Task 2: CHANGES IN UK EMISSIONS
- The greatest source of Sulphur dioxide in 1981 was by Power stations The greatest source of Sulphur dioxide in 1991 was by Power stations The greatest source of Nitrogen oxide in 1981 was by Power stations The greatest source of Nitrogen oxide in 1991 was by Road Transport
- I think that Power Stations and Road Transport was the greatest source of acid rain emissions because now there is more demand for road transport, as now more people are able to afford to buy and have a car. This causes a lot of pollution as the cars leave toxic fumes from out their exhausts; people also use cars on a daily basis to commute to and from work. Nuclear power is another source of acid rain as they give of the more Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide than Road Transport. Power stations can reduce there emissions by using things that filter out the sulphur and nitrogen, but the cost is too much and can not be used all the time.
- There are eight different categories of emissions. The changes that have taken place in Sulphur dioxide since 1981 is that Sulphur dioxide was then considerably high, still after ten years in 1991 the emissions have dropped by only 200,000 tonnes. It may seem a lot, but is hardly makes a difference compared to the ratio producing over 3 million tonnes. Sulphur dioxide on ‘Other industry’ has also dropped, but the emissions are nowhere near as high as the ‘Power stations’. In the other six categories, there hasn’t been much change, but they are not immensely high in emissions in 1981 or 1991, only ‘Other industry’ and ‘Power stations’ are dangerously high in emissions. Nitrogen oxide emissions are lower than Sulphur dioxide’s. Power stations are still producing the most Nitrogen oxide of over 700,000 tonnes in 1981, and 650,000 tonnes in 1991.
- The explanations for the differences of emissions within the categories could be that Power stations and Other industry are used the most, and are also the most in demand by the public because it the most efficient way to run. However, the other six categories like ‘Domestic’, doesn’t really produce or give off as much emissions, and may not be used a lot which means it is not really dangerous. They may have gone up or down due to the amount used and consumed by people. According got other research, in the 1980s, Scandinavian countries described the UK as ‘the dirty old man of Europe’ due to high emissions of sulphur dioxide from industrial sources causing transboundary acid rain. Emissions of sulphur dioxide and oxides of nitrogen have since been reduced, although the UK remains a considerable emitter of acidic pollution compared to other European countries. Most of the UK sulphur dioxide comes from power stations (65% in 1999) and other industries (22% in 1999) whilst the largest source of nitrogen oxides is road transport (44% in 1999) and power stations (21% in 1999).
- I agree with that fact that ‘Acid Rain is the creation of human activity’. In 1985, humans produced global emissions of both Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide of over 75 million tonnes per year. 65 million tonnes being Sulphur dioxide, and 21 million tonnes of Nitrogen oxide. While only 40 million tonnes of both Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide have been disposed of in one year by nature. If humans never existed, there would be a considerable less amount of emissions made, because humans use factories and give of Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide, and humans also drive cars which contribute to this factor of producing toxic gases. If there were no factories or cars, there would rarely be any acid rain caused by humans. However there are natural causes of Sulphur such as volcanic eruptions and organic decay, however the amount of sulphur produced by humans is still higher.
Task 3: ACID RAIN BETWEEN COUNTRIES
- NEXT PAGE
-
The 4 countries with the highest emissions are:
The 4 countries with the lowest emissions are:
- Norway
- Switzerland
- Austria
- Sweden
The 4 countries with the highest depositions are:
The 4 countries with the lowest depositions are:
- Switzerland
- Denmark
- Belgium
- Netherlands
These results may suggest that most of the countries with the highest emissions also have the highest depositions. Only Italy and France have different amount of depositions and emissions. Switzerland is the only country that has the lowest depositions and emissions.
- The explanation of the differences between the highest and lowest figures is that Switzerland and Norway produce the lowest emissions, maybe due to that fact that of the size of the 2 countries. Since their industries are small, they don’t produce a lot of emissions and depositions, as do the bigger countries. Norway and Sweden have low emissions because they probably take care of the environment by preserving their nature and keeping it clean and avoiding contaminating it by being environmentally friendly. They are environmentally friendly because they do not produce greenhouse gas or any other types of emissions as much as Germany, UK, Poland and Italy. Countries that make and generate the most Sulphur dioxide are bigger and larger countries. This Sulphur dioxide then travels north or east towards smaller countries like Sweden. During the summer the emissions can be carried North-East towards Denmark, Norway and Sweden. And in winter the wind travels east towards France and Germany, therefore the emissions can be carried with the wind to those countries. Countries such as Norway and Sweden produce little Sulphur dioxide but receive a lot. This can affect their environment by causing trees and vegetation to die.
Task 4: ‘IS ACID RAIN A GLOBAL PROBLEM?’
I think that acid rain is a global problem, because map 2 shows the ‘Estimated distribution of PH’ is all across the world, particularly in most parts of Asia and Africa. The greatest sources of pollution are in European countries like Germany, North America, France and the UK, most of the pollution is caused by big industries like Power stations and Road transport.
There is a big difference between MEDC and LEDC. LEDC’s do not produce as much emissions of acid rain at as do MEDC.
This maybe due to the fact that they do not have the means or technology to construct big industries like Power stations. LEDC’s may not also need power stations or road transport because it’s not in demand over there, however, the economy is growing very fast.
MEDC’s like the west and east parts of America, and northern parts of Europe however, contribute the majority of the world’s acid rain.
The largest source of acid rain is Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide; these gases are carried in the air by fumes and smoke, produced by power stations and road transport. I think that in the future as LEDC’s get more developed they might start to build power stations and use road transport. If there is a great demand for nuclear power or road transport, the pattern of acid rain emissions and depositions will repeat as it is right now with MEDC’s. Because at the moment, LEDC are looking to get an industrial base, there has been an increased usage of fossil fuels and burning of timber that is already polluting air around Brazil, Thailand, China, and India. This would result in a major disaster for the environment of the world, as nearly all the continents of the world are producing immense amounts of Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide.
Task 5: SOLUTIONS TO THE ACID RAIN PROBLEM
- Measures can be taken to solve or reduce the acid rain problem. For lakes that have been acidified, the PH level can be increased by using a system called liming. This process involves putting large amounts of hydrated lime, quick lime or soda to the lake to increase the alkalinity of the PH. Areas and places that have used this method, and have had success. In West Wales, the PH increased from 5.5 to 7.0, fish such as ‘Brown trouts’ can survive in those waters, which proves that the lake water is purified. However, the best solution to the acid deposition is to regulate the emission pollutants at the source, the source could be Power stations. Many industries in eastern Canada have switched to using fuels free from Sulphur dioxide, or low in content of Sulphur dioxide. Other industries have used ‘Scrubbers’. MEDC’s have already planned out strategies of how to respond to this pollution by creating desulphurizing scrubbers on industrial smoke stacks. This may reduce the amount of Sulphur dioxide and Nitrogen oxide coming out into the environment by cleansing or filtering the gas as it goes out in the atmosphere. This is still only a short-term solution. The long-term solution would be for all the nations to reduce consumption of fossil fuels by using energy more efficiently and cost-effectively by recycling all industrial products.
b. Some countries might be more willing or unwilling to solve the problem of acid rain, countries that are producing the acid problems are countries like Germany, they are not being affected as much as the smaller countries that are receiving acid depositions such as Norway. The acid emissions are carried away from the countries like Germany until the acid is deposited in smaller emission countries like Norway. Therefore countries like Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland are willing to solve the problem of acid rain as they are suffering the most. But the countries that are originating acid rain may not be willing to solve the problem as their acid is being blown away from their country by the wind. Countries that are not being affected by the acid, are not going to be willing got solve the problem as they aren’t being affected and it would be a waste of money for them if they spend it on reducing acid rain. Also a lot of time and effort would be consumed in order to reduce acid problems, this could be another reason why countries that are not being affected might not be will to participate in this effort.
c. Countries are working together to solve the problem of acid depositions/emissions/rain. In 1983, after a lot of pressure from countries such as West Germany and Scandinavia, 21 European countries made a promise to reduce their Sulphur dioxide emissions by 30% from the levels of emissions 1980’s to 1993. This was called ‘The 30% Club’. All the countries that made the commitment, managed to reduce their emissions successfully. Austria surpassed their target to a massive 82% reduction. UK achieved 35% reduction. There were only two countries that increased their emissions by 20% from Croatia, and 27% from Greece. So overall, I think that effective measures are being taken to reduce problems of Acid rain.
d. I think that the best way to solve the problem of acid rain would be to increase energy efficiency by only using appliances and machines when they are needed. This will help reduce emissions. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will also contribute towards solving the acid rain problem. However, if the acid rain problem doesn’t come to an end, there would be an immense amount of pollution in the years to come, causing death rates to increase, due to lungs cancer and other similar diseases. Fish and vegetation such as trees will also be affected by the acid rain. Also another good way to combat acid rain is to reduce the amount of NOx and SO2 being released into the atmosphere. Catalytic (in a car engine) converters in cars can reduce the emissions of NOx by up to 90 percent, but although they are standard in new cars, they cause more carbon dioxide to be released, which contributes to the greenhouse effect.