Transcript How acidic is acid rain? - Tuloso

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
IN EUROPE
TULOSO-MIDWAY HIGH SCHOOL
Three Environmental Issues we will study:
1. Acid Rain in Germany
2. Air Pollution in United Kingdom
Acid Rain:
Acid Rain – A mixture of air pollution and moisture in the air.
How acidic is acid rain?
Very strong acids will burn if they touch your skin and can
even destroy metals.
Acid rain is much, much weaker than this, never acidic
enough to burn your skin.
Vinegar has a pH value of 2.2 and lemon juice has a value
of pH2.3.
Even the strongest recorded acid rain is only about as
acidic as lemon juice or vinegar and we know that these
don't harm us –
So why do we worry about acid rain?
Acid Rain:
• The biggest source of the 'acid rain' chemicals that pollute the
atmosphere is the burning of fossil fuels.
• The original material used in making fossil fuels was full of
carbon, and it's decay created sulfur.
•So the coal, oil and gas we burn today are rich in
hydrocarbons and sulfur.
• The fossil fuels are used
• In power stations to make electricity
• In factories and oil refineries to make plastics and other
products
• In our vehicles which produce huge amounts of
nitrogen and carbon gasses.
Acid Rain Effects:
Forests
Animals
Humans
Manmade
Objects
•Acid rain can make
trees lose their leaves
or needles
•Trees can also suffer
from stunted growth
•Trees have damaged
bark and leaves,
which makes them
difficult to survive
some weather,
disease, and insects
•Fish die off, and that
removes the main
source of food for
birds.
•Birds can die from
eating "toxic" fish
and insects.
•Fish can die from
eating animals that
are toxic.
•Acid rain can even
kill fish before they
are born.
•One of the major
problems that acid
rain can cause in a
human being is
respiratory problems.
•Many can find it
difficult to breath.
•When humans eat
plants or animals has
absorbed acid rain,
the toxins inside of
their meals can affect
them.
•Architecture and
artwork can be
destroyed by acid
rain.
• Acid particles can
land on buildings,
causing corrosion.
•When sulfur
pollutants fall of the
surfaces of
buildings, they react
with the minerals in
the stone to form a
powdery substance
that can be washed
away by rain.
This picture shows a
forest devastated by
acid rain in the Jizera
mountains of the
Czeck Repulic
Branches from a tree in
Germany’s Black
Forest show needle
loss and yellowed
boughs caused by acid
rain
In Scandinavia there are dead lakes, which are crystal
clear and contain no living creatures or plant life.
Many of Britain's freshwater fish are threatened, there
have been reports of deformed fish being hatched
Sandstone figure
over the portal of a
castle in Westphalia,
Germany,
photographed in
1908 (left) and again
in 1968 (right).
Acid rain produced by
air pollution generated
in the heavily
industrialized Ruhr
region of Germany
probably accounts for
the severe damage. The
castle was built in
1702.
Acid Rain in Germany
•Germany’s major natural resource is coal which contains
large amounts of sulfur.
•Germany is among the world's largest and most
technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal,
cement, chemicals, and vehicles.
•Germany’s acid rain pollution greatly affects the
countries that surround it.
•Because Europe has prevailing winds the air pollution is
often carried by the wind 1,000 miles in only five days.
•Since Scandinavia and Poland is downwind from
Germany, they suffer the most from acid rain.
Prevailing
Wind
Air Pollution in the
United Kingdom
-What is air pollution
-What causes air pollution in the UK
-What are the effects of air pollution in UK
-How does air pollution in the UK affect the
rest of Europe
On a large scale, air pollution results in:
• Smog - pollutant particles that often mix with fog
and restrict visibility.
• The Greenhouse Effect - a condition in which
pollution stops radiation from traveling out of the
Earth's atmosphere. This upset to the natural process
means that temperatures on Earth may not be
maintained within natural ranges.
• Global warming - temperatures on Earth become
warmer due to the Greenhouse Effect.
• Holes in the ozone layer - this layer of ozone
naturally keeps ultra-violet rays from the sun from
reaching Earth. Holes make it possible for the rays
to reach us.
Sources of Air Pollution
•Stationary sources
–factories, power plants, and smelters
•Mobile Sources
–cars, buses, planes, trucks, and trains
Smog is the Main Type of Air Pollution in the United
Kingdom.
• Smog is a type of large-scale outdoor pollution.
• It is caused by chemical reactions between pollutants
derived from
London
– primarily automobile exhaust
Fog
– industrial emissions
Summer Smog:
Formed by:
Action of sunlight on these pollutants
forms low-level ozone close to the
ground
Winter Smog:
Formed by:
Pollutants building up at ground level in
urban areas. The 'lid' of cold air above
the warm air traps the pollutants
Effects of Air Pollution in UK
• It kills plants and trees by destroying their leaves, and
can kill animals, especially fish in highly polluted
rivers.
• Air pollution can affect our health in many ways with
both short-term and long-term effects.
• short-term effects include irritation to the eyes,
nose and throat, and upper respiratory infections
such as bronchitis and pneumonia
• Long-term health effects can include chronic
respiratory disease, lung cancer, heart disease,
and even damage to the brain, nerves, liver, or
kidneys
How Air Pollution in UK affects the
Rest of Europe
• Because it is located in the atmosphere, air
pollution is able to travel easily.
• As a result, air pollution is a global problem
• The prevailing winds of Europe push the air
pollution eastward from the UK towards the
mainland of Europe and parts of Scandinavia
• Air pollution in UK has been the subject of
cooperation and conflict with other European
countries
Prevailing
Wind