Activity 3.3.1 Air Pollution Core Activity.

 

Air Pollution Basics

  • Sulfur Pollutants

Sulfur gas is colorless and has a pungent smell. Naturally volcanoes release sulfur pollutants in the air but since the Industrial Revolution sulfur pollutants have increased. Wildfires are another source of sulfur in the air. Anthropogenic emissions of SO2 have increased enormously since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Sulfur dioxide reaches the atmosphere when things are burning, whether that is fossil fuels or burning resources. Emissions in 1860 were about 5-million tonnes, compared with about 150-million tonnes in 2000. (Freedman) Although there is technology to help reduce sulfur emissions from the energy industry, we are still going to see an increase of sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere due to the growth and reliance of coal and natural gases. Overexposure to sulfur gas can severely damage vegetation. Sulfur dioxide can lead to circulatory and lung issues for humans and animals that are overexposed. “It is rare that concentrations of NH3 or NOx gases are high enough to injure vegetation. The environmental damage associated with NOx is focused on the photochemical reactions by which ozone, a much more toxic gas, is produced, and the acidification of precipitation and ecosystems.” (Freedman)

  • Nitrogen Pollutants

There are many forms of nitrogen pollutants in the environment. The important forms of nitrogen are nitric oxide (NO), Nitrogen dioxide(NO2), nitrous oxide(N2O)and, ammonia (NH3).  Nitrous oxide is colorless odorless and leaves a person feeling in a state of euphoria. That is why it is used as a mild anesthesia. Nitric oxide  is colorless and odorless while nitrogen dioxide is reddish and can irritate the body. These forms of nitrogen gas are released in the atmosphere in the process of denitrification of soil and water. These gases are unreactive and stay in the atmosphere for about four years.

  • Hydrocarbon and Volatile Organic Compound Pollutant

Hydrocarbons are chemical structures that contain hydrogen and carbon elements. Methane is one example of a hydrocarbon. Methane occurs naturally and is a result of fermentation of organic matter. “Smaller amounts are out-gassed from deposits of fossil fuels, during wildfires, and from burping and flatulent ruminant animals (such as cows and sheep) and termites, which produce CH4 as they digest their plant food.”() another source of atmospheric release of hydrocarbon are unburned fuel emitted from vehicles and aircraft, releases during fossil-fuel mining and refining, and evaporation of solvents. These gases can be toxic but, in the atmosphere, rarely get high enough to impact vegetation and animals. “The environmental importance of these gases and vapors lies mainly in their role in the photochemical reactions that produce toxic ozone.”(Freedman)

Comparison of Current AQI

Air Quality Index is a tool used to tell you how polluted the air around you is. Once you gather the information lets you decide what health effects are associated with the level of pollutants. It tells you how many pollutants a person is breathing in in a certain amount of time.

Comparison of Current AQI

 

Time of Day

AQI Current

AQI Forecast

PM2.5

O3

New York City, N.Y.(highest)

6:00 pm

84

Good

84

27

San Antonio, Tx

5:00 pm

34

Moderate

34

28

Los Angeles, CA

3:00pm

43

Good.

43

37

The way these numbers are the same is in the ozone. As it starts to get later the ozone levels seem to lower. This shows up when it is later in New York and the ozone is lower than in California which has the sun up in the air when the readings were made. The high levels of PM2.5 combined with the normal O3 made New Yorks air quality worse than San Antonio and Los Angeles.

 

Comparison of Current PM2.5 and O3 to EPA Standards

PM2.5 is matter that is in the air that you cannot see. You can have a lot of the same particulate and you will be able to see it but if it was a single particulate than you would not notice it was there. The dangers of PM2.5 is that the person does not know what they are breathing in. O3 is a gas that absorbs ultraviolet radiation from the sun and protects things on the surface of the planet from the sun. Ozone irritates membranes in the eyes and respiratory tract. If overexposed can lead to the function of these abilities. Ozone affects vegetation by inhibiting plants from using photosynthesis.

March 23, 2023

Comparison of Current PM2.5 and O3 to EPA Standards

National Standard

San Antonio Current measured over 1 hour

Time of Day

PM2.5

Average measured over 24 hours - 35 μg/m3

12.0 µg/m3

4:00 pm

O3

Average measured over 8 hours - 70 ppb (137 µg/m3)

 29ppb

4:00pm

 

References

Air now,23 March 2023. https://www.airnow.gov/?city=Cartersville&state=GA&country=USA

Freedman, B. (2018). Environmental science: A Canadian perspective. Halifax, Canada: Dalhousie University Libraries

Latest Hourly PM2.5 Levels, Texas Commission of Environmental Quality, 23 March 2023. https://www.tceq.texas.gov/cgi-bin/compliance/monops/select_curlev.pl?user_param=88502


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