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Environmental Management > Environmental Degradation > Flashcards

Environmental Degradation Flashcards

1
Q

POLLUTION DEFINITION

A
  • the introduction of substances into natural environment that cause adverse change and which damage he natural environment
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2
Q

WHAT ARE THE 2 DIFFERENT PARTS OF POLLUTION

A
  1. Point source
    • occurs when pollutant is issues at 1 point
    • eg pipe Purim untreated sewage into river
  2. Non- point source
    • emerges from an area
    • eg exhaust emissions from all vehicles in a city
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3
Q

WHAT OTHER 2 WAYS CAN YOU CLASSIFY POLLUTION

A
  1. Incidental pollution
    • is a 1 off event
    • eg Chernobyl radiation leak
    • eg Exxon Valdez oil spill
  2. Sustained pollution
    - long-term caused by ongoing human activities
    • eg release of CO2 into atmosphere from burning fossil fuels
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4
Q

DOES INCIDENTAL OR SUSTAINED POLLUTION HAVE WORSE IMPACTS

A
  • sustained pollution has has much worse impacts in the long-run
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5
Q

FACT THAT THE ‘WHO’ SAID ABOUT POLLUTION DEATHS IN 2014

A
  • suggested that air pollution alone kills 7 million people per year
  • linked to 1 in 8 deaths worldwide
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6
Q

4 BIG POLLUTION CHALLENGES THAT LONDON FACES

A
  1. Air pollution generated by London traffic
  2. Waste pollution in River Thames
  3. Issues of waste disposal/landfill
  4. Associated reliance on fossil fuels as a supplier of energy
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7
Q

4 FACTS ABOUT WATER POLLUTION IN RIVER THAMES

A
  • drinking water provided by Thames is free from contaminants
  • issue is coping with rising groundwater levels
  • rate of rise is 2m per year
  • Thames is polluted by:
    • rapid runoff from impermeable city streets
    • flow volume reduced by abstraction which harms wildlife
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8
Q

RECYCLING ISSUE IN LONDON

A
  • need to recycle more
  • production of solid waster is increasing at 3-4% per year but ONLY 70% of it is disposed of more than 80 miles for, it’s source
  • recycling/ composting is at 13%. BUT in Paris/Amsterdam its 50%>
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9
Q

LAND POLLUTION DEFINITION

A
  • waster products + by-products are dumped onto ground/buried in landfill sites
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10
Q

WHAT ARE THE 4 SOURCES/ CAUSES OF LAND POLLUTION

A
  1. Mining + quarrying
  2. Industry
  3. Energy production
  4. Dumping of domestic waste
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11
Q

MINING AND QUARRYING

A
  • is an eg of land pollution
  • waste tips from coal mines ruin landscape in former mining areas
  • vegetation won’t grow on them
  • quarries + strip mines produce dust + noise. Can lead to severe degradation of environment. Esp in fragile rainforest areas
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12
Q

INDUSTRY

A
  • is an eg of land pollution
  • lots of them produce solid waster that is dumped onto land
  • some produce toxic by-products that are allowed to drain away into land around factory
  • can make reclamation of land expensive when factory shuts + site is used for something else such as housing
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13
Q

ENERGY PRODUCTION

A
  • is an eg of land pollution
  • leaks from oil pipelines contaminate land
  • ash from coal-fired power stations is dumped into large holes in ground. Ash is loose + sterile
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14
Q

DUMPING OF DOMESTIC WASTE

A
  • is an eg of land pollution
  • normally this kind of waster is burned outside + small scale
  • in developed urban places people are richer + have more to throw away
  • domestic waste is organised by local authorities + waste is buried outside in landfill sites
  • rubbish in these sites contain organic food waste. This breaks down to produce methane. This methane escapes + contributes to air pollution
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15
Q

4 SOLUTIONS TO LAND POLLUTION

A
  1. MAGNITUDE. limit amount that companies + industries are allowed to dump/ release with a cap. Fines issued if countries don’t follow this
  2. AWARENESS. raise this by using advertising + media
  3. ENCOURAGEMENT OF ALTERNATIVE METHODS. encourage others to use renewable energy resources by raising awareness through media
  4. MANAGEMENT IN THE LONG TERM. upkeep of pipelines
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16
Q

WHAT 4 WAYS CAN THE PRODUCTION + USE OF ENERGY POLLUTE THE AIR

A
  1. Acid rain
  2. CO2 from fossil fuels
  3. Dust from strip mining of coal
  4. Burning fuelwood in homes
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17
Q

HOW MANY PEOPLE DIE FROM AIR POLLUTION

A
  • responsible for 3.3 million premature deaths each year

- is more than HIV/AIDS combined

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18
Q

4 CAUSES OF AIR POLLUTION

A
  1. Agriculture
  2. Deforestation
  3. Industry
  4. Traffic
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19
Q

AGRICULTURE

A
  • is a cause of air pollution
  • storing + spreading farmyard manure causes bad smell
  • burning straw after grain harvest produces smoke + soot
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20
Q

DEFORESTATION

A
  • is a cause of air pollution
  • burning rainforest in SE Asia has led to serious air pollution across whole region
  • 1997 SE Asian Haze was a large scale air quality disaster. Caused health issues + smog. Cost was $ 9 billion
  • large scale cutting down of trees has serious impacts
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21
Q

INDUSTRY

A
  • is a cause of air pollution
  • heavy industry produces a range of atmosphere pollutants
  • iron, steel, chemicals are really bad
  • accidents can contaminate large areas with toxic materials
  • accidents are eg of incidental pollution
  • eg explosion at Union Carbide chemical factory in Bhopal, India, 1984: released methyl isocyanate gas into city. People were blinded + choked
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22
Q

TRAFFIC

A
  • is a cause of air pollution
  • exhaust fumes that vehicles produce is v.bad
  • traffic congestion makes things worse
  • pollution is sometimes worse in MICs as vehicles are poorly maintained
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23
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF CARBON MONOXIDE

A
  • exhaust fumes from vehicles that aren’t burning their fuel efficiently
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24
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY CARBON MONOXIDE

A
  • reduces supply of oxygen to heart
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25
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF CARBON DIOXIDE

A
  • exhaust fumes from efficient vehicles engines
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26
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY CARBON DIOXIDE

A
  • global warming
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27
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF OXIDES OF NITROGEN

A
  • petrol engine exhausts where no catalytic converter has been fitted
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28
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY OXIDES OF NITROGEN

A
  • irritates throat + lungs
  • leads to ozone formation
  • contributes to acid rain
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29
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF GROUND LEVEL OZONE

A
  • chemicals in vehicle exhausts react with sunlight
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30
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY GROUND LEVEL OZONE

A
  • photochemical smog
  • leads to irritation of eyes, nose, throat + lungs
  • dangerous for people suffering with asthma
31
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF PARTICULATES

A
  • produced by diesel engine exhausts

- where no filter has been fitted

32
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY PARTICULATES

A
  • is black smoke + soot
  • leads to smog + respiratory issues
  • particles cause cancer if breathed into lungs for a sustained time
33
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF HYDROCARBONS

A
  • petrol engine exhausts

- where no catalytic converter has been fitted

34
Q

PROBLEM CAUSED BY HYDROCARBONS

A
  • contribute to formation of ground level ozone

- benzene can cause cancer

35
Q

WHAT IS THE SOURCE OF LEAD

A
  • old petrol vehicles which burn leaded petrol

- mainly an issue in MICs

36
Q

PROBLEMS CAUSES BY LEAD

A
  • causes brain damage

- damages kidney, liver + nervous system

37
Q

ANOTHER TERM FOR LAND POLLUTION

A
  • soil contamination
38
Q

WHO ARE THE NUCLEAR DECOMMISSIONING AUTHORITY

A
  • are based in UK
  • currently spends £117 billion to clean up 17 former nuclear sites
  • figure is rising
39
Q

US PROGRAMME TO DECONTAMINATE POLLUTED SITES

A
  • ‘Superfund’

- has been doing this since 1980

40
Q

EXAMPLE OF AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC

A

Delhi, India

41
Q

WHAT IS THE POLLUTANT IN AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( DELHI, INDIA)

A
  • sulphur dioxide
  • particulates
  • carbon monoxide
42
Q

WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( DELHI, INDIA)

A
  • emissions from automobiles, power plants + other local industrial + urban sources
43
Q

WHAT IS THE HEALTH IMPACT OF AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( DELHI, INDIA)

A
  • long term exposure to low levels of pollutants causes health issues
  • eg cancer, respiratory + cardiovascular diseases, asthma
  • infants, children + elderly are most affected by this
44
Q

WHAT WAS DONE WITH THE AMOUNT OF AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( DELHI, INDIA)

A
  • India’s Ministry of Environment + Forests tried their best to rescue vehicle emissions in late 1990s
  • introduction of fleet buses powered by compressed natural gas + maintenance requirements + a pollution tax
45
Q

WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME OF AIR POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( DELHI, INDIA)

A
  • 1993-2000: carbon monoxide decreased by nearly 50%
  • lead concentrations fell by 75%
  • sulphur dioxide levels decreased by 34.8% + particulate matter levels by 7%
46
Q

EXAMPLE OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC

A
  • Shanghai, China
47
Q

WHAT IS THE POLLUTANT IN WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • residential + industrial waste
48
Q

WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • dumping of raw sewage in waterway

- compounded by flooding

49
Q

WHAT IS THE HEALTH IMPACT OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • untreated sewage spreads cholera, typhoid + dysentery among urban people
50
Q

WHAT WAS DONE WITH THE AMOUNT OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • Shanghai Gov + Asian Development Bank teamed up to design + implement a 12 year project
  • included sewage treatment, injection of oxygen into waterway + flood controls to bring water quality to acceptable levels for household use
51
Q

WHAT WAS THE OUTCOME OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • first phase of project improved water quality

- second phase aimed to maintain water quality + have sustainable urban design elements in rehabilitation system

52
Q

WHAT WAS THE RESULT OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • rehabilitation project showed success in restoring contaminated water bodies in an urban setting
  • were also other benefits such as more green space and higher property values in that area
53
Q

WHAT ARE THE CHALLENGES OF WATER POLLUTION IN AN LEDC ( SHANGHAI, CHINA)

A
  • upstream pollution continues to threaten Yangtze River
54
Q

WHAT ARE THE 2 WAYS OF MEASURING WATER QUALITY

A
  1. Biological indicators
    • examine fish, insects + invertebrates
    • if many different types of these can survive in river, there’s good water quality
  2. Chemical indicators
    • take samples of water + measure concentration of different chemicals that it contains
55
Q

HOW CAN WATER POLLUTION SPREAD

A
  • polluted rivers take their pollution to sea

- ocean currents spread pollution around globe

56
Q

WHAT IS THE NORTH PACIFIC GARBAGE PATCH

A
  • currents in N.Pacific move in a circular way

- have concentrated the plastic into this area known as the N.Pacific Garbage Patch

57
Q

WHERE DOES WATER POLLUTION DERIVE FROM

A
  • point source pollution
  • non point source pollution
  • transboundary pollution
58
Q

TRANSBOUNDARY POLLUTION DEFINTION

A
  • when pollution that enters environment has an effect hundreds/ thousands of miles away
  • eg. Way that radioactive waste travels through oceans from nuclear reprocessing plants in England + France to nearby countries such as Norway + Ireland
59
Q

4 CAUSES OF WATER POLLUTION

A
  1. Sewage
  2. Nutrients
  3. Oil pollution
  4. Plastics
60
Q

4 MAIN SOURCES OF WATER POLLUTION

A
  1. Agriculture
  2. Industry
  3. Domestic rubbish
  4. Energy production + transport
61
Q

SEWAGE

A
  • is a cause of water pollution
  • contains lots of chemicals
  • estimated that water related diseases will kill 135 million people by 2020
  • 2012 Guernsey: dumped 16,000 tons of raw sewage into sea each day
62
Q

NUTRIENTS

A
  • is a cause of water pollution
  • chemical fertilisers add nutrients to soil. This drains into rivers + seas
  • sewage + fertilisers leads to harmful algal bloom. This removes oxygen from water. Kills other forms of life. Leads to a DEAD ZONE
  • eg of dead zone is Gulf of Mexico
63
Q

OIL POLLUTION

A
  • is a cause of water pollution
  • 70%> of this at sea comes from routine shipping + oil
  • when tanker accidents happen, it’s v. destructive as lots of oil is released at once
  • biggest oil spill: Tanker Exxon Valdez, 1989, Alaska: killed 7000 sea otters + 12 million gallons of oil was released
64
Q

PLASTICS

A
  • is a cause of water pollution
  • about half of all world’s seabird species are known to have eaten plastic residues
  • it’s light, floats easily + isn’t biodegradable
  • is the most common material
65
Q

AGRICULTURE

A
  • is a main source of water pollution
  • related to increased use of chemicals in farming
  • chemicals are washed down through leaching + ends up in rivers
  • increase in nitrates from fertilisers leads to growth of algae
  • when algae die, eutrophication happens. This kills fish + other organisms in river
66
Q

INDUSTRY

A
  • is a main source of water pollution
  • liquid wastes from this are dumped into sea/rivers
  • chemicals used to turn wood- wood pulp is v.toxic + kills wildlife
  • rivers can be polluted with organo-chlorine compounds. This bleaches wood pulp
67
Q

ENERGY PRODUCTION + TRANSPORT

A
  • is a main source of water pollution
  • main impacts are:
    • pollution from oil spills
    • low level radioactive waster from nuclear power production
    • air pollution from energy production contributes to acid rain which can pollute lakes + rivers
68
Q

DOMESTIC RUBBISH

A
  • is a main source of water pollution
  • is dumped into nearest river
  • old bikes + trolleys are commonly found in rivers in HIC cities
  • BUT: main issue is in MICs + NICs- isn’t an efficient rubbish collection system
69
Q

EXAMPLE OF WHERE DOMESTIC RUBBISH HAPPENS

A
  • River Ganges, Varanasi, India
70
Q

3 WAYS THAT WE CAN STOP WATER POLLUTION

A
  1. Education
  2. Laws
  3. Economics
71
Q

EDUCATION

A
  • is a way that we can stop water pollution
  • raise AWARENESS
  • early 1990s: surfers in Britain carried on catching illnesses from water polluted with sewage. So: they formed ‘ Surfers Against Sewage.’ Tried to force gov + water companies to clean up
72
Q

LAWS

A
  • are a way to try + stop water pollution
  • only really effective when they operate across national + international borders
  • eg 1972: London Dumping Convention
  • eg 1982: UN Convention on the Law of the Sea
  • eg 1972: USA Clean Water Act
  • most countries have their own individual water pollution laws
73
Q

WHAT IS THE POLLUTER PAYS PRINCIPLE

A
  • agreed by environmental experts
  • best way to tackle pollution
  • means whoever causes pollution should have to pay to clean it up

Environmental Management (4 decks)

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