Air pollution is one of the most common outcomes of the combustion of fossil fuels. A common air pollutant that is released is sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. This is because when coal and fuels obtained from crude oil are burned, sulpur and nitrogen is released into the atmosphere, which is eventually joint with the oxygen in the air to produce sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxide. When these gases are emitted in sufficient quantities, it reacts with the water and oxygen in the atmosphere to produce sulfuric acid and nitric acid which will mix with rainwater in clouds and form acidic solutions which falls as acid rain.
There are many dangerous effects of acid rain to humans and the environment. One of these include making the waters acidic and causes the waters to absorb aluminum which is sourced from the soil. This has a huge impact on the aquatic environment as it makes the water toxic to many animals living there such as crayfish, clams and fish.
Acid rain also weakens trees changing their colour from a green to a yellow as it exposes them to toxic substances eventually killing the trees. It also has a large impact on buildings as it ruins the materials eventually, especially if they’re made of limestone.
China was majorly affected in 2006 where a third of the country was hit by acid rain due to their rapid industrial growth. The pollution levels dramatically increased and the air quality gradually became worse. It was found that 25.5 millison tonnes of sulphur dioxide was released into the air, primarily because of the coal-burning factories.
You May Also Find These Documents Helpful
-
Sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are gases released by the burning of fossil fuels. These gases can react with water and oxygen to form acids. Normally, rainwater is slightly acidic. But the additional acid that enters the air when fuels are burned makes it even more acidic. Acid rain can have a harmful effect on fish and other wildlife and upsets the delicate balance of a forest or aquatic ecosystem. The good news is that it works the other way, too. Decreasing car and factory emissions can reduce acid rain and help wildlife.…
- 629 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Acid rain is usually a result of human air pollution such as emissions of sulfur and nitrogen compounds. These compounds react with those in the atmosphere causing acids to be produced and in turn causing precipitation to be acidic in nature. The negative impact of acid rain is evident in ecosystems. Acid rain changes the PH levels of rivers and lakes. Animals such as fish are very susceptible to changes in PH and therefore are unable to survive if the change is too drastic. Plankton and invertebrates are put even more at risk. Acid rain in water environments can also affect plant life. On land, acid rain damages forests in high altitudes and also lowers the fertility of soil as important nutrients and minerals are removed from it. These impacts on different aspects of the environment have a trickling down effect that negatively influence entire…
- 1166 Words
- 5 Pages
Good Essays -
impacted as different forms of acids, such as acidic rain and bases and can kill…
- 431 Words
- 1 Page
Satisfactory Essays -
Acid rain is caused by a chemical reaction that begins when compounds like sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are released into the air. These substances can rise very high into the atmosphere, where they mix and react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form more acidic pollutants, known as acid rain…
- 1632 Words
- 7 Pages
Powerful Essays -
Investigating the effects of acid rain in the growth of cress seedlings IntroductionAcid rain is rain or any other form of precipitation, which is unusually acidic. It has harmful effects on plants, animals and buildings. Acid rain is mostly caused by human emissions of sulphur and nitrogen compounds which react in the atmosphere to produce acids.…
- 818 Words
- 3 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Pure water has a pH of 7.0 meaning in is neutral. Acid rain has a pH of 5.6 resulting it in being acidic. Acid rain forms when high rates of nitric acid (in a gas state) are in the atmosphere. Human activities are the main cause of acid rain. Due to human combustion from nuclear power plants, factories, volcanoes and car fuel release this nitric acid into the air, high rise winds carries the gas to many locations. This causes the increase of nitric oxide, and sulphur dioxide to increases in our atmosphere. As more and more toxic pollutants are released into the atmosphere the more acidic substances will become. When these chemicals react with oxygen, toxic pollutants are released causing rain and etc to become toxic. As precipitation occurs, the acid rain will be stored in clouds and precipitate down to earth’s…
- 927 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
Unpolluted rain is normally slightly acidic, with a pH of 5.6. Carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere dissolves to form carbonic acid. Acid rain is rain that has been made acidic by certain pollutants in the air. Acid rain is a type of acid deposition, which can appear in many forms. Wet deposition is rain, sleet, snow, or fog that has become more acidic than normal. Dry deposition is another form of acid deposition, and this is when gases and dust particles become acidic. Both wet and dry deposition can be carried by the wind, sometimes for very long distances. Acid deposition in wet and dry forms falls on buildings, cars, and trees and can make lakes acidic. Acid deposition in dry form can be inhaled by people and can cause health problems in some people.…
- 447 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Acid rain may be even more damaging to forests than previously thought: Not only does acid rain wilt and destroy trees' leaves and needles, but new research shows it also leaches their life-sustaining metal nutrients from topsoil.…
- 796 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Acid precipitation affects the ecosystem, for example, lowering ph in water when it falls into the lake which kills some aquatic organisms.…
- 358 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
Acid rain has proven to be a big problem for Connecticut. It has had a great impact on builders, wildlife, and the water sources. Acid rain has many components in it such as pollutants from plants to sulfuric acid from burning coal.…
- 365 Words
- 2 Pages
Good Essays -
Acid rain has many ecological effects, but none is greater than its impact on lakes, streams, wetlands, and other aquatic environments. Acid rain makes waters acidic and causes them to absorb the aluminum that makes its way from soil into lakes and streams. This combination makes waters toxic to crayfish, clams, fish, and other aquatic…
- 753 Words
- 4 Pages
Good Essays -
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (n.d.). Acid rain experiments-experiment 9- looking at acid effects on metals. Retrieved from…
- 447 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
The soil has abundant amount of various metals and minerals. When these metals come in contact with acid rain there can be some harmful chemical reactions. These reactions can lead to soil erosion. Acid rains are known to reduce the fertility of the soil, leaving the land barren. Harmful acids can also reduce the amount of soil micro organisms which perform important job of breaking down the dead and decayed plants and other beings.…
- 548 Words
- 3 Pages
Good Essays -
Articles and past studies show that acid rain has a negative effect on living organisms from different ecosystems including freshwater. It was also mentioned in the study of…
- 360 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays -
One of the main causes of the serious air pollution was the burning of fossil fuels by the many manufacturing industries producing iron and steel, automobiles, machinery, textiles and food.…
- 371 Words
- 2 Pages
Satisfactory Essays