Paper 1 : Pollution

Question 1

properties of pollution

Question 2

Pollution definition

Answer 2

The release of energy or matter into the environment, via natural conditions or human activities, with the potential to cause changes to ecosystems and harm to humans

Question 3

Types of damage

Answer 3

Pollutants can be natural or anthropogenic

• Direct - e.g effluent discharge from factories damages aquatic organisms
• Indirect - e.g SO2 emissions make acid rain which damages crops
• Chronic - effects appear slowly e.g low radiation over long period
• Acute - effects appear quickly e.g high radiation over short period

Question 4

Categories of pollutants

Answer 4

• Primary - released by human activities e.g CO2,NOx,SO2
• Secondary - produced by chemical reactions between primary and non-pollutants e.g PANs
• Synergistic - effects of multiple pollutants interact to enhance effects e.g ozone damages leaf cuticles allowing SO2 to damage cells
• Point source - comes from 1 source + easily identifiable e.g smokestack or discharge pipe
• Non-point source (diffuse) - comes from many places + hard to identify e.g runoff or vehicle pollution

Question 5

1. State of matter

Answer 5

• gas - e.g CO,CO2,SO2,NOx
• liquid - e.g runoff, oil spills, industrial waste
• solid - e.g litter, smoke particles, ‘spoil’

Affects dispersal:

• solids require more KE so are deposited close to source
• gases travel far and are transboundary

Question 6

2. Density

Answer 6

Affects dispersal:

• dense solids are deposited close to source e.g lead dust
• dense particles sink quicker in liquids

Hydrogen cyanide disaster, India:

• poisonous lead gas leak due to explosion
• killed 15000, caused health problems + cancer
• lead is toxic + liposoluble so bioaccumulation and biomagnification occured

Question 7

3. Energy form

Answer 7

• Noise - effects breeding/nesting, hearing problems - e.g air transport
• Heat - effects enzyme activity e.g industrial processes
• ionising radiation - causes genetic mutations/cancer e.g nuclear waste, sun

Question 8

4. Reactivity

Answer 8

• Reactive chemical are not persistent + degrade quickly, however may react with secondary pollutants

e.g NOx + HC + Ozone react with sunlight to form toxic PANs

Question 9

5. Persistence/degradability

Answer 9

persistence - how long before it is broken down
Degradation is affected by environmental conditions:
- biodegradation via bacteria
- photodegradation via light
- thermal degradation via heat