SS7G10 The student will discuss environmental issues across South

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SS7G10The student will discuss environmental
issues across South East Asia.

1. Describe the causes and effects of pollution on
   the Yangtze and Ganges Rivers.
2. Describe the causes and effects of air pollution
   and flooding in India and China.

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Essential question

• We can send a shuttle into space, we can build
  the new Delhi Metro. We can detonate nuclear
  weapons. So why can't we clean up our rivers?
• Rakesh Jaiswal, Founder of Eco Friends
• He gave up working on his doctorate to fight for
  the cause of restoring the Ganges River.

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Ganges River
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Ganges River
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Ganges River
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Yangtze River
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Yangtze River
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Yangtze River
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Air pollution in India

• Many cities are being choked by a cocktail of
  dust and chemical particles in the air. Every day
  1.5 billion people are exposed to levels of air
  pollution well over the safety limits recommended
  by the. Air World Health Organization pollution
  actually shortens lives. Three million people die
  each year from poor air quality.

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Air pollution in China

• One of the worst cases of air pollution took
  place in South Asia during August 2002. A blanket
  of pollutants nicknamed, "the Brown Cloud"
  smothered large parts of the region, causing
  severe problems for the people there.

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Asian Brown Cloud

• Extends over South, Southeast and East Asia
• Haze hovers about 4 miles above the surface of
  the earth can travel halfway around the globe
  in less than a week
• 75 of the cloud is man-made forest fires,
  inefficient cooking fuels (woodstoves),
  factories, cars

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Consequences

• 15 reduction of solar radiation
• Altered monsoon patterns
• Less rain in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan
• More rain and flooding in other areas
• Reduction in photosynthesis (drop in agricultural
  activity
• Damages plants
• Causes respiratory ailments

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Effects on China
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Beijing
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Flooding in India

• The death toll from this years monsoon has
  already climbed past 800, and now some 1.2
  million people have been marooned and about 2
  million more affected in the impoverished state
  of Bihar, where the Kosi river has burst its
  banks, breached safety embankments and submerged
  all roads leading to the region.

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Flooding in India

• Indias monsoon season, which lasts from June to
  September, brings rain vital for the countrys
  farmers but also massive destruction. Floods,
  mudslides, collapsing houses and lightning
  strikes kill hundreds of people every year.

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Flooding in China
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Will the completion of the Three Gorges Dam on
the upper Yangtze River help with flooding?
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Pros and Cons of the Three Gorges Dam

• Will generate electricity-clean inexpensive
• A renewable energy source
• Will control flooding
• Can store river water in case of a drought
• Will improve transportation

• Requires the flooding of entire valleys scenic
  areas
• Disrupts natural seasonal changes in the river
• Ecosystems can be destroyed
• Natural flooding cleans out silt
• The silt that washes downstream provides fertile
  soil

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Facts about the Three Gorges Dam Future Wonder
of the World

• When completed it will be the largest
  hydroelectric dam in the world
• Will be more than 1 mile long
• Will be almost 600 feet tall
• Will cost about 24 billion dollars
• 20 years construction time!!

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More facts

• It required the relocation of over 1.5 million
  people
• 13 full-sized cities were leveled by the people
  who lived in thembrick by brick!!
• Over 1300 archaeological sites will be submerged.
• It contributed to the extinction of the Yangtze
  River dolphin.
• The weight of the dam reservoir can actually
  cause earthquakes.
• It took 15 days to fill the reservoir.