Acid Rain Damage

Acid rain can also accumulate in lakes and rivers and affect aquatic life. In the northeastern United States, more than 2000 lakes and streams have increased acidity levels due to acid rain. Aquatic plants, frogs, salamanders, and some species of fish are sensitive to acid levels and cannot live in the acidified lakes. Trees can also be affected by acid rain because the acid removes nutrients from the soil, making it more difficult for trees to survive. 

The photo at left was taken in 1935, the one at right some 60 years later. (The statue has recently undergone restoration.) 

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Acid deposition occurs when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions are transformed in the atmosphere and return to the earth in rain, fog or snow. Approximately 20 million tons of SOj are emitted annually in the United States, mostly from the burning of fossil fuels by electric utilities. Acid rain damages lakes, harms forests and buildings, contributes to reduced visibility, and is suspected of damaging health. 

Figure 7.2 Acid rain occurs when water comes into contact with sulfur and nitrogen oxides in the atmosphere, which can come from natural sources or from man-made sources like cars or power plants. These acid rain-damaged coniferous trees live in the Karkonosze National Park in Silesia, Poland.

Figure 8.9 Sulfurous acid is found in acid rain. It is a weak acid and is oxidised to sulfuric acid (a strong acid). Acid rain damages the environment quite badly.

Acid-rain damage to buildings, statues, and trees amounts to billions of dollars a year. 

We ve all heard about the ravages of acid rain. Resulting from toxic emissions in the environment, acid rain damages the leaves and needles on trees, reduces a tree s ability to withstand cold, drought, disease, and pests, and even inhibits or prevents plant reproduction. In an effort to stay alive and combat the acidity, tree roots pull important nutrients such as calcium and magnesium from the soil. These alkaline nutrients balance the effects of acid rain, but as they become depleted from the soil, the trees ability to survive is further strained. 

Reddy, M. M. (1988), Acid Rain Damage to Carbonate Stone A Quantitative Assess ment Based on the Aqueous Geochemistry of Rainfall Runoff from Stone, Earth Surface Processes Landforms 13, 335-354. 

Despite the measures that were taken to control SO and NO, emissions in the first generation of protocols, scientific evidence showed that large parts of Europe were still under threat of acid rain damage and that there were far more ecologically sensitive regions than had been first understood. Eurther measures would have to be taken to reduce harmful emissions. This led to the negotiations for the 1994 Oslo Protocol. The Oslo Protocol essen-... 

E6- Threatened plants evident suspect risk 0 Even acid rain damage... 

Atmospheric chemical constituents can precipitate by dry, wet and occult deposition. Wet and occult deposition refers to precipitation of rainwater and cloud/fog water, respectively. They are related to acid rain and acid wet deposition as sulphur oxides are transformed to sulphur acid by interaction with water in polluted atmospheres. The two processes can have a different effect, but both result in the fonnation of soluble sulphates and mostly gypsum. Although no doubt exist about acid rain damage on most building materials, the rain can also wash away accumulated pollutants. Thus, occult deposition can be more damaging, as provide moisture to activate the chemical attack of diy deposited gases and particles. Various studies have considered that wet deposition is not important compared to dry deposition [26]. 

When acid rain falls or flows into lakes and streams, it makes them more acidic. Some species of aquatic animals— such as trout, bass, snails, salamanders, and dams—cannot tolerate the increased acidity and die. This then disturbs the ecosystem of the lake, resulting in imbalances that may lead to the death of other aquatic species. Acid rain also weakens trees by dissolving nutrients in the soil and by damaging their leaves. Appalachian red spruce trees have been the hardest hit, with many forests showing significant acid rain damage. 

FIGURE 14.21 Acid rain damage Many monuments and statues, such as this one of George Washington in New York s Washington Square Park, have suffered severe deterioration caused by acid rain. 

Add Rain Since acids are corrosive, acid rain damages building materials. Because many aquatic plants and animals cannot survive in acidic water, acid rain also affects lakes and rivers, making them too acidic for the simdval of some species. 

Acid rain damages structures made out of metal, marble, cement, and limestone, as weU as harming and jxjssibly killing aquatic life and trees. 

As stated in the chapter, aboui 50 million tons of sulfur dioxide are released into the atmosphere every year, (a) If 20 percent of the SO2 is eventually converted to H2SO4. calculate the number of 1000-lb marble statues the resulting acid rain can damage. As an estimate, assume that the acid rain only destroys the surface layer of each statue, which is made up of 5 percent of its total mass, (b) What is the other undesirable result of the acid rain damage ... 

Sulphur dioxide forms because petrol contains a little sulphur. It attacks the lungs and breathing tubes, causing bronchitis and other diseases. It also dissolves in rain, making it acidic. The acid rain damages trees, plants, buildings, and metalwork. 

Acid rain damages building materials such as the limestone that composes many statues. 

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