Name ______________________________ Class __________________ Date __________________
Skills Worksheet
Active Reading
Section: What Causes Air Pollution?
Read the passage below and answer the questions that follow.
Many industries and power plants that generate our electricity must burn
fuel to get the energy they need. They usually burn fossil fuels. Burning
fossil fuels releases huge quantities of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide
into the air. Power plants that produce electricity emit at least two-thirds of
all sulfur dioxide and more than one-third of all nitrogen oxides that
pollute the air.
Some industries also produce VOCs, which are chemical compounds
that form toxic fumes. Some of the chemicals used in dry cleaning are
sources of VOCs. Oil refineries, chemical manufacturing plants, furniture
refinishers, and automobile repair shops also contribute to the VOCs in the
air. When people use some of the products that contain VOCs, more VOCs
are added to the air.
IDENTIFYING MAIN IDEAS
One reading skill is the ability to identify the main idea of a passage. The main
idea is the main focus or key idea. Frequently, a main idea is accompanied by
supporting information that offers detailed facts about main ideas.
In the space provided, write the letter of the term or phrase that best completes
each statement or best answers each question.
_____ 1. What do most industries and power plants use for energy?
a. VOCs
c.sulfur dioxide
b. nitrogen oxide
d. fossil fuels
_____ 2. What type of industry produces two-thirds of all sulfur dioxide that
pollutes the air?
a. air conditioning manufacturers c. long-distance trucking companies
b. dry cleaners
d. electrical power plants
_____ 3. Which of the following does not produce volatile organic compounds
(VOCs)?
a. organic farm
c. furniture refinisher
b. oil refinery
d. automobile repair shop
_____ 4. What happens when people use a product that contains VOCs?
a. They get very sick.
b. Nothing happens.
c. More VOCs are added to the air.
d. The VOCs return to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide.
Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Environmental Science
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Air
Name ______________________________ Class __________________ Date __________________
Active Reading continued
_____ 5. Power plants that produce electricity emit
a. sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide.c. nitrogen oxide and VOCs.
b. sulfur dioxide and VOCs.
d. fossil fuels.
Read each question and write the answer in the space provided.
6. What are VOCs?
_______________________________________________________________
7. Reread the first four sentences of this passage. Given this information, do you
think sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides in the air are harmful or beneficial?
Explain your answer.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
RECOGNIZING CAUSE AND EFFECT
One reading skill is the ability to recognize cause and effect.
Read each question and write the answer in the space provided.
8. Why do power plants emit such a high percentage of pollutants?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
9. List four examples of industries that can be sources of VOCs in the air.
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
10. What percentage of pollutants do electrical power plants emit into the air?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
11. What can you do to help reduce the amount of VOCs in the air?
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________
Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Environmental Science
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Air
TEACHER RESOURCE PAGE
18. Accept any reasonable response. Sample
answer: The power plants in Country A
give off oxides of sulfur and nitrogen that
combine with water in the air to make
acid precipitation. The wind carries the
acid precipitation over the border away
from Country A, and it falls into Country
B, where it acidifies the lake water. The
two countries could reach an agreement
for Country A to install scrubbers in the
power plants, or take other measures to
reduce emissions.
19. Accept any reasonable response. Sample
answers: Agree. It would be impossible to
maintain our society without any
pollution. Many businesses would fail,
and many people would lose their jobs if
businesses were banned from producing
any pollution. Even non-industrialized
societies produce pollution in the form of
smoke from fires. It makes more sense for
our society to work toward drastically
reducing pollution rather than completely
eliminating it.
SECTION: AIR, NOISE, AND LIGHT
POLLUTION
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
c
d
b
a
long, thin fibers that are valued for their
strength and resistance to heat
a potentially fatal disease that arises from
exposure to asbestos
2
1
5
3
6
4
Asbestos is a good insulator and fire
retardant.
Exposure to asbestos can lead to the
disease asbestosis, which can be fatal.
School officials don’t want to take the
chance that a child might inhale asbestos
fibers.
SECTION: ACID PRECIPITATION
Active Reading
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
SECTION: WHAT CAUSES AIR
POLLUTION?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
d
d
a
c
a
chemical compounds that form toxic
fumes
Harmful; they pollute the air.
They burn fossil fuels, which releases
huge amounts of sulfur dioxide and
nitrogen oxides into the air.
oil refineries, chemical manufacturing
plants, furniture refinishers, and automobile repair shops
two-thirds of all sulfur dioxide and more
than one-third of all nitrogen oxides that
pollute the air
use fewer products that contain VOCs
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
c
d
c
rain, sleet, and snow
The author writes “power of hydrogen” in
parentheses to explain what the letters in
pH stand for.
how acidic or basic a substance is
2
4
3
6
1
5
It is more basic; it is more acidic.
the burning of fossil fuels; decline or loss
of plant and animal populations
Map Skills
1.
2.
3.
4.
low
Barnstable
over cities, especially over Boston
Answers may vary but should mention
that air pollution concentrations are higher
over cities.
5. Answers will vary.
Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Environmental Science
94
Air