Research, acid rain

G. J. Heij and J. W. Erisman, Acid Rain Research Do We Have Enough Answers , Elsevier, Amsterdam, 1995. 

K. N. Pilegaai d, N. O. Jensen and P. Huinmelshoj, in Acid Rain Research Do We Have Enough... 

Fig. 10-11. The pH scale is a measure of hydrogen ion concentration. The pH of common substances is shown with various values along the scale. The Adirondack Lakes are located in the state of New York and are considered to be receptors of acidic deposition. Source U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Acid Rain—Research Summary," EPA-600/8-79-028, Cincinnati, 1979.

Other Titles - The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 continue the federal acid rain research program and contain several provisions relating to research, development and air monitoring. They also contain provisions to provide additional unemployment benefits through the Job Training Partnership Act to workers laid off as a consequence of compliance with the Clean Air Act. The Act also contains provisions to improve visibility near National Parks and other parts of the country. Strict enforcement of the Clean Air Act Amendments is the driving force behind pollution abatement. Non-compliance is simply not an option, since there are both financial and criminal liabilities that outweigh any benefits derived from a business. 

The pollution rising trom Ihe smokestacks ol this power plant can cause acid rain. (Photo Researchers Inc.)... 

Acid rain affects plants by changing the conditions in the soil. For example, nitric acid deposits nitrates, which fertilize the land. The nitrates allow fast-growing weeds such as quack grass to replace valuable prairie species. If these species were to become extinct, their genetic material would no longer be available for agricultural research. 

Atmospheric emissions of sulphur dioxide are either measured or estimated at their source and are thus calculated on a provincial or state basis for both Canada and the United States (Figure 2). While much research and debate continues, computer-based simulation models can use this emission information to provide reasonable estimates of how sulphur dioxide and sulphate (the final oxidized form of sulphur dioxide) are transported, transformed, and deposited via atmospheric air masses to selected regions. Such "source-receptor" models are of varying complexity but all are evaluated on their ability to reproduce the measured pattern of sulphate deposition over a network of acid rain monitoring stations across United States and Canada. In a joint effort of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Canadian Atmospheric Environment Service, eleven linear-chemistry atmospheric models of sulphur deposition were evaluated using data from 1980. It was found that on an annual basis, all but three models were able to simulate the observed deposition patterns within the uncertainty limits of the observations (22). 

Carrying out research to facilitate multimedia, multispecies approaches to waste management. Acid rain and the leaching of hazardous chemicals from landfills demonstrate the mobility of chemicals from one medium (e.g., air, water, or soil) to another. 

Air, soil, and water are vital to life on this planet. We mnst protect these resonrces and nse them wisely— onr snrvival as a species depends on them. Despite recent impressive strides in improving the environment, evidence is overwhelming that more effective action mnst be taken to address snch critical issnes as acid rain, hazardons waste disposal, hazardous waste landfills, and groundwater contamination. It is also vital that we assess realistically the potential health and enviromnental impacts of emerging chemical products and technologies. The problems are clearly complex and demand a broad array of new research initiatives. 

According to Summers and Chang from NASA s Ames Research Center, Moffett Field (1993), the oxidation of Fe2+ to Fe3+ provided a possibility for the reduction of nitrites and nitrates to ammonia. This reaction would have been of great importance, as NH3 is required in many syntheses of biogenesis precursors. The authors assume that nitrogen was converted to NO in a non-reducing atmosphere, and thence to nitrous and nitric acids. These substances entered the primeval oceans in the form of acid rain , and here underwent reduction to NH3 with the help of Fe2+, thus raising the pH of the oceans to 7.3. Temperatures above 298 K favoured this reaction, which can be written as ... 

Table 5 also reveals that the mean concentration of Pb in brown rice and leaves of 19 vegetable species from acid rain affected areas and non-affected areas are almost the same. On the other hand, the ratio is close to 1. This result indicated that acid rain does not influence the biological accumulation of Pb in brown rice and leaves of vegetables species sampled in Taiwan. Some studies have indicated that concentration of Pb in the crops was only affected when the concentration of Pb in the soils is higher than 500 mg/kg (Kabata-Pendias and Pendias, 1992). Sloan et al. (1997) also indicated that the relative bioavailability of biosolids-applied heavy metals in agricultural soils was Cd Zn >Ni >Cu Cr >Pb, for the soils 15 years after biosolids application. It is quite consistent with the results achieved by research of Chen et al. (1998). Thus, the phyto-availability of heavy metals caused by acid deposition followed the trend Cd >Zn >Cu Pb. 

Park, S-U., Lee, T-Y, Lee, D-S, Shim, S-K., Chao, S-Y, Lee, C-B., Sunwoo, Y., Moon, S-E. (1997). Research and Development on Technology for Monitoring and Prediction of Acid Rain. Ministry of Environment, Progressive Report I on Second Stage, 542 pp. 

Use what you have learned about titration to design a field investigation to determine whether your area is affected by acid rain. Research the factors that affect the pH of rain, such as location, prevailing winds, and industries. Form a hypothesis about the pH of rain in your area. What equipment will you need to collect samples To perform the titration What indicator will you use ... 

At the time, other scientists and the general public regarded Oden s conclusion with suspicion. It was difficult to imagine mechanisms by which waste gases released at one point on the globe could exert disastrous effects on the environment a thousand miles away. Yet, time and more research were to prove the Swedish scientist correct and earn him the title "the Father of Acid Rain."... 

The erosion caused by acid rain is dramatically illustrated by the damage it causes to buildings and works of art, including pieces of sculpture, such as this bas relief in Venice, Italy. (Cristina Pedrazzini/Photo Researchers, Inc.)... 

A method sometimes used to counteract the effects of acid rain is the addition of a basic substance that wiii neutraiize the water s acidity, iime in the example shown here, to a body of water. (Martin Bond/Photo Researchers, inc.)... 

The topic of acid rain during the 1980s and early 1990s was one of controversy and of incomplete answers in terms of official policy and science—after an expenditure of many millions of dollars. In 1980. the National Acid Precipitation Assessment Program (NAPAP) was established and subsequently consumed thousands of scientific research hours and costly field investigations, including the use of numerous helicopter expeditions to northwestern mountain and lake areas of the United States and Canada. Thousands of hours of computer power were consumed. 

Kennedy, I.R. Acid Soil and Acid Rain Research Studies in Botany and Relate Applied Fields, 2nd Edition, John Wiley Sons, Inc., New York, NY, 1992. Koenig, J.Q. Health Effects of Ambient Air Pollution How Safe Is the Air We Breathe Kluwer Academic Publisher s, Norvell, MA, 2000,... 

Heij, G.J. and J.W. Erisman (1995) (Eds.) Acid rain research Do we have enough answers . Studies in Environmental Science 64. Elsevier, Amsterdam, 502 pp. 

A marble statue is being slowly dissolved by reaction of calcium carbonate with acid rain (top). A researcher examines tree branches damaged by acid rain on Mount Mitchell in North Carolina (bottom). 

Kennedy IR (1992) Acid soil and acid rain, 2nd edn. Research Studies Press/Wiley, Taunton, Somerset, UK, 254 pages, ISBN 0 471 93404 6... 

As is well-known, sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides exhausted into air, which can result in acid rain, have caused serious deterioration of the environment. The potential need for regulation of SO and NO gases in combustion emissions is, nowadays, becoming an important research area. 

Kettles, I.M. and Shilts, W.W. (1994) Composition of glacial sediments in Canadian shield terrane, southeastern Ontario and southwestern Quebec applications to acid rain research and mineral exploration. Geological Survey of Canada Bulletin, 463, Report, 58 pp. 

High sulfur content in coal hinders the use of coal resources because sulfur dioxide emissions from utility and industrial boilers are a cause of acid rain. Thus, research into the nature of sulfur in coal is important for improving coal utilization. Geochemical studies of sulfur in coal provide information about the abundance, distribution, and speciation of sulfur in coal. Many of these properties are determined by geological environments and processes of coal formation. 

Concerns about the environmental effects of emissions resulting from the combustion of fossil fuels, particularly coal, continue to increase as the utilization of these fuels grows. The large amounts of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides emitted into the atmosphere and the attempts to tie these fossil-fuel-derived pollutants directly to the undeniably difficult problem of acid rain have caused heated debates, numerous research studies, government actions, and serious efforts to reduce pollution. The issues are extremely complex, and our understanding of the origin, properties, behavior, and effects of these pollutants is incomplete. Often, theories are contradictory. 

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