Pollution (General)
- 1. Pollution Any addition to air, water, soil, or food that threatens the health, survival, or activities of humans or living organisms
- 2. Vocabulary Point source : Single, identifiable sources a such as smoke stacks of a power plant from which pollutants emerge from. Nonpoint Source : Dispersed, usually difficult to identify sources from which pollutants come from .
- 3. Concentration : The amount of pollutants per unit of volume or weight of air, water, soil, or body weight. Persistence : How long the pollutants stay in the air. Part per million (ppm): The concentration of 1 part pollutant per 1 million parts gas, liquid, or solid mixture.
- 4. Part per billion (ppb): Refers to 1 part of pollutant per 1 billion parts of medium Part per trillion (ppt): Refers to 1 part of pollutant per 1 trillion parts of medium. Degradable/Nonpersistant pollutants: Pollutants broken down completely by natural physical, chemical, biological process
- 5. Biodegradable pollutants : Complex chemical pollutants metabolized into simpler chemicals by living organisms. Slowly/Persistent degradable pollutants : Pollutants that take decades or longer to degrade. Non-degradable pollutants : Cannot be broken down through the natural process. Pollution prevention/Input pollution control : The introduction of less harmful chemicals or processes to slow/eliminate the production of pollutants. Pollution cleanup/ Output pollution control : Cleaning up pollutants after they have been produced.
- 6. Where do pollutants come from? Solid/liquid/gaseous by-products or wastes produced when a resource is extracted, processed, used, or made into something new unwanted energy emissions
- 7. Environmental pollution: volcanic eruptions Anthropogenic pollution: burning coal, usually near urban areas where concentrated pollutants, industrialized agriculture Pollution spreads without boundaries. Point sources and nonpoint sources Easier to control point sources
- 8. The Harm Caused by Pollution The factors that determine pollution's harmful effects are it’s chemical nature or how active or harmful it is for the organisms in it. Its concentration in the area by ppm, ppb, or ppt Pollutants persistence and whether it is degradable, nonpresistant, slowly, persistent, biodegradable, pollutants
- 9. Equivalents of some Concentration Units Unit 1ppm 1ppb 1ppt Time 1 minute in 2yrs 1sec/32yrs 1sec/320centuries Money $.01 in 10,000 $.01 in 10,000,000 $.01 in 1000000000 Weight 1 pinch salt in 1 pinch salt in 1 pinch salt 10,000 10 kg potato chips 10 tons potato chips tons potato chips Volume 1 drop in 1000 L of 1 drop in 1000000 L 1 drop in 1000000000 water of water of water
- 10. Disrupt life -supports system for humans and animals, damage wildlife/human life/health, damage property, nuisance, noise, smell, taste know side effects of 10% of 72,000 synthetic chemicals in use with 1000 new ones yearly
- 11. What can we do to help clean up? Lower concentration of pollutant, dilute it in large volume of air or water Pollution prevention Pollution in-put control Pollution clean up Pollution output control
- 12. Recycle Refuse Reduce Reuse Recycle
- 13. Problems with Pollution cleanup Temporary relief if consumption level and pop. continue to grow w/o improvements in pollution control. Removes pollutants from one place to another Once pollutants are dispersed in air, water, and soil in high concentrations too expensive to reduce
- 14. Prevention and Rewards Cheaper and more effective. 99% US $ to clean up 1% prevention. Stick approach- regulations and taxes on polluters Carrot approach- tax write-off and subsides for those who prevent pollution
- 15. Remaining Problems Abroad China, Russia, Poland, many eastern European countries, and developing countries far behind in pollution control. Russia spill 1 out of 10 barrels of oil every 6hr Over use of pesticides Water diverted to use as agriculture Nuclear pollution