Learning Guide Unit 6

Overview

Unit 6: Sustaining Environmental Quality

Topics:

Atmospheric Pollution

Ozone Depletion

Acid Rain

Climate Change

Climate Change Policies and Adaptation Measures

Environmental Concerns with Wastes

Waste Management Strategies

Waste Policies

Learning Objectives:

By the end of this Unit, you will be able to:

1. Identify sources of air pollution.

2. List common air pollutants.

3. Explain how the greenhouse effect causes the atmosphere to retain heat.
 4. Explain how we know that humans are responsible for recent climate change.

5. List some effects of climate change.

6. Identify some climate change policies and adaptation measures.

7. Understand the environmental concerns with the growing quantities and improper
.management of wastes being generated.

8. Recognize various environmental regulations governing the management of solid and

hazardous wastes.

9. Understand and explain integrated waste management strategies.

Tasks:

Read the Learning Guide and Reading Assignments

Participate in the Discussion Assignment (post, comment, and rate in the Discussion
Forum)

Complete and submit the Written Assignment

Make entries to the Learning Journal

Take the Self-Quiz

Introduction

The overview below will help you review the material covered in this unit.

Air Pollution, Climate Change, and Ozone Depletion

Air pollution can be thought of as gaseous and particulate contaminants that are present
in the earths atmosphere.

Chemicals discharged into the air that have a direct impact on the environment are called
primary pollutants. These primary pollutants sometimes react with other chemicals in
the air to produce secondary pollutants.

The commonly found air pollutants, known as criteria pollutants, are particle pollution,
ground-level ozone, carbon monoxide, sulfur oxides, nitrogen oxides, and lead. These
pollutants can harm health and the environment, and cause property damage.

The historical record shows that the climate system varies naturally over a wide range of
time scales. In general, climate changes prior to the Industrial Revolution in the 1700s
can be explained by natural causes, such as changes in solar energy, volcanic eruptions,
and natural changes in greenhouse gas concentrations. Recent climate changes, however,
cannot be explained by natural causes alone. Natural causes are very unlikely to explain
most observed warming, especially warming since the mid-20th century. Rather, human
activities can explain most of that warming.

The primary human activity affecting the amount and rate of climate change is
greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels.

Greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere will continue to increase unless the
billions of tons of our annual emissions decrease substantially. Increased concentrations
are expected to increase Earth's average temperature, influence the patterns and amounts
of precipitation, reduce ice and snow cover, as well as permafrost, raise sea level and
increase the acidity of the oceans. These changes will impact our food supply, water
resources, infrastructure, ecosystems, and even our own health.

Acid rain is a term referring to a mixture of wet and dry deposition from the atmosphere
containing higher than normal amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids. The precursors of acid
rain formation result from both natural sources, such as volcanoes and decaying
vegetation, and man-made sources, primarily emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and
nitrogen oxides (NOx) resulting from fossil fuel combustion.
 Acid rain causes acidification of lakes and streams, contributes to the damage of trees
and many sensitive forest soils. In addition, acid rain accelerates the decay of building
materials and paints, contributes to the corrosion of metals and damages human health.

The ozone depletion process begins when CFCs and other ozone-depleting substances
(ODS) are emitted into the atmosphere. Reductions in stratospheric ozone levels lead to
higher levels of UVB reaching the Earth's surface. The sun's output of UVB does not
change; rather, less ozone means less protection, and hence more UVB reaches the Earth.
Ozone layer depletion increases the amount of UVB tat lead to negative health and
environmental effects.

Solid and Hazardous Waste

Many wastes, such as high-level radioactive wastes, will remain dangerous for
thousands of years, and even MSW (municipal solid waste) can produce dangerous
leachate that could devastate an entire eco-system if allowed infiltrate into and migrate
within groundwater.

In order to protect human health and the environment, environmental professionals must
deal with problems associated with increased generation of waste materials. The solution
must focus on both reducing the sources of wastes as well as the safe disposal of
wastes. It is, therefore, extremely important to know the sources, classifications,
chemical compositions, and physical characteristics of wastes, and to understand the
strategies for managing them.

Waste management practices vary not only from country to country, but they also vary
based on the type and composition of waste. Regardless of the geographical setting of the
type of waste that needs to be managed, the governing principle in the development of
any waste management plan is resource conservation. Natural resource and energy
conservation is achieved by managing materials more efficiently. Reduction, reuse, and
recycling are primary strategies for effective reduction of waste quantities. Further,
proper waste management decisions have increasing importance, as the consequences of
these decisions have broader implications with respect to greenhouse gas emissions and
global climate change. As a result, several public and private partnership programs are
under development with the goal of waste reduction through the adoption of new and
innovative waste management technologies. Because waste is an inevitable by-product of
civilization, the successful implementation of these initiatives will have a direct effect on
the enhanced quality of life for societies worldwide.
Reading Assignment

Read chapters 12 and 15 in the textbook and answer the 'End of Chapter Review Questions' in
each chapter.
Discussion Assignment

Your posts should cover the questions below in full, and be at least 300 words long. Then
reply to and peer-review at least three other posts by next Wednesday 11:59PM UoPeople
Time, and rate the posts and replies.

This week we are learning about climate change. Open the link to the IPCC report "Climate
Change 2014 and read the Summary for Decision Makers.

Then, in your own words answer the following questions (do not copy and paste things from the
site... use your own words to answer the following questions. It is okay if your English is not
perfect, I do not mind, I just prefer to see your own words and thoughts on the topic):

1. What is this report about?

2. What climate change vulnerabilities are identified for your region?

3. Did they surprise you? Why or why not?

4. Describe (in your own words) three adaptation measures that have been
proposed for addressing global climate change in your region.

5. In your opinion, which one is the most important? Why?

6. Outline two steps you could take to lower your climate impact. Check the
Union of Concerned Scientists for some ideas.

Any materials cited should be referenced using the style guidelines established by the American
Psychological Association (APA).

________

IPCC, 2014: Summary for policymakers. In: Climate Change 2014: Impacts,Adaptation, and
Vulnerability. Part A: Global and Sectoral Aspects. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth
Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Field, C.B., V.R. Barros,
D.J. Dokken, K.J. Mach, M.D. Mastrandrea, T.E. Bilir, M. Chatterjee, K.L. Ebi, Y.O. Estrada,
R.C. Genova, B. Girma, E.S. Kissel, A.N. Levy, S. MacCracken, P.R. Mastrandrea, and
L.L.White (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United Kingdom and New York,
NY, USA, pp. 1-32
The report is about assessing and managing the risks of climate change due to
human interference. What are the human impacts? Which impacts on natural and
human systems that climate changes has caused? So far, the signs are negative, ill,
and highly-warning.

In the Southern region of Vietnam, climate change has caused significant negative
impact on crop yields and biodiversity reduction. Rice harvest is expected to
decrease from 3 to 1 season in 2020 (time for a career change?). Rural peoples
houses will be gone when the flood rises just a few cm more. And loss of tiger,
elephant, and other endanger species are already in red-alert.

And to rub salt into the wounds, the upcoming Chinas hydroelectricity factory
buildings will fasten the speed of climate change in the Mekong Delta region. Its not
very surprising, China has been an ill neighbor to Vietnam with aggressive and
greedy business practices, without giving a damn about sustainability.

For climate change, organization such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been
working directly with local communities to provide an all-rounded solution, such as
mainstreaming climate adaptation action into subnational development planning,
early warning systems, integrated water resources management, agroforestry, and
coastal reforestation of mangroves. The most important is to restore wetlands and
coastal mangroves, prime aquaculture and agricultural lands, since the livelihood
of at least 60 million people are hanging on that.

It seems there are 4 solutions for an individual to fight global warming. For me,
fighting misinformation seems to be a hands-on solution it is already there through
my social media activity. Reducing emissions is another solution, by embracing
more eco-friendly daily utilities riding a bicycle, saying no to harmful products.

Climate change and global warming, at this stage of the Earth, seems to be the
inevitable. We might not be able to reverse the effect in our generation. But let us
begin.
Written Assignment

Air pollution has become very costly environmental problem in terms of both human lives and in
terms of billions of dollars lost for health-care expenditure and crop damage.

Contact the pollution control authorities in your community for the levels or air pollutants.
Identify main air pollutants and the possible causes of air pollution. How does your community
compare to others? Discuss your findings.

Consider your own skills and interests. Think of at least two skills or interests that could be
applied (if you had the time and resources) to helping improve air quality in your community.

Your answer should be between 700900 words long and should include introduction and
conclusion section.

VIETNAM: KILLING YOU SLOWLY WITH ITS AIR POLLUTION

It is a brand new day. You get up early. You take a nice cold shower. You wear your
finest shirt and jeans. Get out of the door! Smell that freshness in you! How do you
feel?

Sadly, for most Vietnamese living in the big cities, the answer is rather unpleasant.
What they feel is a mix of harmful outdoor particle pollution such as acids,
chemicals, metals, soil, and dust particles, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and
smoke. Just getting outdoor in the city causes smouldering stress in a Vietnameses
daily life.

###

As you get on a bike, joining the usual traffic jam, you will thank God if it is a traffic
jam in Hochiminh and not Hanoi. According to VNexpress News, The capital of
Vietnam has the Particulate Matter 2.5, twice times higher than Hochiminh (Anh,
2017). Hanoi is terrified by the PM at 50,5 g/m3, five times higher than WHO
standard. It is not the only air-polluted capital in the world, as New Delhi - the
capital of India, is killing its citizens with the PM at 124g/m3.

In a wider perspective, Vietnam is one of the top 10s air-polluted countries in the
world. There are estimated 16,000 people death caused by air pollution in Vietnam
annually, contributing to 0.53% the total of 3,000,000 early human death by air
pollution (Nguyn, 2016).
 (Air pollution in Hanoi, Mar 1 2016, is PM 2.5. Source: aquicn.org)

As you worn your way through the traffic jam, which is full of people wearing gauze
masks, you wonder: Statistic aside, how exactly is air pollution harming me? Lets
see. The short answer is: more than enough to get you die an early death. The long
answer is: Pneumonia, asthma, cancer, bronchitis, cardiovascular, nervous
breakdownThe most vulnerable groups of air pollution are elders (your dad and
mom and grandfather and grandmother), pregnant women (your wife, your sister),
children under the age of 15 (your child), outdoor workersIn 2012, Environmental
Department of Hochiminh reported there were over 100.000 people got air-
pollution-related sickness (Cng, 2014).

Thinking about those numbers, your head burns, your hands push a little harder on
the steering. How did it come down to this? Who is responsible for all these stuffs?

In Vietnam, the major sources in the cities are mobile sources and stationary & area
sources. The president off Hanoi, Mr. Nguyn c Chung admitted the biggest
source is outdated bikes and cars. Hanoi has over 6 million bikes, 40% is outdated
by 2000. Every day, these armies continuously emit polluted gas to the
environment. The recovery takes a lot of time and money, Mr. Chung said. So be a
little generous and switch your old 1990s made-in-Japan bike for a modern one,
okay?

According to the Environmental and Science Committee of Vietnam Parliament, 30%

factories in the industrial zone and 70% factories in the industrial clusters do not
meet the required exhaust treatment system. Their collective emissions has
contributed significantly to harm the air you breathe.

Should you wait until the government or some NGO take action to reduce the air
pollution? So you think you can wait? No. That would be too late.

Instead, you can embrace the following 10 tactics from a health-freak (me):

1. Use an Air purifier and Air humidifier from Phillips

(http://www.philips.com.sg/c-m-ho/air-purifier-and-air-humidifier): These
Phillips invention helps removing TVOc, odor, Pet dander, dust mites, mold
spores, pollen, dust, humidity, ultra-fine particles, viruses, bacteria, and
more Buy one now.

2. Wear a N95 gauze mask: thats a specialized medical mask to prevent

PM2,5 entering your respiratory.

3. Exercise in the early morning or in the evening: Air is most polluted

under the brightest sunlight. That is why indoor gym is better than outdoor
on sunny days, you runner.

4. Avoid walking or cycling on heavy-traffic roads: Self-explained. Enough

said.

5. Improve your diet: Vitamin-rich food will improve your health immune
system, which counter air pollution. Eat food that provide vitamin A, beta-
caroten, vitamin C, vitamin E, and selen.

6. No smoking: Smoking is for idiots who wish to destroy their lives and wallet.
Stop it now. Quit it.

7. Switch to electrical kitchen: better heat control, better house-air quality,

lower fire risk, what not to like.

The above tactics would serve you and your dear well. If everyone in your
community is doing it, then maybe the air can finally change for the better.

###

You finally reach your destination. Leaving the traffic jam behind, you breathe a sign
of relief. Little do you know that the greater danger is waiting for you. Inside the
office. According to World health Organization, the indoor air can be 2-5 times more
polluted than outdoor air.

Yes. Just another day in this killing-you-slowly-with-its-air-pollution country.

References
Anh, V. C.-Q. (2017, Feb 17). Air pollution in Hanoi is in red-alert. Retrieved from
Zing News: http://news.zing.vn/o-nhiem-khong-khi-tai-ha-noi-dang-o-muc-
bao-dong-do-post721598.html

Cng, N. (2014, Mar 19). Air pollution "hazard". Retrieved from Environmental
Department of Hochiminh city:
http://www.donre.hochiminhcity.gov.vn/tintuc/Lists/Posts/Post.aspx?
List=f73cebc39669-400e-b5fd-9e63a89949f0&ID=4049

Nguyn, M. (2016, May 16). 3 million early death caused by air pollution per year.
Retrieved from VNexpress.net: http://suckhoe.vnexpress.net/tin-tuc/suc-
khoe/3-trieu-nguoi-chet-som-moi-nam-do-o-nhiem-khong-khi-toan-cau-
3403594.html
Learning Journal

Go to this website, which is hosted by Skeptical Science. Read up and then answer the following
questions. http://skepticalscience.com/argument.php

1. This link covers many of the myths about climate change.

List two of the myths that you found most interesting.

Outline what each myth is, and what the right answer to that question
or item is.

2. Has your view on climate change evolved since before taking this course?
Why or why not?

3. Choose one the Review Questions from this weeks readings and answer it in
full.

4. Please tell me how the course is going for you so far? Is it hard, just right,
or easy?

1. Two of the myths that I find most interesting are:

a.Its the Sun:

Myth: Over the past few hundred years, there has been a steady increase in the
numbers of sunspots, at the time when the Earth has been getting warmer. The
data suggests solar activity is influencing the global climate causing the world to
get warmer." (Source: BBC)

Busted: Over the last 35 years the sun has shown a cooling trend. However global
temperatures continue to increase. If the sun's energy is decreasing while the Earth
is warming, then the sun can't be the main control of the temperature.

b. "Humans are too insignificant to affect global climate"

Myth: To suggest that humanity is capable of impacting and disturbing forces of

such magnitude is reflective of a self-centred arrogance that is mind numbing.
Humanity is a subset of Nature. Nature is not a subset of humanity. We have
travelled full circle. We are back in the mindset that prevailed when Societys
leaders dictated what people in Copernicus days may or may not think. The Earth is
once again flat. (source: Financial Sense University)
Busted: Since the industrial revolution, with ever-increasing supplies of fossil fuels,
the activities of a dramatically expanding world population have made significant
alterations to the make-up of our atmosphere. We might be pretty helpless when it
comes to controlling the weather, humans are certainly capable of changing the
worlds climate.

2. My view on climate change has evolved from an ape to a human. I gain a higher
awareness and wider perspective on climate change. Understanding basic
environmental terms are also super cool to debate with my clueless friends over a
cup of coffee.

3. Why is secondhand smoke dangerous?

Different from the first-hand smoke, the secondhand smoke is the total of smoke
from a cigarette and smoke breathed out by a smoker. Smoke is full of harmful
chemicals to human health (why do people try to kill themselves with smoking?). It
also lingers long in the air.

So kick that smokers butt if he/she smokes indoor is the golden rule of thumb for
me.

4. The course progress is not hard. All terms are explained clearly. I only wish that
there is a few additional links to videos to visualize easier. Is National Geography or
Discovery Channel a good source?