1. Environmental issues across Asia
Georgia Performance Standard
SS7G10 a and b

2. Enduring Understanding
The student will understand that humans, their society, and the environment affect each other.

3. Georgia Performance Standards
SS7G10 The student will discuss environmental issues across Southern and Eastern Asia.
a. Describe the causes and effects of pollution on the Yangtze and Ganges Rivers.
b. Describe the causes and effects of air pollution and flooding in India and China.

4. India-water pollution
Causes of Ganges River pollution:
Waste from factories (industrial waste)
Chemicals from fertilizers (run-off)
Sewage (Human Waste) and Garbage
Cremated remains of humans (some people cannot afford cremation, and put the whole body in the river)
Effects of Ganges River pollution:
Shortage of clean water for drinking, cooking, and bathing
High rates of water-born diseases
Changing religious practices (Hinduism)

6. China-water pollution
Causes of pollution on the Yangtze River:
Waste from factories (industrial waste)
Chemicals from fertilizers (run-off)
Sewage
Effects of Pollution on the Yangtze River:
Plant and animal species are disappearing (the endangered Yangtze River Dolphin)
People are getting sick from drinking the water and from eating contaminated fish

11. Beijing: A worker clears rubbish from canal
Beijing: A worker clears rubbish from canal. Reports suggest that as many as 300 million Chinese people - nearly one in every four - drink dirty water

12. Water Pollution

13. Air pollution in India and China
The biggest general cause of air pollution in both India and China is overpopulation. Specifically, more people mean more cars, and more factories and power plants (most of which run on coal) to produce goods and electricity According to the World Bank- 12 of the15 most polluted cities in the world are found here (8 in China and 4 in India) The 2008 Olympics in China were even affected. Many countries would not sent their athletes to compete for fear that they would get sick

14. Effects of air pollution in India and China
More than 500,000 deaths each year (this is the highest in the world)
Increase in respiratory and heart diseases
Lower GDP (because workers are in the hospital and not working, less goods are being made, so less goods can be sold)
Changing weather here in North America (particles found in Chinese/Indian air are being found in California)
The Taj Mahal is turning yellow!

15. More problems because China’s overpopulation

18. Asian Brown Cloud
Brown haze that has many effects on the places it travels above
Causes:
Toxic waste from factories
Motor vehicles emissions
Improper cooking fuels (cooking everyday indoors using wood or animal dung)
forest fires
Effects:
Alters monsoon patterns (the winds bring rain too early or too late-affects farming)
Affects overall climate (reduces rainfall and increases temperatures)
Reduces photosynthesis (affects oxygen levels)
Increases human respiratory problems

19. A satellite image showing a haze of pollution over part of China caused by the country's reliance on coal.

20. Air Pollution

21. Flooding in India and China
Monsoons are essential for farming, but can cause heavy flooding. This can cause death, destruction of houses and crops, and water-born disease
Yellow River (“China’s Sorrow”) killed 2 million in 1887 and 4 million in 1931 when it flooded
Deforestation and draining wetlands also cause rivers to flood more easily

23. What are they doing to fix it??
Government getting involved (passed the Ganges Action Plan and created Environmental agencies)
Building new and improved sewage and water treatment plants to make the rivers cleaner
Building sanitary landfills to keep garbage away from the rivers
Chinese govt. built Three Gorges Dam to stop flooding and create clean electricity
Closing factories temporarily
Slow population growth (1 baby policy in China)
Trying to stop deforestation

24. Ticket Out The Door
If you were in charge of an environmental organization in India OR China, how would you try to solve your nation’s environmental problems? Choose 1 problem in 1 country and address how YOU would fix it.
Write 1 paragraph (at least 5 sentences) explaining your answer.
Your topic sentence should be: If I were in charge of the environment in ________, I would…