Better Living Through Chemistry
By Space Waste
Sue Henderson
Karen Morgan Ivy
Mark Baillie
Sue McGeary
Klaus Theopold
Introduction to Environmental Science
(for non-majors)
Teaching Unit: Pollution
Teaching Unit Learning Goals:
• Students will understand the sources and fates of major pollutants
of air, water, and soil.
• Students will develop analytical and quantitative skills to identify
the problem.
• Students will apply their knowledge of threshold values to assess
risks and determine responsibilities.
• Students will be familiar with several standard remediation
techniques.
Introduction to Environmental Science
(for non-majors)
Teaching Unit: Pollution
Teaching Unit Learning Goals:
• Students will understand the sources and fates of major pollutants
of air, water, and soil.
• Students will develop analytical and quantitative skills to identify
the problem.
• Students will apply their knowledge of threshold values to assess
risks and determine responsibilities.
• Students will be familiar with several standard remediation
techniques.
Students will develop analytical and quantitative
skills to identify the problem.
Learning Objectives:
• Express the concentration of pollutants in appropriate units.
• Characterize the persistence of pollutants in space and time.
• Compare analytical data to environmental standards to
determine risks and responsibilities.
• Synthesize research materials on pollutants.
Students will develop analytical and quantitative
skills to identify the problem.
Learning Objectives:
• Express the concentration of pollutants in appropriate units.
• Characterize the persistence of pollutants in space and time.
• Compare analytical data to environmental standards to
determine risks and responsibilities.
• Synthesize research materials on pollutants.
Prior Knowledge
• Students have familiarity with the following:
– Gradient
– Core value
– Common air, water, and soil pollutants
Movie Clip From Erin Brockovich
Click here to start the movie clip.
Now you’ve seen and discussed a movie clip.
Remember Erin Brockovich.
You will help us determine cost and responsible
party for remediation. From chromium in
California to chromium in New Jersey, we will now
hear from four constituents who have vested
interest in this issue.
Resident
Hello. My name is ______. I am
a fourth generation resident of
Jersey City. During the last
century,
that
company
disposed of more than one
million tons of cancer-causing
hexavalent chromium waste
across my home city.
My home, my water, and my garden should not be toxic! The
newspaper reported a 17% increase in the rate of lung cancer
for many Jersey City residents.
We have sued to get this fixed, and want our homes to not
lose value. This site needs to be cleaned up!
Mayor
Hello. My name is ______. I’m
the Mayor of Jersey City – a
city
experiencing
a
tremendous
renaissance.
Through
tax
breaks
to
developers we put up new
buildings
and
brought
residents and businesses to
our city.
I am eager to see more
developments as we transform
Jersey City. We also need to
keep our taxes low while
providing crucial incentives for
economic growth.
Developer
Hello. My name is ______, and I
build homes. We want to
revitalize this part of the city and
build a residential complex with
1000 units, just like the Liberty
Towers. Mayor Hague promised
us tax credits to get the job done.
Still, the cost of construction is
steep.
The rents need to be reasonable, and we cannot be
responsible for the clean up of this site – WE DID NOT SPILL
ALL THAT CHROMIUM! The city should make sure the site is
clean for construction.
Lawyer
Hello. My name is ______, and I am a lawyer at Dewey, Cheetham
and Howe. We represent Chrome-R-Us, Inc. Fifty years ago, our
client bought a hubcap factory, twenty years later closed the plant,
and sold the land in question. At the time, we followed all
environmental laws and regulations. Many years later it was
discovered that part of the
land contained some residual
chemicals.
It is not my client’s
responsibility to clean this
site, which hasn’t been in our
care for decades. We are
relying on Jersey City or the
developer to move this
12
forward.
Jersey City Chromium(VI) Case Study
• Is there a problem?
• How much land is contaminated?
• What might it cost to clean it up?
Using the map and data
• Circle the maximum concentration value for
each core (cores 1-4, circle on data table).
• Which core has the highest maximum
concentration (circle on map)?
• Which core has the lowest maximum
concentration (circle on map)?
Note: Cr(VI) Soil Remediation Standards = 20 parts per million (ppm)
In your group, come to a consensus on your answer.
Use the IF AT® to scratch off your answer.
1. What is the approximate concentration
gradient between these two cores (max -> min)?
A.
B.
C.
D.
45 ppm/m
450 ppm/m
510 ppm/m
2.25 x 10-3 ppm/m
2. How far from the most concentrated core would
you have to walk to find soil at or below the
threshold value specified by the EPA (20 ppm)?
A.
B.
C.
D.
~20 x 106 m
~100 m
~25 m
~10 m
2
4
?
3. Estimate the cost of remediation of the site
based on $1,250/m3 of soil, if the site area is
70,000 m2 and the soil needs to be excavated to a
depth of 3 meters?
A. > $1 x 109
B. $1 x 103 - $1 x 106
C. < $1 x 103
D. $1 x 106 - $1 x 109
Final Reflection:
Based on your knowledge of this case, who
should pay for the majority of the remediation?
A.
B.
C.
D.
Chrome-R-Us, Inc.
Jersey City taxpayers
The real estate developer
No one -- Abandon this site forever.
Acknowledgements
• Super Pete! (Pete Mirabito-Facilitator)
• Group 3: Physiology
• Group 8: Gene Expression