1. Environment

2. 5 main sources of air pollution:
Transboundary pollution: pollution that is created in one country, then spreads to another
5 main sources of air pollution:
Transportation
Industry
Oil refining
Power Operating
Waste Disposal
*pollutants from human activity mix with sunlight to create new pollutants*

3. Chernobyl: April 25, 1986
Took place near modern-day Kiev, Ukraine (at the time, part of the Soviet Union)
Chernobyl was a nuclear plant—used nuclear reactions to provide energy
What Happened?
A nuclear reactor got too hot  explosion  release of massive amounts of radiation
It was later discovered that the workers did not follow routine safety checks

4. Effects
Radiation spread to Sweden, central Europe, across Asia & the Pacific, and the USA
Belarus:
70% of radioactive dust fell here, contaminating the soil, air & water. People are still being exposed to radiation  higher rates of cancer
Sweden
Radiation polluted fishing grounds & reindeer herds, killing them. Those that survived weren’t safe to eat

6. Immediate Effects
Soviet government delayed the announcement of the incident—originally said it was an “explosion” or a “fire”
Eventually, they took measures:
Built a concrete, iron box (Sarcophagus) around the reactor
Relocated around 135,000 people living very close to the plant

7. Long-Term Effects
~8,000 people have died in Ukraine due to related health problems
Lingering health problems among those who were exposed (and their children)
Increased awareness for safety in nuclear plants worldwide
Pripyat, one of the cities close to Chernobyl, will not be safe to live in for at LEAST 150 years.
Chernobyl: 30 Years Later

8. Black Triangle Area where Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic meet
Home of many factories & power plants
Burn a soft brown coal (lignite) here  soot released  blackens the air
Also, the chemicals it releases mix with water & create an acid  acid rainfall
Pollution & acid rain is Sudety Mountains
They are downwind (face the direction of where the wind carries these pollutants)

9. Black Triangle
High chimney use through cities (in power plants) has caused the pollution to be carried elsewhere due to the wind
Has improved the air quality in the industrial areas, ironically
Acid rain & snow falls in many European countries
Ways to reduce
Incentives/rewards for companies who reduce pollution
Promote technology that can lead to less pollution
Decrease dependency on coal as a fuel, look for alternative sources of energy

10. Tisza-Danube Cyanide Spill
January 30, 2000
Cyanide spilled into a tributary of the Danube in Romania after a cyanide storage dam from a local coal mining operation burst
The toxic waste was enough to fill 30 Olympic-size swimming pools

11. Tisza-Danube Cyanide Spill
Immediate effects
Spread through the Tisza River  Danube River  Black Sea
Through countries of Romania, Hungary, Serbia & Montenegro and Bulgaria
Water systems shut down through the area
Fish, otters, birds died as a result

12. Tisza-Danube Cyanide Spill
The effects didn’t last long…why?
Cyanide breaks down by sunlight
By the time the water reached the Danube, it wasn’t harmful to fish
Positive outcome: brought awareness to the pollution in the Danube & environmentalists are working to clean up the area
Scientists do not know when the river will completely recover