ACID RAIN
name here
Engineering 303i
Professor h
May 3, 2004
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Penguin Publishing House, 1987 , Pearce Fred Acid Rain. What is it and what is it doing to us? New York Publishers, 1989, William Stone Acid Rain. Fiend or Foe? Lucent books, Inc. 1990, Steward Gail Acid Rain.
Acid Rain
Acid rain is a great problem in our world. It causes fish and plants to die because earth's rainwaters are contaminated. It also causes harm to people as well, because we eat fish, drink water and eat plants that are polluted by acid rain. It is a problem that we must all face together and try to get rid of. However, acid rain on it's own is not the biggest problem. It causes many other problems such as aluminum
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Farmers put lime (a very strong alkaline substance) and special fertilizers in there soil neutralize the acid in the soil on a regular daily basis.
In general, soil structure is classified as sandy, clay, or loam, although most garden soils are mixtures of the three in varying proportions. A sandy soil is very loose and will not hold water. A clay soil is dense and heavy, sticky when wet, and almost brick hard when dry. Loam is a mixture of sand and clay soils, but it also contains large quantities of humus, or decayed organic material, which loosens and aerates clay soil and binds sandy soil particles together. In addition, humus supplies plant nutrients. Then, soil structure can be improved by digging in compost, manure, peat moss, and other organic matter.
Parts of western United States, Minneapolis, northeastern North America and east and north Canada are places in North America where soil is more sensitive to acid deposits then any other places. Many factors, including the soil chemistry and the type of rock determine the environments ability to neutralize the acid deposits from the rain.
Soils naturally contain small amounts of poisonous minerals such as mercury, aluminum, and cadmium. Normally, these minerals do not cause serious problems, but as the acidity of the soil increases, chemical reactions allow the minerals to be absorbed by the plants. The plants are damaged and any animals that eat the plants
Acidity of an ecosystem, measured in pH, is a crucial factor to the survival of a species in an ecosystem. Altering it can have result in dramatically negative effects, in spite of the fact that pH of an ecosystem has been dramatically changed over a relatively short period of time due to various human activities. For example, acid rain is a major environmental problem that is caused by human-made pollution. When fossil fuels are burnt to get energy, pollutants like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides get mixed into the rainwater and eventually are evaporated into the atmosphere. These gases enter the atmosphere, and mix with water in the water cycle to form an acidic mixture of water and gases. This water falls in the form of acid rain, which
The pH of soil is important for the absorption of nutrients into the plant. Of the 17 needed plant nutrients 14 of them are acquired through the soil. Acidity is needed to break down and dissolve these nutrients. The nutrients are able to dissolve into the soil faster when the acid is acting as a solute. Another way the pH affects the soil is by influencing microorganisms. The bacteria is crucial in the growth and development of the plant, the bacteria’s role is to break down and decompose organic matter in the soil. If the pH of the soil is too high the acid will slow down and eventually stop the microorganisms. Most plants ideal pH is between 6-7, slightly acidic. Many plants are outliers and thrive in pH such as carrots and corn, which can withstand pH as low as 5.5. If the pH of the soil is too high for the desired crop farmers can add material such as limestone, and wood ashes to raise the pH to the desired level. The pH of the soil can also be changed naturally through the leaching of calcium, magnesium and sodium by rainwater. Carbon dioxide from rotting organic matter can also increase the pH of the soil. Acids can also be created organically in the form of sulfuric and nitric
Soil acidity/alkalinity is essential for farmers determining the profitability of planting certain types of crop in certain areas. Some plants grow well in slightly acidic soils while others prefer an alkaline environment.
Poor soil management can lead to biological, chemical, and physical degradation, which can in turn negatively alter the activity of
As acid rains falls it disintegrates rocks over a long period of time and seeps into the ground where it is released into lakes, rivers, and oceans. As time goes on this not only effects life in these locations but the acidic and carbonic solution eventually returns to the atmosphere and remains in a cycle, slowly but surely contributing to climate change (Beaulieu,
Soil is used to augment the groundwater in order to withdraw freshwater before it moves into an aquifer.
living organisms to be able to adjust to acidic rain that quickly in a short time span. According
Acid deposition effects water systems because it lowers the pH in the water, creating adverse effects. More Acidic water will also more readily absorb aluminum leached from soil runoff. The combination of aluminum and acidic water is very harmful to many species. When biomagnification occurs many species will die off resulting in less biodiversity in the water system. Dead or dying trees is a common sight with acid deposition in effect. Acid rain leaches aluminum from the soil, doing so sucking the nutrients from the tree and causing death. At high elevation acidic fog, or clouds can strip the nutrients from the trees foliage’ causing them to lose leaves and die. The trees are also less able to absorb sunlight, and with that will not be able to achieve photosynthesis. As well as rural areas, urban areas also get affected. If buildings are made out of marble or limestone, the stone will begin to peel and chip away over time. This is possible because when the main crust chips away underneath is something composed of gypsum. A mineral that forms from the reaction between calcite, water, and sulfuric acid. This mineral can be slowly eaten away and destroyed by acid
The acid rain eventually falls back into our rivers, streams and wells where we intern drink it and this is where the danger begins. The film gave various examples of different places that suffered greatly by contaminated water. The one that stood out most was Lago Titicaca a river found in Bolivia that was contaminated by blood it was devastating to see the people’s main stream in blood red because of the ignorance of the people.
Chemical elements can cause harmful effects on human health due to the use of plants that are grown in contaminated soil. Through bioaccumulation, over plants that absorb an element from the soil, elements enter into the food chain and shall be deposited in the human body. Root system in plants plays an important role in the distribution of elements from the soil through the plant. Elevated pH values can affect the lack of accessible forms of specific nutritious elements. The value of pH has a decisive influence on the dynamics of all the elements in the soil, especially micro elements and heavy metals. In the acidic environment the solubility of metals increases, they cross to the solution of the soil from which the plant adopted them, which can lead to greater adoption of these elements by plants. The increase in soil acidity reduces the amount of plant available phosphorus, which by binding to iron and aluminum becomes difficult soluble phosphates (Resulović, Čustović 2002) Also, there is a more intensive adoption of manganese and its toxic effects on
The high water content of these soils causes the chemistry to be primarily reducing rather than oxidizing as it is in most other soils. Most of the reactions are mediated by biological activities. Such a chemical environment means that the rate of decomposition of organic matter is relatively slow. The reduced carbon in the organic matter of saturated soils is the source of energy and electrons to drive the redox reactions (Schipper et al, p. 923). Under slightly reducing conditions, the process of denitrification breaks down nitrate (NO3-) into N2 "through intermediates including nitrite (NO2) and N2O" (McBride, p. 265). Under strongly reducing conditions, some of the N2 is transformed into NH4- through plant enzyme-catalization in a process called nitrogen fixing. Reducing conditions also change sulfate (SO42- ) into H2S a noxious smelling gas. Much of the hydrogen sulfide is dissolved and dissociated in the water where the sulfide interacts with Fe2+ form iron sulfides. In more moderately reducing conditions the iron can be contained in siderite (Fe CO3). In both instances the solubility of iron is greatly reduced (McBride, p. 266). Saturated soils tend to decompose organic matter slowly, transform nitrates, and reduce the solubility of metals such as iron. The reduced iron results in gleying (greyish-green coloration) of the soil and in the case of fluctuating water levels mottles
Another form of industrial waste that contributes to water pollution is acid rain. Acid rain is a product of industries burning coal. The burning of coal produces sulfur oxide and nitrogen oxide, and when these chemicals combine with the earth’s atmosphere it forms acid rain The Northeastern part of the United States has the worst acid rain levels in the world. More specific, the states with the highest concentration are Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and some boarding parts of Canada and New England area. The falling acid rain can destroy plants and animals in several different ways. The acidification of a lake, river, or stream because of the high acidic levels in the water kills algae. Since algae are the main source of food, for many species of fish, they will also suffer from the high acid levels.
As an animal feed and soil nutrient: The farmers mix it with the total ration to feed the animals. It is also used as a fertilizer for the land. This increases the acidity of the land and the manure and fertilizer end up getting washed off into waterways. This causes widespread concern2.
Wood ash was used to stabilize the clay soilin this study and a few in quantity of lime is also used in this study.
There are two primary methods of preventing acid mine drainage fall. One is preventing sulfuric acid from forming, and the other is neutralizing the acid after it forms. In