tanks and waste treatment plants help clean out impurities. Reparian buffers: Farmers can plant trees and shrubs along rivers to absorb chemicals. Fencing off farm animals from creaks and streams.

Ocean Resources Fish and other materials from the ocean provide food and the raw materials for detergents and paints. http://www.womenshealthmag.com/files/wh6_uploads/images/contaminated-fish-sword.jpg

Ocean Resources: Fish Over fishing: fishing to the point where there are not enough of a species left to reproduce and maintain the species is called over fishing. Pollution and dead zones: polluting the coastline and areas in the ocean with waste that depletes the dissolved oxygen in the area that cause dead zones where fish and plant life cannot survive.

Ocean resources: Solutions Any nation with coastline is responsible for the areas 22 Km off its coast and the ocean floor within 370 KM off its shore. The control and management of the open ocean is still under debate in the United Nations.