Megha Kolli- Acid Rain

Megha Kolli- Acid Rain
Full of nitric and sulfuric acids, the term “acid rain” was coined in 1872 by English scientist Robert Angus Smith. Before then, it was a natural phenomenon that was caused by volcanic eruptions, decaying vegetation and lightning strikes. Over the last 100 years, this has become an increasingly human-caused threat.

With the industrial revolution, the popularity of energy from fossil fuel combustion increased. The greatest of these is the burning of coal by power plants, factories and cars. When the fuels are burned, the oxides react to the naturally occurring atmospheric components and create acid rain. Another major contributor to this phenomenon is that of industrial agriculture. The ammonia-based fertilizers that are required contain high amounts of volatile nitrogen compounds. Because of their presence in the very top layer of soil, they are easily vaporized and diffused into the atmosphere.

Now, many will ask why this is an issue if acid rain is natural in itself, and although they would be correct, the magnitude is the issue. Trees are damaged and the soils of forests are depleted of their nutrients. More than terrestrial ecosystems, aquatic ecosystems are affected more. Acid rain causes an absorption of aluminum that is toxic to aquatic animals. Lastly, there are direct human effects. The damage to human lungs can decrease the function of the organs and the acid in the air can reduce visibility.

So what can be done? Currently, government are working to reduce the emissions of their countries by taxing emissions. Also, breakthroughs in car manufacturing has created an engine that cuts the amount of nitrogen emitted. But through all of this, there is still more needed.

Questions:
How important is the reduction of acid rain?
Is it smart to believe that something can be done about air pollution?
Are emissions and combustion necessary to sustain modern life?
What are some alternative sources of energy and are they coming fast enough to save the earth for the future?
Sources:


Comments

Anonymous said…
It’s easy to think of acid rain as some “phantom force,” something that supposedly happens but never in front of us. However, if we truly want to preserve environments such as caves, forests, and elsewhere, then lowering the frequency and mitigating the impacts of acid rain is imperative. While it is unreasonable to say we can lower emissions to zero in the near future, we have to start making progress when we can. We as a society need to look more towards renewable energy sources, including nuclear energy, and do our individual part to reduce the amount of energy we use. Only then can we then tackle further horizons regarding the issue of acid rain.
February 20, 2019 at 8:26 AM
Anonymous said…
I have known what acid rain was for a while, but I didn’t know it was a natural occurrence, I always thought of it as human caused. Acid rain affects all life on Earth, and the reality of the harmfulness it can cause is scary. Further reductions need to be put in place from governments to discourage the continued causing of acid rain, and while the levels will never decrease to before humans started to contribute to acid rain, we can lower then numbers. Renewable alternatives to fossil fuels causing acid rain become more appealing all the time with what we learn our actions have been doing to the Earth, and this is another reason for us to move on and modernize with renewable resources.
February 20, 2019 at 10:41 AM
Anonymous said…
This was a very informative post on the effects of acid rain! The more acid which is introduced into a system, the more aluminum which accumulates. This is detrimental to aquatic ecosystems as it is very toxic to species. Some species can resist changes in pH, but those who cannot will die off as the pH lowers due to more acid being introduced. Acid causes aluminum to leach from the soil, which thus contributes to the deaths of trees and plants. Acid rain can also increase the levels of nitrogen present in an ecosystem. Excess nitrogen leads to the deaths of fish and pollutes drinking water. These effects are mostly brought about my humans due to industry. It is in our best interests, however, to reduce acid rain by using renewable sources of energy such as solar power.
February 21, 2019 at 10:15 AM
Anonymous said…
This was a very interesting post about acid rain! It seems like, although there are natural causes, anthropogenic activities are making the acid rain more lethal and more frequent. With more acid rain comes more negative consequences including the death of animals and plants, which could lead to an ecosystem imbalance. It could also cause the process of growing crops more inefficient, as it affects the soil as well. Only about 3% of the earth’s land is suitable for growing crops, and we are destroying what little we have to feed the world. Reducing nitrogen emissions will probably have a positive effect on the environment. One way countries in Europe is combatting the problem of emissions is that they are encouraging their people to buy electric cars and are putting out free charging stations all around the public. Additionally, it costs less to own an electric car because the government allows owners to be exempt from automobile tolls, and companies like Tesla doesn’t have to pay a sales tax. Norwegians say that because it’s so hard to find gas stations nowadays that it’s more effective to just buy an electric car. If we can somehow adopt similar practices, then maybe the US could also lower their harmful emissions.
February 21, 2019 at 11:19 AM
Anonymous said…
The simple idea that the wasteful, harmful human-made products are causing a backfire that is directed toward ourselves is quite surprising. Fuel combustion, over-usage of various combustible products, and even the rapid depletion of natural resources are showing consequences that we were unable to predict nor prevent. The issues with acid rains ought to be paid attention, as it will not remain merely a trivial matter to humans and our environment. Overtime, acid rain will affect our agiricultural and industrial conditions, for it may exceed what we are predicting right now. We have to start recognizing the vast range of problems that may result from acid rains.
February 21, 2019 at 11:34 AM
Anonymous said…
To limit the effect and occurrences of acid rain, it is important that people take measures to reduce overall atmospheric levels of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. The Acid Rain Program, an initiative taken by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, attempts to do this by implementing a emissions trading program that primarily targets coal-burning power plants. Organizations that use these plants can trade emission permits according to individual needs and costs. As a result of this program, annual emissions of sulfur dioxide were reduced by 8 million tons, nitrogen oxides by 2.7 million tons, and mercury by 10 tons. By limiting the number of fossil fuels being burned and released in the atmosphere, people can reduce the occurrences of acid rain and limit the destruction of the environment.
February 21, 2019 at 6:42 PM
Anonymous said…
This was a very informative post! Humans often choose to remain “unaware” of the damage they cause to the environment, and the case of acid rain is no exception. As the burning of fossil fuels is a central cause of acid rain, the increase of the threat of acid rain is yet another reason that humans should begin to look toward renewable energy sources. We need to focus on harnessing solar, mechanical, nuclear, etc. energy. This alone would reduce so many of the environmental issues that plague us today. We need to change our mindsets: instead of looking at acid rain as some sort of inevitable unfortunate event, we need to take responsibility for the anthropogenic causes of the phenomenon and work on preventing it.
February 21, 2019 at 7:53 PM
Anonymous said…
It’s sometimes difficult to recognize the detrimental impacts acid rain has on the environment, because some of us may not have experienced it. But I found it interesting that you said it occurs often all around the world. It may seem difficult to fix this problem, because the causes include many of the things that make our lives easier: cars and factories. But there are some substitutes that we can implement on an individual level to help fix the problem of acid rain. Some of these things include driving electric cars and overall living a green life by recycling.
February 22, 2019 at 9:56 AM
Anonymous said…
While I knew acid rain is an environmental concern caused by carbon emissions, I didn’t realize that acid rain occurs naturally. Acid rain has a huge impact on lakes, streams, wetlands, and other aquatic environments in that it it makes these waters acidic; this makes waters toxic to many aquatic animals. Moreover, acid rain also damages forests, as it depletes the soil of nutrients and releases aluminum into the soil, thus deterring tree and plant growth. As this post said, the only way we can prevent acid rain from damaging the environment even further is by burning fewer fossil fuels and reducing carbon emissions.
February 23, 2019 at 12:39 PM
Anonymous said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
February 23, 2019 at 12:40 PM
Anonymous said…
This is a very interesting topic! I never knew that acid rain was such a prevalent problem, or occurred so naturally. Through my own research I found that acid rain causes a greater amount of air pollution, which intern, leads to respiratory diseases. These diseases include asthma and bronchitis which make breathing really hard. The only solution present in reducing this problem is reducing our emissions. Regulating the emissions coming from vehicles and buildings is an important step. This can be done by restricting the use of fossil fuels and focusing on more sustainable energy sources such as solar and wind power. Along with this one person could carpool, or refrain from using their vehicles all the time.
February 24, 2019 at 9:27 AM
Anonymous said…
I looked into some ways we can help with the issue of acid rain caused by human activities. Since energy production is the biggest culprit in the creation of the large amounts of pollutants which cause acid rain, one of the biggest things we can do to help is to conserve energy. This involves simple actions such as turning off lights and electronics when they're not being used and encouraging our family members to buy household equipment that uses less electricity. Driving cars and trucks also produces a large amount of nitrogen oxides which cause acid rain so using public transportation or carpooling when possible is also a very important part of the process of conserving energy.
February 24, 2019 at 11:52 AM
Anonymous said…
I vaguely remember reading about acid rain in elementary school and possibly middle school but it is an issue that I know practically nothing about. I’m shocked that acid rain was originally a phenomenon that occurred naturally in the environment. This post informed me about the anthropogenic causes and devastating effects of acid rain on the environment, and further proves the negative consequences of human consumption of fossil fuels. We should step up and increase our efforts in replacing fossil fuels and natural resources with renewable and sustainable sources of energy. Even though we can’t reverse the permanent damage we have inflicted on the environment, we can reduce and perhaps halt our role in the degradation of the environment, particularly by limiting our contributions to initially naturally occurring phenomenons like acid rain.
February 24, 2019 at 4:04 PM
Anonymous said…
This is an important decision that we all must make in the 21st century: with all the technological advancements we have achieved, how will we balance that with the environment. You raise a good point, that while Acid Rain is a naturally occurring phenomena, many modern practices have increased the impact to a dangerous level. I wonder though, is this a problem that has to be solved by the next round of innovation? You mention car engines that reduce the level of nitrogen emitted, so is it possible that we have to play damage control until we can devise a solution that drastically lessens the negative impact we have on the environment? Food for thought.
February 24, 2019 at 5:28 PM
Anonymous said…
I knew of the existence of acid rain, I just did not realize that human actions cause the majority of acid rainfalls. I thought that acid rain still occurred completely because of natrual phenomenons. Having finally made this realization, I am under the impression that reducing acid rain and air pollution in general is of great importance. I understand the importance of fuel and carbon in modern life, and I know modern life is pretty dependent on these forms of energy, but the emissions must be reduced. The governments who have taken steps to combat air pollution have created examples that need to be followed by the rest of the world. Letting air pollution and acid rain continue to synthetically occur will only further damage the trees, soils, forests, and all parts of aquatic ecosystems.
February 25, 2019 at 3:21 PM
Anonymous said…
Previously uneducated on the severity of acid rain, I had no idea that we were to blame! I can’t say I am surprised however, as human activity ever since industrialization has changed our planet dramatically. Like any other issue that our global society faces, we must band together if we ever want to find a solution. Each of us can make our own difference by reducing our emissions but governments everywhere still need to take action. This is for our children, our children’s children, and far beyond.
February 25, 2019 at 5:06 PM
Anonymous said…
The only way to reduce the frequency of acid rain is to cut fossil fuel emissions. And as I have stated numerous times before, a carbon tax is a pragmatic solution. However, a long-term ideal solution would be to provide incentives towards alternative energy sources, such as wind and solar power. Wind energy, according to US Department of Energy, is gradually cheapening. Moreover, wind turbines experience a phenomena called economies of scale, where the average marginal cost dissipates as the quantity produced increases. In regards to solar power, utility companies already offer incentives and subsidies for solar panels.
February 25, 2019 at 7:14 PM
Anonymous said…
It is definitely smart to think that something can be done about emissions and air pollution since emissions are not necessary to sustain modern life. Thinking that emissions are necessary and change is impossible keeps us trapped in this dangerous cycle when new technology is already helping us transition to alternate sources of energy. For example, one step that the US can take is acceding to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Signing this convention would give the US access to an extended EEZ, or additional nautical miles, off the coast. In fact, many companies have said that if the US becomes a signatory to this Convention, they would have the legal confidence to build wind farms off the coast. These wind farms are 70% more powerful on the ocean, and UNCLOS would guarantee this. Moreover, Berwyn writes in an article that this could power the US. This is only one example of a possible alternate source of energy; there are still many other sources, indicating that hope is not lost.
February 25, 2019 at 7:55 PM
Anonymous said…
The blog discusses a major that harms our environment, which includes the species, plants, our health and also infrastructure. I did further research on the effects of acid rain on infrastructure and found that the acid rain can ruin buildings, statues, monuments, and cars. The acid rain contains chemicals which can cause the paint to peel, as well as stone structures to age faster as they appear to be older. The acid rain can wear out the infrastructure which is needed by us every day. The acid rain can ruin transportation we use on a daily bases which affect our lives significantly. The acid rain can also destroy important historical landmarks that have significant value.
February 25, 2019 at 10:29 PM
Anonymous said…
It is important to think of the effects of acid rain and all aspects of society. High concentrations of fine-particulate sulfate and nitrate contained in acid rain can enter the human cardiovascular and respiratory systems, resulting in disease or even death. Metals, such as mercury can enter lakes, streams, and reservoirs, can accumulate in the tissues of fish, making them toxic to humans. Metals also can be leached from the soil into reservoirs, or from old lead and copper pipes directly into home water supplies, causing serious illness.
February 26, 2019 at 7:22 AM
Anonymous said…
This was a great post! I feel that something definitely needs to be done to diminish this problem. I feel that it is a very important issue as acid rain can lead to high concentrations of sulfate and nitrate which can harm our environment in many ways. This high concentration can also enter our body thorough the respiratory system and result in infections or diseases. These concentrations can also impact the environment of many organisms. For instance it can pollute many water habitats and harm many of the organism that dwell there.
February 26, 2019 at 5:39 PM
Anonymous said…
When I was younger, I didn’t actually believe in acid rain. As I grew, however, I learned that it was, in fact, real. However, I never truly knew the dangers it could bring. It can be harmful to not only humans and animals, but plants as well. The sulfate and nitrate that is in the acid rain can enter the human body, causing disease or death. These harmful chemicals can also enter the water supply and plants, harming those who eat the plants and the organisms in the water.
February 26, 2019 at 6:17 PM
Anonymous said…
Erosion to soil caused by normal rain is already an issue in agriculture, and acid rain disrupting the pH of soil and increasing erosion is easily a large problem that must be fixed. There are already efforts in place to reduce air pollution and water pollution for a multitude of other reasons, but we must be more effective in our practices to ensure sustainability on Earth. The emission of greenhouse gases is currently quite necessary to sustain life, although in the near future, it is possible to increase the efficiency of renewable energy and more sustainable practices to replace unsustainable energy sources. Some other renewable energy sources are hydroelectric energy, solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy, and a less renewable although slightly better source than fossil fuels is nuclear energy. Using a combination of these energy sources can help us overcome our reliance on fossil fuels to end the issue of pollution and acid rain.
February 26, 2019 at 6:29 PM
Anonymous said…
This was a very informative post. Most people don’t believe that a thing like acid rain could take place on earth, as it does sounds “alien”, however, human activity has made acid rain a bigger threat than ever before. With the new pushes to get the United States’ emmissions down to almost zero by emphasizing alternative energy sources (like wind and solar power), I think the change will come in time. Unfortunately, I don’t think it will come soon.
February 26, 2019 at 6:33 PM
Anonymous said…
Although acid rain remains a problem, I believe society as a whole is constantly working towards cleaner sources of energy. Governments have always been pushing laws and regulations on safer and cleaner emissions. However, there is still much work to be done. Private companies like Tesla are pushing the automobile industry into a evermore electric industry. I trust in the fate of humanity.
February 26, 2019 at 7:22 PM
Anonymous said…
This blog was very interesting and surprising! I’ve always heard of acid rain, but I never thought it would ever become such a regular occurrence. Acid rain leaches aluminum from the soil. That aluminum may be harmful to plants as well as animals. Acid rain also removes minerals and nutrients from the soil, thus causing the abundance and health of trees and other organisms to deteriorate. Additionally, since acid rain diminishes the pH of ponds and other bodies of water, aquatic ecosystems are significantly impacted. I did some additional research and found that at a pH of 5 for example, most fish eggs cannot hatch. At lower pH levels, some adult fish die. Some acidic lakes have no fish. Even if a species of fish or animal can tolerate moderately acidic water, the animals or plants it eats might not.
February 26, 2019 at 8:38 PM
Anonymous said…
I was not aware that acid rain was a natural occurrence! Nonetheless, it is still essential for acid rain to be reduced because earth’s ecosystems are being impacted as toxicity kills its organisms. To answer your question, it is smart to believe that something can be done about air pollution. Although the ideas behind reducing pollution are emphasized within an individual’s first exposure with environmental concerns, and repeated (almost “over-emphasized”) throughout one’s life, people still continue to ignore such a pressing matter, undermining its importance because of the abundance of discussion about pollution. Pollution is in actuality one of the greatest environmental concerns affecting this planet. If students were to actually take small steps toward reducing air pollution and encourage environmentally friendly options in their families and friends throughout their lifetime, then air pollution can be addressed.
February 26, 2019 at 9:23 PM
Anonymous said…
This was a very interesting post. Acid rain sounds like some kind of apocalyptic terror, so it's hard to think that it’s a common phenomenon. Personally, I believe something can be done about air pollution. We should start by reducing our emissions of acidic gases, such as CO2 and SO2, from fossil-fuel power plants and vehicles, as well as the nitrogen from fertilizer and livestock emissions. While actually cleaning up the air may not be currently feasible, reducing the amount of acidic gases that cause acid rain in the air prolong the time we have to figure out how to clean up air pollution. Switching to sustainable energy sources, like solar and tidal energy, that don’t contribute to carbon and nitrogen emissions is probably the first step we should take to slow the march of acid rain and buy time to figure out how to reverse the atmospheric damages.
February 27, 2019 at 8:58 AM
Anonymous said…
Wow, this was a really fascinating post! I didn't know just how much air pollution had an effect on our rain, which can lead to hurting marine life and ultimately humans. It's really scary to learn how much more frequent they are happening and how little is being done to reduce it. I don't think emissions and combustion are really necessary to support modern life, but I believe that the reason that we aren't really seeing a decrease is because the companies that supply the fuels needed to run the plants would be losing their jobs and money.
February 27, 2019 at 10:32 AM
Anonymous said…
Your blog post was so informative. I didn't realize that acid rain had such negative impacts. The issue of acid rain shows how human impact such as air pollution can negatively effect thing we can't even imagine such as marine life and ultimately us. I think it is essential that we work toward reducing acid rain because the earth's ecosystems are being impacted by its toxicity which is even killing organisms. One way humans could work toward reducing the occurrence of acid rain is to reduce emissions that lead to air pollution. Using alternative energy sources such as wind turbines and solar power won't contribute toward air pollution unlike traditional fossil fuel energy sources.
February 27, 2019 at 7:37 PM
Anonymous said…
To think that acid rain is such a big issue never crossed my mind! We don’t think about the impact our everday lives can have on the environment and furthermore the massive changes it can have on the environment. We definitely need to think more about the enviromental issues that we don’t talk about so often such as acid rain that can be so detrimental. I do hope that posts such as your spread awareness towards a better change for the greater good.
February 28, 2019 at 8:16 AM
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