1. University of Palestine Faculty of Engineering Environmental Sciences Course

2. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 2 Course Syllabus Environmental Sciences II Instructor Information Name of Instructor: Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda, Post-Doc. Mobile: 00972-(0)599-859725 Email: h.hamouda@upi.psh.hamouda@upi.ps Course Information Prerequisite: Environmental Sciences I Quadmester: 4 th Class Web site (Class Video Conference Site): Class location (Campus): Gaza, Ramallah & Amman

3. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 3 Course Description The course includes:  Biogeochemical Cycles  Climate change and air pollution  Water resources and pollution  Energy Resources  Solid and hazardous wastes.  Environmental impact assessment. Course Syllabus

4. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 4 Course Materials  Text book  PowerPoint slides  Internet Audio broadcast  Other (field trips) Course Textbook : Basics of Environmental Science, Michael Allaby, 2nd edition Routledge:UK, 2000. Course Syllabus

5. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 5 Course work Student grades are calculated according to their performance in the following course work:  Assignments and homework20%  Midterm Exam 30%  Final Exam50% Grading Final grade can be determined according to the university academic system. Course Syllabus

6. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 6 Course Syllabus Assignments DueTopicDate Biogeochemical Cycles1 st week 1 st ass postedAir pollution and climate change2 nd week Water resources and water Pollution 3 rd week 1 st ass due, Project work posted Energy resources4 th week Midterm exam5 th week Wastewater Management6 th week Project work due, 2 nd ass posted Solid and hazardous wastes7 th week

7. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 7 Course Syllabus Food and Agriculture and environmental health 8 th week 2 nd ass dueEnvironmental impact assessment 9 th week Final Exam 10 th week

8. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 8 Faculty of Engineering Environmental Sciences Course Biogeochemical Cycles

9. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 9 Outline  Definitions  Carbon Cycle  Nitrogen Cycle  Phosphorous Cycle  Water Cycle

10. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 10 Biogeochemical Cycles The Earth is a closed system for matter, except for small amounts of cosmic debris that enter the Earth's atmosphere. This means that all the elements needed for the structure and chemical processes of life come from the elements that were present in the Earth's crust when it was formed billions of years ago. This matter, the building blocks of life, continually cycle through Earth's systems, the atmosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and lithosphere, on time scales that range from a few days to millions of years. Definitions

11. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 11 Biogeochemical Cycles These cycles are called biogeochemical cycles, because they include a variety of biological, geological, and chemical processes. Many elements cycle through ecosystems, organisms, air, water, and soil. Many of these are trace elements. Other elements, including carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, sulfur, and phosphorous are critical components of all biological life. Together, oxygen and carbon account for 80 percent of the weight of human beings. Because these elements are key components of life, they must be available for biological processes.

12. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 12 Carbon, however, is relatively rare in the Earth's crust, and nitrogen, though abundant in the atmosphere, is in a form that is not useable by living organisms. The biogeochemical cycles transport and store these important elements so that they can be used by living organisms. Each cycle takes many different pathways and has various reservoirs, or storage places, where elements may reside for short or long periods of time. Each of the chemical, biological, and geological processes varies in their rates of cycling. Some molecules may cycle very quickly depending on the pathway. Biogeochemical Cycles

13. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 13 Carbon atoms in deep ocean sediments may take hundreds to millions of years to cycle completely through the system. An average water molecule resides in the atmosphere for about ten days, although it may be transported many miles before it falls back to the Earth as rain. How fast substances cycle depends on its chemical reactivity and whether or not it can be found in a gaseous state. A gaseous phase allows molecules to be transported quickly. Phosphorous has no gaseous phase and is relatively unreactive, so it moves very slowly through its cycle. Biogeochemical Cycles

14. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 14 Phosphorous is stored in large amounts in sediment in the oceans or in the Earth's crust and is recycled back to the surface only over very long periods of time through upwelling of ocean waters or weathering of rocks. Biogeochemical cycles are subject to disturbance by human activities. Humans accelerate natural biogeochemical cycles when elements are extracted from their reservoirs, or sources, and deposited back into the environment (sinks). For example, humans have significantly altered the carbon cycle by extracting and combusting billions of tons of hydrocarbons in fossil that were buried deep in the Earth's crust, in addition to clearing vegetation that stores carbon. Biogeochemical Cycles

15. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 15 Biogeochemical Cycles Global release of carbon through human activities has increased from 1 billion tons per year in 1940 to 6.5 billion tons per year in 2000. About half of this extra carbon is taken up by plants and the oceans, while the other half remains in the atmosphere. In addition to carbon cycle, humans have altered the nitrogen and phosphorous cycles by adding these elements to croplands as fertilizers, which has contributed to over- fertilization of aquatic ecosystems when excess amounts are carried by runoff into local waterways.

16. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 16 Carbon is one of the fundamental building blocks of life; we are carbon-based life forms. Carbon cycles through the oceans, atmosphere, the lithosphere, and the biosphere over both short and long term time scales. The geological Carbon cycle takes place over hundreds of millions of years and involves the cycling of carbon through the layers of the Earth. The biological/physical carbon cycle occurs over days, weeks, months and years and involves the absorption, conversion, and respiration of carbon by living organisms. Carbon Cycle

17. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 17 Carbon Cycle

18. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 18 The first step in the biological carbon cycle is the conversion of inorganic atmospheric carbon into biological form. This fixing of carbon in biological form takes place within plants and other organisms, called producers, in a process called. Photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is the process by which energy from sunlight is converted into chemical form. Organisms capable of producing food molecules inorganically, from light or inorganic chemicals, are called autotrophs. In photosynthesis, light combines with carbon dioxide and water to create carbohydrate molecules known as sucrose (C 6 H 12 O 6 ). Photosynthesis

19. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 19 In the oceans, photosynthesis is carried out by microscopic aquatic plants called phytoplankton. These carbohydrates become the foundation for the system of chemical energy that fuels the living cells in plants and animals. In plants, some carbon remains in glucose for short-term energy use, while others is converted to starches for longer term energy storage Photosynthesis

20. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 20 Carbon reenters the air from ecosystems in CO 2 form via respiration - in which plants and animals, called consumers, break down food molecules for energy and emit CO 2 gas and other byproducts. The carbon that plants and other organisms absorb from the atmosphere can take one of several paths before reentering the air. When a plant dies, it is broken down by microorganisms, called decomposers, that feed on dead organic matter. As these microorganisms consume the plant matter for energy, they release some of the plant's carbon in to the atmosphere in CO 2 form. Cycling and Storage

21. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 21 Some of this carbon is destined for longer-term storage in trunks and branches of trees and in the bodies of plant- eating animals (or carnivorous animals that eat plant-eating animals). These animals return more of the carbon to the atmosphere as CO 2 through respiration. Some of the carbon stored in their bodies will decompose in soil after they die. Some will remain stored in organic matter that remains undecomposed in soils. In the oceans, a large amount of organic carbon sinks to the ocean floor to be buried into the crust of the earth. Cycling and Storage

22. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 22 Carbon stored beneath the ocean floor is removed from the biological carbon cycle and enters the geological carbon cycle. Carbon converted to biological form in plants, consumed by animals, and returned to the atmosphere in respiration can travel this path over a very short period - days, weeks, or months. But carbon buried under the ocean floor might take tens of millions of years to return to the atmosphere, if it does at all. Throughout the Earth's history, this emission of CO 2 (and many other gases) from deep below the planet's surface has happened in geological events such as volcanic eruptions. Carbon Cycles & Climate Change

23. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 23 Carbon Cycles & Climate Change Human beings have tapped into the geological carbon cycle by extracting oil and coal, which are hydrocarbons, for use in steam engines, automobiles, and power plants. A by- product of the combustion of hydrocarbons is CO 2 gas. Over the 150 years since the Industrial Revolution began, CO 2 levels in the atmosphere have measurably increased, mostly as a result of human combustion of fossil fuels. Another way in which humans have altered the carbon cycle, increasing atmospheric CO 2 levels, is through forest clearing. Large amounts of carbon are stored in trees and other vegetation.

24. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 24 When trees die and decompose, some of their stored carbon is released to the air as CO 2. However, when humans clear large expanses of forest, using fire, this enhances atmospheric carbon levels in two ways. First, in combustion the trees' stored carbon is released directly into the air as CO 2. Second, clearing trees takes away a key mechanism for removing CO 2 from the atmosphere Carbon Cycles & Climate Change

25. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 25 Since CO 2 is the atmosphere's primary greenhouse gas, scientists argue that the increase in atmospheric CO 2 from human activities has resulted into enhanced greenhouse effect and could result in corresponding changes in global climate, including higher global temperatures. Carbon Cycles & Climate Change

26. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 26 Nitrogen is both the most abundant element in the atmosphere and, as a building block of proteins and nucleic acids such as DNA, a crucially important component of all biological life. The nitrogen cycle is a complex biogeochemical cycle in which nitrogen is converted from its inert atmospheric molecular form (N 2 ) into a form that is useful in biological processes. The nitrogen cycle contains several different stages. Nitrogen Cycle

27. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 27 Nitrogen Cycle

28. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 28 Nitrogen Cycle

29. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 29 Nitrogen fixation Atmospheric nitrogen occurs primarily in an inert form (N 2 ) that few organisms can use. (It takes a great deal of energy to split the N 2 molecule.) Therefore, it must be converted to an organic form, or fixed, in a process called nitrogen fixation. A small amount of nitrogen is fixed through high energy fixation, primarily lighting strikes that convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia (NH 4 + ) and nitrates (NO 3 - ). But most atmospheric nitrogen is fixed through biological processes. First, the nitrogen is deposited from the atmosphere into soils and surface waters.

30. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 30 This is done by certain microorganisms, which fall under three broad categories: bacteria living in symbiotic relationships with certain plants, free anaerobic bacteria, and algae. Crops such as alfalfa and beans are often planted in order to remedy nitrogen-depletion in soils. Nitrogen fixing bacteria employ an enzyme, known as nitrogenase, to do the energy-intensive work of splitting the atmospheric nitrogen molecule into individual atoms for combination into other compounds. Nitrogen is also fixed by man-made processes, primarily industrial process that create ammonia and nitrogen-rich fertilizers Nitrogen fixation

31. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 31 Nitrification: While ammonia can be used by some plants, most nitrogen taken up by plants is converted by bacteria from ammonia, which is highly toxic to many organism, first into nitrite (NO 2- ), and then into nitrate (NO 3- ). This process is called nitrification, and these bacteria are known as nitrifying bacteria. Assimilation: compounds such as nitrate, nitrite, ammonia, and ammonium are taken up from soils by plants. The nitrogen in these compounds is used in the formation of plant and animal proteins. Nitrification & Assimilation

32. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 32 When animals emit wastes, and when plants and animals die, the nitrogen in this organic matter reenters the soil, where it is broken down by other microorganisms, known as decomposers. Decomposition of this organic matter produces ammonia. Just as the ammonia created through nitrogen fixation becomes available for other biological processes, so does the ammonia created in the process of decomposing animal waste and dead plants and animals. Ammonification

33. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 33 Nitrogen makes it way back into the atmosphere in a process called denitrification, in which it is converted from nitrate (NO 3- ) to gaseous nitrogen (N 2 ). Denitrification occurs in wet soils where the water makes it difficult for microorganisms to get oxygen. In these conditions, certain organisms, known as denitrifiying bacteria, will process nitrate for their oxygen, leaving free nitrogen gas as a byproduct. Denitrification

34. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 34 Phosphorus is one of the most biologically important elements. Phosphorus helps hold the DNA and RNA molecules together. Phosphorus plays an important role in the transfer of energy to the key energy-storing molecules ATP and ADP. Like calcium, it is an important element in the bones of vertebrate animals (although too much phosphorus can lead to calcium loss). It is also widely used in agricultural fertilizers. The phosphorus cycle is unique among the major biogeochemical cycles in that it does not include a gas phase, Phosphorous Cycle

35. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 35 although small amounts of phosphoric acid (H 3 PO 4 ) may make their way into the atmosphere, contributing in some cases to acidic precipitation. The water, carbon, and sulfur cycles all include at least one phase in which the element is in its gaseous state. The largest reservoir of phosphorus is in sedimentary rock. The phosphorus cycle originates with the introduction of phosphate (PO 4 ) into soils from the weathering of rocks. Phosphate enters living ecosystems when plants take up phosphate ions from the soil. Phosphorous Cycle

36. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 36 Phosphorous Cycle

37. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 37 Phosphate moves from plants to animals when herbivores eat plants, and when carnivores eat herbivores. The phosphate that has been taken up into the tissue of animals is returned to the soil through the excretion of urine and feces, as well as through decomposition of dead animals. Phosphate in plants also returns to the soil through decomposition. These same processes occur in aquatic systems as well. Plants take up waterborne phosphate, which then travels up through successive stages of the aquatic food chain. Phosphate Cycle

38. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 38 Phosphate that is not taken up into the food chain, as well as that in dead and decomposing organisms, settles on the ocean floor or on lake bottoms. When these sediments are stirred up, this phosphate may re-enter the biological phosphorus cycle, but much more of it is buried in the sedimentary rock.  Like nitrogen, phosphorus is considered a pollutant when it occurs in excess concentrations in surface waters. Phosphorus can contribute to over-fertilizing, or eutrophication, of these waters. Phosphate Cycle

39. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 39  Unlike nitrogen, phosphorus is not highly soluble. It binds tightly to molecules in the soil and so can build up to harmful levels. It reaches surface waters not by dissolving but by traveling with soil particles in runoff to which it has bonded. Phosphates were once commonly used in laundry detergents, which contributed to excessive concentrations in rivers, lakes, and streams. Most detergents no longer contain phosphorous. The predominant sources of phosphorous in bodies of water are agricultural and lawn fertilizers and improperly disposed animal wastes. Phosphate Cycle

40. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 40 The Earth is the water planet; more than two-thirds of its surface is covered by water. Most of life on Earth is primarily composed of water; our cells, and those of plants and animals, are composed of about 70 percent water. Vast quantities of water cycle through the Earth's atmosphere, oceans, land, and biosphere over short and long time scales. This grand cycling of water is called the hydrologic cycle; the cycling of water shapes our weather and climate, supports plant growth, and makes life itself possible. The water cycle is dominated by the oceans, where 96 percent of the water on Earth is found and where 86 percent of global evaporation occurs. Water Cycle

41. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 41 We can begin to follow the path of water with precipitation, or rain. When rain and other precipitation falls on land, some of it runs off into surface waters such as streams and lakes. Much of it, however, seeps into the ground. This process, the movement of water into and through the soil and rocks, is called infiltration. How water behaves in the ground, the speed and character of infiltration, is determined by the type of soil or rock through which the water moves. Water Cycle

42. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 42 The water that is not absorbed into the soil flows from across the landscape to rivers, lakes, and streams, and eventually to the oceans, in a process called runoff. While some runoff waters originate from precipitation, others originate from melting snow or ice. This is called meltwater runoff. Rather than seeping into the soil or running off into surface waters, some water returns to the air in gaseous form (water vapor) through evaporation. However, of the water returned to the atmosphere through evaporation, land-based evaporation is much less important that ocean evaporation Water Cycle

43. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 43 About 80 percent of global evaporation occurs over the oceans. Of land-based evaporation, roughly half occurs on the surface of plants. This movement of water from plants to air is called transpiration. The processes of evaporation and transpiration are sometimes given a single term: evapotranspiration. The process in which water vapor is converted back into liquid is called condensation. A familiar type of condensation is the formation of dew drops on blades of grass or on the outside of a cold glass. A more important type of condensation within the hydrologic cycle takes place in the atmosphere Water Cycle

44. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 44 As water vapor moves upward in the atmosphere it cools. This process - the loss of heat through vertical movement - is called convection. The droplets formed from atmospheric condensation gather together as a result of their gravitation pull to form clouds. Depending on the temperature of the surrounding air, this cloud moisture will take either frozen or liquid form. Water in the atmosphere, after condensing and forming into clouds, returns to earth through precipitation, which can take the form of rain, ice, or snow. Although some water is transmitted directly to earth through condensation of ambient water vapor, Water Cycle

45. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 45 it is mainly through precipitation that water moves from atmosphere to earth. Water is stored for periods of time in various reservoirs. The primary reservoirs are (in order of size) the oceans, polar ice and glaciers, the atmosphere, groundwater, lakes, soils, atmosphere, rivers and streams, and the biosphere (plants and animals). The largest reservoir is, of course the oceans. There is about 50 times as much water stored in the oceans than in the next largest water reservoir, polar ice and glaciers. Water Cycle

46. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 46 Percentage of All Water in Hydrologic Cycle Size (volume of water (cubic km x 10,000,000) Reservoir 971370Oceans 229 Polar Ice and Glaciers 0.79.5Groundwater 0.010.125Lakes 0.0050.065Soils 0.0010.013Atmosphere 0.00010.0017Rivers and Streams 0.000040.0006Biosphere Reservoirs

47. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 47 Approximate Residence Time Reservoir 40 yearsGlaciers 0.4 yearsSeasonal Snow Cover 0.2 yearsSoil Moisture 200 yearsGroundwater: Shallow 10,000 yearsGroundwater: Deep 100 yearsLakes 0.04 yearsRivers Storage Time in Reservoirs

48. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 48 Sulfur Cycle Sulfur is mainly found on Earth as sulfates in rocks or as free sulfur. The largest deposits of sulfur in the World is in USA (Louisiana &Texas). Sulfur also occurs in combination with several metals such as lead & mercury, as PbS and HgS. Sulfur appears as the yellow aspects of soil in many regions.

49. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 49 Sulfur Cycle Sulfur was mined early in the form of the yellow element and used for gunpowder and fireworks. While bacteria digest plant matter, they emit H 2 S, hydrogen sulfide, a gas that has the "rotten egg" smell characteristic of swamps and sewage. Sulfur is an essential element of biological molecules in small quantities.

50. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 50 Sulfur Cycle Sulfur and its compounds are important elements of industrial processes. Sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) is a bleaching agent and is used to bleach wood pulp for paper and fiber for various textiles such as wool, silk, or linen. SO 2 is a colorless gas that creates a choking sensation when breathed. It kills molds and bacteria. It is also used to preserve dry fruits, like apples, apricots, and figs, and to clean out vats used for preparing fermented foods such as cheese and wine. Sulfuric acid, H 2 SO 4, is a very widely used chemical

51. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 51 Over 30 million tones of sulfuric acid are produced every year in the U.S. alone. The acid has a very strong affinity for water. It absorbs water and is used in various industrial processes as a dehydrating agent. The acid in the automobile battery is H 2 SO 4. It is used for "pickling" steel, that is, to remove the oxide coating from the steel surface before it is coated with tin or electroplated with zinc. Sulfur is also a biologically important atom. Although only small amounts of sulfur are necessary for biological systems, disulfide bridges form a critical function in giving biological important molecules specific shapes and properties Sulfur Cycle

52. University Of Palestine International ENVI005 Dr.-Eng. Hasan Hamouda 52 Sulfur is released into the atmosphere through the burning of fossil fuels-especially high sulfur coal--and is a primary constituent of acid rain. Sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 ) is the primary constituent of acid rain in about all regions other than California. Sulfur dioxide and carbonyl sulfide (COS) occur in small quantities in the atmosphere; but due to its high reactivity, sulfur is quickly deposited as compound (sulfates) on land and other surfaces. Sulfur Cycle