Essential Question
 How are humans responsible for their
environment?
Standards
SS7G10 The student will discuss environmental issues across Southern and
Eastern Asia.
 a. Describe the causes and effects of pollution on the Yangtze and Ganges
Rivers.
 b. Describe the causes and effects of air pollution and flooding in India and
China.
a. Describe the causes and effects of pollution on
the Yangtze and Ganges Rivers
YANGTZE RIVER
 400 million people (1/3 of China’s
population live along
the banks of the YangtzeRiver
 Billions of tons of chemicals and waste
from agriculture, industry, and people
pour into the river every year.
 Because of the river’s vast size, the pollution is
somewhat diluted.
 Nevertheless, the nitrates from farm runoff
enable algae to multiply, decreasing
oxygen that fish need to survive.
 Pollution has killed the smaller fish in the river and
harmed the larger ones, so that many people are afraid
to eat any fish caught there.
 Hundreds of millions of Chinese
villagers do not have safe drinking water
because water sources like lakes, rivers, and aquifers
have been polluted by industry.
Cities have also been affected. When water quality is
tested and water is too polluted to drink:
 city residents drink bottled water.
 Schools sometimes close
Fishing village in Jiangse Providence
Pollution in the Yangtze River
Fish market in Wuhan
Ganges River Pollution
 the Ganges River is highly polluted with dangerous
bacteria
 about 2 million tons of chemical,
human, and agricultural waste are
poured into the Ganges daily
 experts estimate that about 80% of all illnesses
and 1/3 of all deaths in India come from
diseases carried by dirty water
 Hindus believe that they will have a
peaceful journey to the next life if their
ashes are strewn in the Ganges River.
 Families who cannot afford that process
often place the body of their family
member in the river instead.
 Animal carcasses are deposited there as
well, adding to an already dangerous
situation.
 In 2001, about 20 million people bathed
in the Ganges during a festival of the
Hindu religion.
 Many of India’s sewage systems are simply
overwhelmed since they were designed in the early
1900s and haven’t been updated, even though
the population in India has soared over the last
century.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gec1CM
N6h0c&feature=player_detailpagehttp://ww
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eature=player_detailpage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=pla
yer_detailpage&v=eeNSOg5XJh4
Essential Question
 How are humans responsible for their
environment?
b. Describe the causes and effects of air pollution and flooding in India and
China
Hold your breath!
 Industry is growing in China, and air pollution is
growing with it.
 In a recent study by the World Bank, China is
home to 16 of the 20 most polluted cities
in the world.
 The World Health Organization (WHO) says that
China pumps 1/3 of the world total of
pollutants (sulfur dioxide, ozone, nitrogen
dioxide) into the world’s air.
Smog shrouds buildings in Changsha in
Hunan province on January 14.
Vehicles move slowly through heavy smog in Beijing on Thursday,
January 16. China's manufacturing of exports generates pollution that
harms air quality -- not only in Asia but also all the way across the
Pacific Ocean in the Western United States, according to a new study.
 Burning fossil fuels such as coal and
petroleum to power Chinese industry
and cars is a major source of pollution.
 Chinese people also burn coal to heat their
homes, adding to the pollution problem.
A vendor delivers coal briquettes which are
mostly used to fuel small coal burners for
heating and cooking for low-income homes
and restaurants, in an old neighborhood in
Beijing.
Effects of air pollution:
 lost work due to illness
 early deaths
 chronic bronchitis
 cancer is leading cause of death in China
 only 1% of China’s 560 million city
dwellers breathes safe air
Causes of Pollution
Many nations in South, Southeast, and East Asia will
now have to worry about the “Asian Brown
Cloud” caused by too much pollution in the air.
*causes: waste from factories, motor vehicles, forest
fires, etc.
.
Effects of Pollution
* It is a brown haze that can alter the paths
of monsoons, reduce photosynthesis,
and reduce solar radiation to the earth’s
surface.
 India is investing money in cleanup efforts but the
growing population outpaces its efforts.
 The Taj Mahal, a sacred site and popular
tourist destination, is growing yellow
from pollution.
 Some experts believe that smog from India and China
could possibly change weather patterns in North
America.
http://video.pbs.org/video/2365104807/
Rain, Rain, Go Away!
 Monsoon—a seasonal wind bringing heavy rainfall
that can lead to flooding
 Monsoons are a mixed blessing for India
 Farmers depend on rain for their crops
 The huge amounts of water are used to
generate electricity
 However, the monsoons cause heavy flooding
which makes rivers overflow their banks leading to
Terrible destruction
 Water-borne diseases

 Annual monsoon rains in China pose the same
problems as the rains in India
 Beneficial to farmers
 Cause floods, usually every 2 to 3 years
 Monsoon season in China is March through August
 Flooding from China’s Huang He has
killed more people than flooding from
any other river in the world
 1887—nearly 2 million died
 1931—almost 4 million died
 Huang He River flows through China’s major farming
area and picks up fertile yellow topsoil along its path.
The silt builds up so that the river is higher than the
surrounding plains. The Chinese have constructed
dikes to manage the river. However, when the dikes fail
and the river floods, homes and crops are buried and
lives are lost.
Dike – a dike is a wall to hold water back
 Monsoon rains also swell the Yangtze River.
Flooding is caused by:
 Loggers working upstream cut down trees that used to help
contain flooding (deforestation!)
 Farmers downstream have drained wetlands that used to act
as sponges during floods (wetland loss)
 These two actions have multiplied the effects of the monsoon
rains and cause storm water runoff.
It now takes much less water to cause a
flood!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9peDRk
O-TLc&feature=player_detailpage
Quiz
1. A study by the World Bank states that China has 16
cities
of the 20 most polluted _____________________.
2. As industry grows in China, so does the
air pollution
_________________.
coal fuel to heat their
3. Many Chinese use _______as
homes.
4. In India, the two main reasons for increased air
industry
automobiles
pollution are _____________
and ________________.
5. Using unprocessed fuels in cooking emits
toxic fumes
____________________.
6. This sacred site and tourist destination is turning
Taj Mahal
yellow from air pollution. ______________________