Acid Rain
By: Gratia Hickey
&
Cory Miller
What is Acid Rain?
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Cloud or rain droplets containing pollutants, such as oxides of sulfur and
nitrogen, to make them acidic
Air pollution produced when acid chemicals are incorporated into rain, snow, fog
or mist
The "acid" in acid rain comes from sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides, products of
burning coal and other fuels and from certain industrial processes
Rain that has become acidic (with a pH of less than 5.6) from mixing with
sulfuric, nitric and other acids that are released into the atmosphere by the
burning of fossil fuels
Acid rain is rainfall that has been acidified. Rain is acidified by oxides of sulfur
and nitrogen. Acid rain usually has a pH of less than 5.6. Acid rain is formed
when pollutants called oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, contained in power plant
smoke, factory smoke, and car exhaust, react with the moisture in the
atmosphere. Dry deposition, such as soot and ash, sleet, hail, snow, smog and
low level ozone are forms that acid rain can take, despite its name.
What Causes Acid Rain
• Acid deposition primarily
results from the transformation
of sulphur dioxide (SO2) and
nitrogen oxides into dry or
moist secondary pollutants
• The transmission to acidic
particles and vapors occurs as
these pollutants are
transported in the atmosphere
over distances of hundreds
and thousands kilometers
• The gases can then be
converted into acids when they
contact water.
Cause and Effects of Acid Rain
Acid Rain
Environmental:
Trees
Plants
Animals
Lakes
Architectural:
Bridges collapse
Statues eroded
Building foundation
weakened
Humans:
Respitory problems
When consumed by
Plants and anmals
It is carried to humans
How Companies contribute to Acid
Rain
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Few dispute the fact that the pollution
of the Adirondacks is from power
plants, factories, cars, and trucks.
These factors affect the wildlife and
aquatic life of the Adirondacks. The
congress instilled a law called the
Clean Air Act of 1970.At the time that it
was ratified, it seemed like an effective
law to stop companies and factories
from polluting the air over and again,
but they were wrong. Due to a
loophole in the Clean Air Act of 1970
companies were allowed to continue to
pollute as they had in the past. This is
because the plants and factories were
told that they were exempted from
installing expensive new scrubbers
until they built a new facility or they
significantly upgraded the current
facility. Now, thirty years later, they are
still putting the same chemicals in the
air and killing the tree and wildlife in
the Adirondacks.
Global Acid Rain Pollution
• Not only are we as Americans
suffering from Acid rain.
• Many other countries are
suffering from the same problems
we have been dealing with.
• Acid rain is a problem in eastern
Canada because many of the
water and soil systems in this
system lacks alkalinity
• The areas being hit the hardest
are shore refineries.
Example of What Happens After
the Initial Pollution
• A factory by a lake releases
smoke into the air
• Dry deposition from the smoke
falls into the lake
• The rest of the smoke rises up
and forms acid rain in the
atmosphere
• The wind causes the acid rain
cloud to travel
• Acid rain falls on a forest and
acid snow falls on a mountain
• After all this, the lake is
affected, the river is affected,
the soil is affected and the
vegetation is affected
What Can WE Do???
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Home
– Install Low Flow Shower head
– Hang Dry Laundry
– Turn off the hot water tank when
away for extended periods of time
– Don’t use sink garbage disposal
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In the Yard
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Keep pool covered when not using it
Shop for the EcoLogo
Transportation
– Walk, ride your bike or take a bus to
work
– Share a ride with a friend or coworker.
– Have your engine tuned at least
once every six months
References
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http://web.bryant.edu/~dlm1/sc261/cases/acidrain.htm
http://www.geocities.com/narilily/acidrain.html
http://www.policyalmanac.org/environment/archive/acid_rain.shtml
http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/
http://www.ec.gc.ca/acidrain/
http://www.eagle.ca/~matink/themes/Environ/acidrain.html
http://www.lehigh.edu/~kaf3/books/reporting/acid.html