When looking at air pollution, we can see that there are many types, one type is acid rain. Scientists have discovered that air pollution from the burning of fossil fuels mainly in power stations and industry in countries such as Germany, United Kingdom and other economically developed countries is the major cause of acid rain. Acidic deposition or acid rain as it is commonly known occurs when emissions of sulphur dioxide (so2) and oxides of nitrogen (no) react in the atmosphere with water, oxygen and oxidants to form various acidic compounds, sunlight further accelerates this process with the introduction of heat. These compounds then fall to the earth in either wet form (such as rain, snow, and fog) or dry form (such as gas and …show more content…
There are also economic implications to acid rain, acidic particles are known to contribute to the corrosion of metals and deterioration of stone buildings and paint on cars. The corrosion seriously depreciates the value of buildings and goods which are a value to society e.g. old buildings which have to be maintained more due to the increase and effects of acid rain, like statues features becoming less deformed and rounded. Some manufacturers of motor vehicles have had top paint their cars with acid resistant paint which can protect the car against the corrosive affects of acid rain, at an average cost of £5 per car produced in the Scandinavian countries which is a total of £61 million per year on top of all new cars sold in the Scandinavian countries. However certain regulations have been introduced to prevent future increases in damages to materials, “the acid rain program” will try to reduce emissions of so2 ,the benefits of this program are measured, by the costs now of repair or damage since the program was introduced.
There are more social effects of acid rain one is that the health of the general population of a country seems to be worsening due to the air born acidic particles, so2 has now been regulated by the “clean air act” in 1990,when sulphur dioxide interacts in the atmosphere to form sulphur aerosols, which may be transported long distances through the air, most of these aerosols
Acid rain can weaken a tree or plant’s natural defenses. It harms the soil and all organisms that need it to survive because it takes away important soil nutrients such as calcium and magnesium. When a tree’s defenses are down, it makes them more susceptible to diseases and pests. Acid rain can also deposit nitrates. Nitrogen runoff can cause eutrophication. Eutrophication is when runoff nitrogen goes into an ocean ecosystem and causes algae to grow quicker. This is called an algal bloom and it blocks sunlight from getting to the plants causing a “dead zone.” This means no organisms will be able to live there anymore. Finally, acid rain can cause the wearing away or deterioration of buildings and many other things built of stone. It does not affect humans directly. It does however harm them because of the two main chemicals involved, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide. When inhaled, they have been shown to cause some illnesses such as asthma and bronchitis. Some organisms are more damaged by acid rain than others, but most organisms are harmed when there are high concentrations of acid rain in the area/ecosystem they live in. Acid rain can harm an environment and humans negatively and has several effects on the Earth. Many places around the world have been affected by acid rain. 3 main places are eastern Europe and eastern United States along with some areas of China and Taiwan. In many places where there have been great effects
Acid rain is precipitation containing harmful amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids. (Environmental Effects) A few acid rain examples are rain, snow, sleet, fog, cloudwater, and dew. “Toxic pollutants in the air or deposited on soils or surface waters, can impact wildlife in a number of ways. Greenhouse gases a gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation, such as, carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons. Methane, water vapor, fluorinated gases, ozone, sulfur hexafluoride, Carbon dioxide, and nitrous oxide.(OTHER GREENHOUSE
Acid rain is rain that has been made acidic by certain pollutants in the air and has low pH levels that can harm the environment. It is a type of acid deposition that can appear in many forms such as, wet deposition, which can be rain, sleet snow or fog that is more acidic than normal, and dry deposition, where gases and dust particles become acidic. (Epa.gov) Acid deposition in wet and dry forms, falls on buildings, cars and trees and makes lakes acidic, which then leads to the danger of plant and animal life. Dry acid deposition though, can be inhaled by humans, which can then cause health problems. (Epa.gov)
First is the acidification. Chemical reactions involving air pollutants can create acidic compounds. Sometimes, when an air pollutant, such as sulfuric acid combines with the water droplets that make up clouds, the water droplets become acidic, forming acid rain. Acid rain can kill trees and harm animals, fish, and other wildlife. When acid rain gets into soils, it makes the soil become unfit for many living things due to the change of nutrition. Acid rain also changes the chemistry of the water, harming aquatic life and even people’s health.
“North Americans have been smelting ore and burning fossil fuels for generations. In the past, the gases went up ordinary chimneys or small smoke stacks, to descend upon near by areas and pollute them,” states author, Robert Collins. Almost everyone knows what acid rain is and has a vague idea of the consequences that exist as a cause of it. Most people however do not realize the severity of acid rain. The essay “Acid Rain: Scourge from the Skies” by Robert Collins was very effective in showing the true severity of acid rain. By using excellent developmental devices, Robert Collins was able to write an effective essay that is appealing to today’s society, as well as
Through the advancement of technology, the issue of the air surrounding the earth might have been one of the most often matters to be brought up and discussed among scientists and engineers. Acid rain is one of the more serious environmental problems and it is closely related to the air pollution. Nowadays, it has affected large part of US, Europe and Canada. People start to be concerned about acid rain since it is getting worse in the passed years. The effect of the acid rain most often leads to another bad effect. For example, the acid rain will cause the lake and streams to be acidic. Thus, it will also affect the ecosystem inside the water.
Acid rain has a large concentration of hydrogen ions mainly coming from the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and gas. It could kill living organisms, damage buildings, and monuments.
Acid rain is created through discharges of nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide, which reacts with water molecules and creates an acid. Acid rain breaks down rock and soil with contact through the Earth’s atmosphere, which is also known as weathering (Washington University).
Another way acid rain can be prevented is by using fewer cars! There are so many different ways of transportation. You can use bikes if you aren’t going a long distance, you can use a train, if you live near a friends house you can car pool, and this all decreases reliance on fossil fuels. Cars also emit carbon dioxide, which contributes to global warming which is affecting the environment. As the temperature rises, more rain falls, which increases the risk of heavier flooding. Ice is melting, and that is dangerous for future sea level rise. Also many countries already have very low water, and when the climate changes it changes precipitation patterns, and increasing droughts, which is dangerous because people are running out of water. But a positive impact is that electric cars are better for the environment because they only use battery power, meaning there is no burning of gasoline or other fossil
Acid rain affects thousands of people worldwide and is produced by factories and car fumes. It is the product of humanity and should not happen if we were careful of our carbon emissions. This phenomenon has contributed to many ruined water sources around the world. If acid rain was never a problem then places like Canada would have more forests and trees in Ontario. Also not as much coral would be dying in the ocean. Acid rain is a serious problem that needs to be addressed with caution and must be effectively dealt with before it is too
Acid rain damages wildlife and their environments. For example, according to Marian Chertow, he says that acid rain damages lakes, rivers, and streams. Therefore, because the water is polluted with more of the wildlife will die from the acids in the water. In this case, this part is important because if you think about it, many people and animals get food from the water. For example, the fish live in the ponds. But if the acid from the acid rain gets into the water. Then the fish will die and that will be less food for animals and humans. This means that the animal life will die down.For instance, according to Marian Chertow he claims, acid rain can damage forests and soil. Therefore, forests and many areas that contribute to soil are places for animals to live. So this means that they will lose
· Each year, an estimated 178,000 Chinese in major cities suffer premature deaths because of atmospheric pollution in excess of standards. Also, acid rain from high sulfur regions heavily damages the environment each year to crops and forests
Air is an indispensable part of human, animal and plant lives. Without it, no organisms would be able to survive on Earth (Reference, 2017). Due to excessive human activities, air pollution has become a detrimental worldwide issue in current days (Sciencing, 2017). However, scientists have found new chemicals that can assist in improving the air quality (Phys.org, 2017). Moreover, humans are able to adopt many methods to help decrease the severity of contamination released into the earth’s atmosphere. This investigation is linked to ‘application and limitation’ in ‘science as a Human Endeavour’.
Acid rain is a form of precipitation that falls to the earth as rain. For rain to be acidic it has a pH level of less than 5.6. The corrosive nature of acid rain causes widespread damage to the environment. The problem begins with the production of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from the burning of fossil fuels, such as coal, natural gas, oil and other kinds of manufacturing. When these pollutants are in the air, they react with water and other chemicals, to form sulfuric acid, nitric acid, sulfuric acid and other pollutants. Once these pollutants are in the air, they can travel for many miles, and when rain clouds get to heavy to hold all the moisture they drop their deadly load of chemicals onto the earth in a
Acid rain is a common term for pollution caused when sulfur and nitrogen dioxides combine with atmospheric moisture to produce a rain, snow, or hail of sulfuric and nitric acids. Such pollution may also be suspended in a fog, or the pollutants may be deposited in dry form. Environmental damage from acid rain has been reported in northern Europe and North America. High levels of acid rain have also been detected in other areas of the world, such as above the tropical rain forest of Africa. Acid rain has destroyed plant and animal life in lakes, damaged forests and crops, endangered marine life in coastal waters, eroded structures, and contaminated drinking water.