Acid Rain
Acid Rain
“Acid Rain” is a broad term used to describe several ways that acids fall out of the atmosphere. A more exact term is acid deposition, which has two parts, wet and dry. Wet deposition connects to acidic rain, fog, and snow. While the acidic water hits the grounds surface it affects a very good amount of plants and animals. Dry deposition refers to acidic gases and particles. About half of the acidity in the atmosphere falls back to earth through dry deposition.
Acid is measured using a scale called “pH.” The lower substance’s pH, the more acidic it is. Pure water has a pH of 7.0. Normal rain is slightly acidic because carbon dioxide dissolves into it, so it has a pH of about 5.5. In the year 2000, the most acidic rain falling in the US has a pH of about 4.3. Acid rain has a lot of effects such as to forests and soils, fish and other living things, materials, and human health. Acid rain also reduces how far and how clearly we can see through the air, an effect called visual reduction.
To solve the acid rain problem, people need to understand how acid rain causes damage to the environment. They also need to understand what changes could be made to the air pollution sources that causes the problem. The answers to these questions help people make better decisions about how to control air pollution and therefore how to reduce or even eliminate acid rain.
Almost all of the electricity that powers modern life comes from burning fossil fuels like coal, natural gas, and oil. Acid deposition is caused by two pollutants that are released into the atmosphere, or emitted, when these fuels are burned, sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx). There are several options for reducing SO2 emissions, including using coal containing less sulfur, washing the coal, and using devices called scrubbers to chemically remove the SO2 from the gases leaving the smokestack. Power plants can also switch fuels; for example burning natural gas creates much less...
View Full Essay
