IB ESS Topic 5 Pollution Management

What is Pollution?
Undesirable change in the physical,
chemical, or biological characteristics of
the air, water, or land that can harmfully
affect the health, survival, or activities of
human or other living organisms.

TOPIC :
DISTINGUISH BETWEEN POINT & NON POINT
SOURCES POLLUTION

What is mean by Point Source?
Pollution originating from a single point such
as pipes, ditches, wells, vessels, and containers.
A point source is a single identifiable localized
source of something.
Sources of pollution which can be traced to a
specific place or location, such as pipes,
ditches, channels, sewers, tunnels, and
containers .

Examples for Point Source Pollution
Water pollution from an oil refinery wastewater
discharge outlet.
Noise pollution from a jet engine.
Light pollution from an intrusive street light
Thermal pollution from an industrial process
outfall.
Radio emissions from an interference-producing
electrical device.

What is Non-Point Source Pollution ?
Pollution that occurs when rainfall, snowmelt, or
irrigation runs over land or through the ground, picks up
pollutants, and deposits them into rivers, lakes, and
coastal waters or introduces them into ground water.
Pollution released from diffuse sources e.g. Pesticides
from fields or many single sources such as the exhausts
of cars in a city

Nonpoint-source pollution is the cumulative result of our
everyday personal actions and our local land use policies.

Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is water
pollution affecting a water body from diffuse
sources.
Nonpoint source pollution can be contrasted
with point source pollution, where discharges
occur to a body of water at a single location.

RIVERS, STREAMS, RESRVOIRS AND BAYS IDENTIFIED AS HAVING
BEEN IMPACTED BY NON-POINT-SOURCE POLLUTION

Management Strategies & Issues
Point Source
• Easier to monitor emissions
at source
• Easier to control emissions
at source
• Responsibility easily
established and managed by
law
• Localized effects can be
managed
• Non Point Source
• Monitoring requires
extensive survey techniques
• Emissions control requires
widespread changes
• Responsibility shared
amongst many requiring
greater effort to enforce
change
• Effects are spread over a
wider area

CHAPTER5.1.3
TOPIC :
MAJOR SOURCES OF POLLUTIONS

What is Pollutants?
A pollutant is a waste material
that pollutes air, water or soil.

Types of Pollution
1.Salination
• Cause :Irrigation
• Effects :Plants die, impacts on agriculture and
societies food production
2.Pesticides
• Cause :Spraying of crops
• Effects :Concentrates higher up food chain

Types of Pollution
3.Toxic Spills and leaks
• Cause: Industrial accidents & Dumping
• Effects :Can be fatal e.g-Bhopal
4.Sewage
• Cause :Waste from toilets & drains
• Eutrophication, low oxygen in water
5.Sulphur dioxide
• Cause :Burning coal for heat or electricity
generation
• Effects :Acid rain

TOPIC :
DETECTION AND MOINTORING POLLUTION

CHAPTER5.2.1
TOPIC :
TWO DIRECT METHODS OF MOINTORING OF
POLLUTION

Aim of Monitoring
To protect the environment from the adverse effects
of pollution, many nations worldwide have enacted
legislation to regulate various types of pollution as
well as to mitigate the adverse effects of pollution

AIR POLLUTION
• Why do we monitor air pollution?
• The information we collect is used to help us
review and assess air quality in the borough, to
measure whether air quality standards are
being met, to provide good local information
for policy decisions and provide the
community with information on the air it
breathes.

What is Particulate Matter?
• There are things floating around in the air.
Most of them, you cannot even see.
• They are a kind of air pollution called particles
or particulate matter.
• In fact, particulate matter may be the air
pollutant that most commonly affects people's
health.

• Particulate matter is a form of air pollution from a
variety of sources.
• It consists of fine particles that can stay in the air
for days or weeks until removed by rainfall
• It can measured by leaving sheets of glue coated
paper with a grid drawn on them for a standard
amount of time.
• Possible errors could be any spray from
cars,people or animals up onto the paper direcctly
from the ground

Monitoring and a Analysing Air Pollution
Full chemical and physical characterisation of
aerosol.
Determination of size-fractionated chemistry
(particle diameter 100 nm to 20 mm) and
supporting reactive gas measurements.
Supporting meteorological data and modelling.
Expert interpretation of measurements.

MOINTORING PRIVATE WATER SUPPLIES AND DRINKING WATER
The quality of drinking water is of
paramount importance to us all. The
pollution and consumer section is a
leading provider of independent water
analysis.

METHODS OF CHECKING WATER QUALITY
Typical tests carried out include:
1. Trace metal analysis.
2. Nutrient analysis.
3. Cation/Anion analysis.
4. Pesticides and related substances.
5. Heavy metal analysis.
6. Physical parameters.
7. Microbiological indicators.

The sound tube in Melbourne, Australia, designed to reduce
roadway noise without detracting from the area's aesthetics

Montoring Noise Pollution
Sound is measured in decibels. As the
pressure (in pascales Pa) varies so much from
that which can be just heard (ie 20 Pa) to that
which caused pain (ie 100 Pa) and because the
ear responds (not linearly).

CHAPTER5.2.2
TOPIC :
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD)
&
ASSESS POLLUTION LEVELS IN WATER

What is Biochemical Oxygen Demand?
Biochemical oxygen demand is a measure of the quantity
of oxygen used by microorganisms (e.g., aerobic bacteria)
in the oxidation of organic matter.
Natural sources of organic matter include plant decay
and leaf fall.
 It is used as a measure of the degree of water pollution
BOD can be used as a gauge of the effectiveness of
wastewater treatment plants

Procedure
• . The sample bottle which was stored in the paper
bag and should be placed in the dark and
incubated for five days at 20 degrees Celsius,
which is approximately room temperature.
• If no incubator is available, place the sample
bottle and bag into a "light-tight" drawer or
cabinet.
• After five days, determine the DO level of the
sample by repeating steps five and six of the
treatment procedure and all steps of titration and
cleanup.

LEVELS
• Moderately polluted rivers may have a BOD
value in the range of 2 to 8 mg/L.
• Municipal sewage that is efficiently treated by
a three-stage process would have a value of
about 20 mg/L or less.
• Untreated sewage varies, but averages around
600 mg/L

TOPIC :
INDIRECT METHODS OF MEASURING
POLLUTION LEVELS USING A BIOTIC INDEX

What is Biotic Index?
Biotic index is a scale for showing the quality of an
environment by indicating the types of organisms present in
it.
 It is often used to assess the quality of water in rivers. It is
measured from 1 to 10 and corresponds to the six water
quality classes.
 A scale showing the quality of an environment by the types
of organisms which inhabit it.
Biotic index can show cleanliness of the river.".

CHAPTER5.3.1
TOPIC :
POLLUTION MANAGEMENT

Industrial Wastewater
Some industrial facilities generate ordinary domestic
sewage that can be treated by municipal facilities.
Industries that generate wastewater with high
concentrations of conventional pollutants (e.g. oil and
grease), toxic pollutants (e.g. heavy metals, volatile
organic compounds) or

Paul Muller
Nobel Prize for his discovery of the insecticidal properties of DDT.

What is DDT?
DDT (from its trivial name,
dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) is one of the most well-
known synthetic pesticides.
It is a chemical with a long, unique, and controversial
history.
In 1939 DDT was used with great success in the second
half of World War II to control malaria and typhus among
civilians and troops
DDT was made available for use as an agricultural
insecticide and its production and use duly increased.

DDT and malaria
Those in favor of the use of DDT to combat
malaria argue that:
• It is an efficient method to eradicate malaria in
Europe and has practically done just that in
India.
• They defend the effectiveness of the substance
given the low cost of use and the fact that there
are no issues with patents.

• In 1962, the book Silent Spring by American
biologist Rachel Carson was published.
• It catalogued the environmental impacts of
indiscriminate DDT spraying in the United States
and questioned the logic of releasing large amounts
of chemicals into the environment without a
sufficient understanding of their effects
on ecology or human health
History of DDT ban

• The book suggested that DDT and other
pesticides may cause cancer and that their
agricultural use was a threat to wildlife,
particularly birds.
• Its publication was a seminal event as regards
the environmental movement and resulted in a
large public outcry that eventually led, in
1972, to a ban on the agricultural use of DDT
in the United States

• The US ban on DDT is cited by scientists as a
major factor in the comeback of the bald
eagle (the national bird of the United States)
and the peregrine falcon from near-extinction

Why DDT was banned?
By the early 1970s, however, serious questions
were being raised about the environmental
effects of DDT.
Reports indicated that harmless insects, fish,
birds, and other animals were being killed or
harmed as a result of exposure to DDT.

• DDT was banned because it was discovered that it
was a carcinogen and caused bio magnification).
• For example, the grass that the cows eat is sprayed
with DDT and the cow eats it.
• Then the cow's milk is infected with DDT.
• The people drink the milk and get DDT in their
system and as the DDT moves up the food chain,
it gets increasingly concentrated and more
dangerous. It accumulates in the adipose cells of
the organism.

DDT and the environment
• Among the diverse effects of DDT on the
health of animals, many highlight:
• Problems in reproduction and development.
• Possible defects on the immune system and
premature death of birds.
• Effects on the liver and kidney.
• Reduction in the quality and quantity of
microscopic animals in phytoplankton

• In 2006 the World Health Organization announced that it
would return to using DDT as an insecticide to eradicate
malaria (and to kill the mosquitos that transmit the disease).
• The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) called for
the elimination of 12 compounds that "can kill people,
damage the nervous and immune systems, cause cancer and
reproductive disorders and interfere with normal infant and
child development," among those was DDT.
• Due to its characteristics, according to the Stockholm
Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) from
May of 2005, DDT was classified as one of these
compounds:
RECENT DEVELOPMENTS IN DDT

Debating a global ban on DDT
For
• Research has linked DDT to
premature births, low birth
weight and abnormal mental
developments
• Alternative methods of pest
control exist
• Spraying cannot eradicate
the mosquitoes
• The ecological effects are
well documented
Against
• WHO states DDT is safe if
used properly
• Alternatives are not as
effective
• Annual deaths from malaria
are still over 1 million
• Previous decisions to ban
DDT saw a resurgence of
mosquitoes and rise in deaths
from malaria in many
countries

CHAPTER5.4
TOPIC :
EUTROPHICATION

CHAPTER5.4.1
TOPIC :
Process of Eutrophication

January/February
Formative
• Date : 7.02.2014
• Syallabus:Pollution
Management
• Marks :40
• Format :Paper 2
February Summative
• Date : 14.02.2014
• Syllabus: Global
Warming
• Marks :50
• Format :Paper 1 &2

1. The process by which a body of water
acquires a high concentration of nutrients,
especially phosphates and nitrates.
2. These typically promote excessive growth of
algae.
3. As the algae die and decompose, high levels
of organic matter and the decomposing
organisms deplete the water of available
oxygen, causing the death of other organisms,
such as fish.

• This bloom of algae disrupts normal ecosystem
functioning and causes many problems.
• The algae may use up all the oxygen in the
water, leaving none for other marine life.
This results in the death of many aquatic
organisms such as fish, which need the oxygen
in the water to live.
• The bloom of algae may also block sunlight
from photosynthetic marine plants under the
water surface.

Process(Positive Feedback):
• Increase in inputs of nutrients (nitrates and
phosphates) which enter the lake
• Increase in algae productivity in the lake
• Massive increase in algae
• Increase in dead organic matter due to increase in
decomposer as there are more algae for food
• Higher rate of decomposition as the decomposers
respiration
• Increase in oxygen demand but decline in oxygen
level
• Death of organisms

Effects of Eutrophication:
• Death of fish and other organisms.
• Loss of species diversity.
• Breaking down of food chains.
• Increased turbidity (cloudiness of water)
• Death of aquatic plants

Strategies
• Cause: Agriculture
• Strategy :Contour Ploughing to reduce run-off
• Reduce aces of livestock to water resources
• Reduce amount of fertilizer applied
• Cause :Domestic
• Strategy :Phosphate free washing powder
• Dry composting toilets

Minimize the amount of nutrients being released into
the system by:
1. Limiting production/use of detergents containing
phosphates
2. Create buffer zones between agricultural land and
water sources
3. Prevent animal waste from leaching into
groundwater and rivers/streams
Treat the polluted area by:
1. pumping air into the water source
2. divert or treat sewage properly
3. dredge (dig up) contaminated sediments
4. physically remove algae blooms

Evaluating Eutrophication Management
strategies
• Difficulties of influencing human behavior
without legislation
• Catchment management agreements may be
difficult to monitor
• Consequences of bio manipulation may not be
predictable
• Phosphate mainly transfers through detergent,
sewage and surface and surface run off as it is
non soluble

What is Solid Domestic Waste?
• Any organic matter, including sewage,
industrial, and commercial wastes, from
municipal waste collection systems. Municipal
waste does not include agricultural and wood
wastes or residues

Type of S Solid Domestic Waste
1. Paper
2. Glass
3. Metals
4. Plastics
5. Organic waste from kitchen or garden
6. Potentially hazardous materials

Evaluate pollution management strategies for
solid domestic (municipal) waste.
Causes Reduce •Reduce packaging
Reuse •Choose second
hand materials or
reusable containers
Recycle •Choose materials
that can be recycled
Composting •Organic can be
composted at source
•Choose
biodegradable
materials

Effects Incineration •Easy and Quick
•Release greenhouse
gases such as methane
which could be used
for powering
•Release toxic
pollutants
Landfill •Might pollute
groundwater through
leeching
•Facing less available
space
Sealed landfill •Prevent leeching but
higher costs
•Limited space
Composting •Can turn organic
wastes into resources

5.6 Depletion of Stratospheric Ozone

Gas percentage
Nitrogen 78.1
Oxygen 20.9
Argon 0.9
Carbon dioxide 0.04
Water Variable
Trace Gases >0.002
Composition

• Troposphere -
0-12km thick;
• 75% of all gases in atmosphere;
• all weather happens here;
• temperature falls with altitude
• Stratosphere -
12-50 km thick
• temperature increases with altitude (gets warmer!)
• horizontal winds (jet stream)
• contains ozone layer
• Mesosphere -
50-80km thick
• temperature falls with altitude
• meteor showers happen here
• Thermosphere -
ionosphere here (reflects radio waves for communications)
• can be very very hot (2000 C+) !

5.6.3: Explain the interaction between ozone and
halogenated organic gases.
• Halogenated organic gases(e.g. CFC) are very
stable under normal conditions but can liberate
halogen atoms when exposed to ultraviolet
radiation in the stratosphere.
• These atoms react with monatomic oxygen and
slow the rate of ozone re-formation. Pollutants
enhance the destruction of ozone, thereby
disturbing the equilibrium of the ozone
production system

How ozone is depleted by CFC’s:
• UV radiation breaks off a chlorine atom from a
CFC molecule.
• The chlorine atom attacks an ozone molecule
(O3), breaking it apart and destroying the ozone.
• The result is an ordinary oxygen molecule (O2)
and a chlorine monoxide molecule (ClO).
• The chlorine monoxide molecule (ClO) is attacked
by a free oxygen atom releasing the chlorine atom
and forming an ordinary oxygen molecule (O2).
• The chlorine atom is now free to attack and
destroy another ozone molecule (O3). One
chlorine atom can repeat this destructive cycle
thousands of times.

5.6.4 State the effects of ultraviolet radiation on living
tissues and biological productivity.
• Increase in mutation rates in DNA causing
cancer
• Can cause eye cataracts
• Can damage the ability to carry out
photosynthesis in plants and phytoplankton
• Reduces primary production and therefore total
productivity

Management Strategies for the Ozone
Layer
1. Limit private vehicle driving
• A very easy way to control ozone depletion
would be to limit or reduce the amount of
driving as vehicular emissions eventually
result in smog which is a culprit in the
deterioration of the ozone layer.

2. Use eco-friendly household cleaning products
• Usage of eco-friendly and natural cleaning
products for household chores is a great way to
prevent ozone depletion
3. Avoid using pesticides
• Pesticides may be an easy solution for getting rid
of weed, but are harmful for the ozone layer. The
best solution for this would be to try using natural
remedies, rather than heading out for pesticides.

• 4. Developing stringent regulations for
rocket launches
• All types of rocket engines result in
combustion by products that are ozone-
destroying compounds that are expelled
directly in the middle and upper stratosphere
layer – near the ozone layer.

• 5. Banning the use of dangerous nitrous
oxide
• Governments across the world should take a
strong stand for banning the use of this
harmful compound to save the ozone layer.

• National and international organizations
in reducing the emissions of
ozone-depleting substances.

What is Montreal Protocol?
• The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the
Ozone Layer (a protocol to the Vienna Convention
for the Protection of the Ozone Layer) is an
international treaty designed to protect the ozone
layer .
• The treaty was opened for signature on September
16th, 1987,

1987 Montreal Protocol –Important agreements
• Froze production and consumption of CFC’s with goal
of zero production by year 2000
• LEDC’s granted a longer time to implement the treaty
• China and India have not met their quotas under the MP
because of their rapid economic growth and high
demand for refrigeration & AC’s
• Good example of a successful international cooperative
effort to alter human impact on the environment

• In 1995, the United Nations named September
16 the International Day for the Protection of
the Ozone Layer .

International Treaties
• The Vienna Convention on the Protection of
the Ozone Layer Signed in 1985, this treaty is
the precursor to the Montreal Protocol.
• ,

• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Ozone Secretariat The Ozone Secretariat
coordinates implementation of and meetings
under the Montreal Protocol.
• OzonAction UNEP’s Division of Technology,
Industry, and Economics OzonAction Programme
provides industry, government and other
stakeholders in developing countries with
information exchange services (including this web
site), training and Networking of ODS Officers.

What is Photochemical smog ?
• Photochemical smog is formed when
primary pollutants react with
ultraviolet light to create a variety of
toxic and reactive compounds.

The Formation of Smog
• Photochemical smog (or just smog for short) is a
term used to describe air pollution that is a result
of the interaction of sunlight with certain
chemicals in the atmosphere.
• One of the primary components of photochemical
smog is ozone.
• While ozone in the stratosphere protects earth
from harmful UV radiation, ozone on the ground
is hazardous to human health

Effects of Photochemical smog
• Photochemical smog is composed of primary
and secondary pollutants.
• Primary pollutants, which include nitrogen
oxides and volatile organic compounds, are
introduced into the atmosphere via vehicular
emissions and industrial processes.
• Secondary pollutants, like ozone, result from
the reaction of primary pollutants with
ultraviolet light.

LEVEL Strategy
Cause Cars, Buses
and taxis
Reduce demand for private cars through public transport
Promote cycle & bus lanes.
Promote cleaner fuels and hybrid or electrical models
Electricity Reduce consumption of electricity through building design.
Small scale green power on city buildings e.g. solar ,wind
Release and
transfer
Cars, Buses
and taxis
Catalytic converters help reduce Nox emissions
Electricity &
industry
Use cleaner fuels, Taller chimneys to break through inversion
layers
Effects Smog
Prevention
Design and plan city buildings to promote natural cooling and
circulation
Promote opening up and cleaning up of covered water courses
to allow evaporative cooling
Health Raise Awareness
Activated charcoal mask

Most Polluted World Cities by PM
Particulate
matter,
μg/m³ (2013)
City
169 Cairo, Egypt
150 Delhi, India
128 Kolkata, India (Calcutta)
125 Tianjin, China
123 Chongqing, China
109 Kanpur, India
109 Lucknow, India
104 Jakarta, Indonesia
101 Shenyang, China

1) Acid rain is generally formed by the presence
of gases like sulfur di oxide, Nitrogen Oxides
and C02.
2) These gases mix with water drops in the
atmosphere to from a acid rain.
3) Concentrated acids are corrosive and destroy
metal,wood,rocks and most other material that
come in contact.
What is Acid Rain?

• Natural –Marine algae,Volcanoes,Forest Fires
• Man Made-
• PowerStation,
• Refineries,
• Industries,
• Transport,
• Domestic heating
CAUSES OF ACID RAIN

SO2 &Nitrogen oxides
are released from power
station,industry and car
exhausts
Gases are dispersed by
wind
Gases undergo chemical
changes and react with
water vapour
Pollutants fall as dry
acid particles
Pollutants fall as acid
rain
Damage to Buildings, humans animals, trees rivers and
lakes

LAND ECOSYSTEM:
• Soil biology and chemistry can be seriously
damaged by acid rain.
• Some microbes are unable to tolerate changes
to low pHs and are killed.
Effects of acid rain on the followings

Human health effects
• Acid rain does not directly affect human health.
• The acid in the rainwater is too dilute to have
direct adverse effects.
• Increased amounts of fine particulate matter in
the air do contribute to heart and lung problems
including asthma and bronchitis

• Acid rain causes a cascade of effects that harm
or kill individual fish, reduce fish population
numbers, completely eliminate fish species
from a waterbody, and decrease biodiversity
WATER ECOSYSTEM

IB ESS Topic 5 Pollution Management

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