Acid Rain Essays -- essays research papers

Normal rainfall is slightly social diseaseic because carbon dioxide in the atmosphere dissolves in the raindrops to produce hydrogen ions. Yet, normal rainfall is non considered dose rain. Acid rain is a form of air pollution in which airborne acids produced by electric utility plants and separate sources fall to creation in distant regions. The corrosive nature of acid rain causes widespread damage to the environment. The problem begins with the production of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from the burning of fossil fuels, much(prenominal) as coal, natural gas, and oil, and from certain kinds of manufacturing. Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides react with water and another(prenominal) chemicals in the air to form sulfuric acid, nitric acid, and other pollutants. These acid pollutants reach high into the atmosphere, travel with the wind for hundreds of miles, and eventually return to the ground by way of rain, snow, or fog, and as invisible dry forms. Damage from acid rai n has been widespread in eastern North America and throughout Europe, and in Japan, China, and Southeast Asia. Acid rain leaches nutrients from soils, slows the growth of trees, and makes lakes uninhabitable for fish and other wildlife. In cities, acid pollutants corrode almost everything they touch, accelerating natural wear and tear on structures such as buildings and statues. Acids combine with other chemicals to form urban smog, which attacks the lungs, create illness and premature deaths.The process that leads to acid rain begins with the burning of fossil fuels. Burning, or combustion, is a chemical reaction in which oxygen from the air combines with carbon, nitrogen, sulfur, and other elements in the substance being burned. The new compounds formed ar gases called oxides. When sulfur and nitrogen are present in the fuel, their reaction that occurs with oxygen yields sulfur dioxide and various(a) nitrogen oxide compounds. In the United States, 70 percent of sulfur dioxide p ollution comes from power plants, especially those that burn coal. In Canada, industrial activities, including oil refining and alloy smelting, account for 61 percent of sulfur dioxide pollution. Nitrogen oxides enter the atmosphere from many sources, with motor vehicles emitting the largest share43 percent in the United States and 60 percent in Canada. Once in the atmosphere, sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides undergo c... ...ts. The targets established in laws and treaties are being met, usually ahead of schedule. Sulfur emissions in Europe decreased by 40 percent from 1980 to 1994. In Norway sulfur dioxide emissions fell by 75 percent during the same period. Since 1980 annual sulfur dioxide emissions in the United States reserve dropped from 26 meg tons to 18.3 million tons. Canada reports sulfur dioxide emissions have been reduced to 2.6 million tons, 18 percent below the proposed limit of 3.2 million tons. Monitoring stations in several nations report that precipitation is actually becoming less acidic. In Europe, lakes and streams are now growing less acid. However, this does not seem to be the case in the United States and Canada. The reasons are not completely understood, but apparently, controls reducing nitrogen oxide emissions only began recently and their effects have yet to make a mark. In addition, soils in some areas have absorbed so much acid that they contain no more neutralizing base-forming chemicals. The weathering of rock will gradually replace the missing alkaline chemicals, but scientists fear that improvement will be very slow unless pollution controls are made even stricter.