Acid Rain

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Acid Rain
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What is Acid Rain?

• Any form of precipitation that is unusually
  acidic.
• Rain has a ph of 6.7 and acid rain 4-5
• Acid rain occurs when certain gases react in the
  atmosphere with water, oxygen, and other
  chemicals to form various acidic compounds.

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How does acid rain form?
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Causes of Acid Rain

• The main chemical causes of acid rain are sulfur
  dioxide and nitrogen oxides released into the
  air.
• Fires, volcanic eruptions, bacterial
  decomposition, and lightning increase the
  nitrogen levels on Earth.
• Humans are the main cause of acid rain because we
  release many different chemicals into the air,
  that change the mixture of gases in the
  atmosphere.

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Preventing Acid Rain

• Turn off lights, computers, and other appliances
  when not using them.
• Only use electric appliances when you need them.
• Use energy-efficient appliances.
• Keep your thermostat at 68F in winter and 72F in
  the summer
• Avoid using cars and use public transportation
  instead to decrease fuel exhausts
• Using energy efficient appliances helps reduce
  the use of fossil fuels that are the primary
  cause of acid rain.
• Fossil fuels are coal, petroleum, and natural
  gas, and when they are burned they produce carbon
  dioxide.

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How Acid Rain Affects the Biosphere

• Nutrients are washed from the soil causing plants
  to grow more slowly.
• The harmful chemicals in the soil are consumed by
  the tree causing leaves to fall from the tree
• Without leaves, trees cannot use sunlight to make
  their own food and cannot survive
• Trees that are exposed to acid rain have
  difficult time withstanding periods of drought,
  diseases, cold weather and infestation of insects.

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How Acid Rain Affects the Biosphere

• When the water gets contaminated by acid rain,
  the aquatic insects and amphibians are not able
  to reproduce as well as usual.
• Acid rain causes the food chain to break down and
  animal life begins to disappear slowly.

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How does acid rain affectthe food chain?

• Phytoplankton die and decrease the food source
  for dragonflies, and mayflies.
• These insects start to die because of the short
  food supply and cause the frogs, birds,
  salamanders, and other types of fish to die.
• The bald eagle and snake start to die because of
  their short food supply.
• This process continues until it has affected
  every animal in that food chain.

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Acid Rain in the Great Smoky Mountains National
Park

• This Park receives the higher sulfur and nitrogen
  deposits of any other park, and at higher
  elevations it receives as low as 2.0 pH of acidic
  rain.
• The average acidic rain that falls in the park is
  4.5, 5-10 times more acidic than normal rain.
• High elevation soils receive so much airborne
  nitrogen, which causes them to suffer from
  advanced nitrogen saturation.

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Acid Rain in the Great Smoky Mountains National
Park

• This limits the forest nutrients, like calcium,
  to plants, and causes the release of toxic
  aluminum which hurt vegetation and stream life.
• The health of the high elevation ecosystems is in
  jeopardy because of the level of acid in the
  Mountain streams and forest.
• The nitrate levels in some streams are
  approaching the public health standard for
  drinking water.

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Local issues involving Acid Rain

• Acid Rain threatens the future productivity of
  forests by quietly dissolving their food reserves
  in the soil.
• In Georgia, an estimated 26.7 percent of the
  sulfur emitted by utility units is returned
  through precipitation, this element is usually
  added to deficient soils.
• Utility units are things we use that cause the
  burning of fossil fuels.
• Ex. Water and electricity
• Appalachian hardwood forests are getting acid
  rain that may be changing biological activity in
  the ecosystem.

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How Acid Rain affects the non-living environment

• carbon dioxide affects the deforestation and
  ocean.
• Acid Rain ruins building because it eats into
  stones and metal.
• ex.marble and limestone.
• Car manufators use acid resisntant paint because
  it deterioutes the paint.
• Important statues are being ruin because the acid
  speeds up erosion.
• Ex Statue of Liberty

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Cont.

• Damages soil by destroying substances, and
  washing away nutrients.
• Natural mercury and aluminum found in soil
  chemically react with acid rain.
• The chemical reaction occurring in the soil
  affect the animals consuming them.
• When acid rain fall it lands on leaves, and when
  they fall they contaminate the lake.

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Acid Rain Affects One-Third of China

• Acid rain caused by worsening air pollution now
  affects one-third of Chinas landmass,
  threatening soil quality and food safety
• While air quality has improved in some areas of
  China as a result of adjustments in the nations
  energy structure and stricter vehicle emissions
  standards, 40 percent of urban air quality
  remains below even second-grade national
  standards
• China has some of the world's most polluted
  cities and waterways.

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Things to help China

• When you are going to work, you could walk, ride
  your bike, or take a bus
• Car-pool to a place with someone else
• For alternate fuels, try ethanol, propane, or
  natural gas
• Take the train or a bus for long trips
• Limit the amount of long trips you take in your
  car
• Make sure that your vehicles air conditioning
  system isnt leaking
• Try not to overflow the gas tank
• Make sure that you are traveling at high speeds
  only when you need to