Controlling Earth's Pollutants (Environment at Risk)

E N V I R O N M E N T AT R I S K

CHRISTINE PETERSEN

Copyright © 2011 Marshall Cavendish Corporation Published by Marshall Cavendish Benchmark An imprint of Marshall Cavendish Corporation All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Request for permission should be addressed to the Publisher, Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 99 White Plains Road, Tarrytown, NY 10591. Tel: (914) 332-8888, fax: (914) 332-1888. Website: www.marshallcavendish.us This publication represents the opinions and views of the author based on Christine Petersen’s personal experience, knowledge, and research. The information in this book serves as a general guide only. The author and publisher have used their best efforts in preparing this book and disclaim liability rising directly and indirectly from the use and application of this book. Other Marshall Cavendish Offices: Marshall Cavendish International (Asia) Private Limited, 1 New Industrial Road, Singapore 536196 • Marshall Cavendish International (Thailand) Co Ltd. 253 Asoke, 12th Flr, Sukhumvit 21 Road, Klongtoey Nua, Wattana, Bangkok 10110, Thailand • Marshall Cavendish (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Times Subang, Lot 46, Subang Hi-Tech Industrial Park, Batu Tiga, 40000 Shah Alam, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia Marshall Cavendish is a trademark of Times Publishing Limited All websites were available and accurate when this book was sent to press. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Petersen, Christine. Controlling Earth’s pollutants / by Christine Petersen. p. cm. (Environment at risk) Includes bibliographical references and index. Summary: “Provides comprehensive information on pollution, the interrelationships of the natural world, environmental problems both natural and man-made, the relative risks associated with these problems, and solutions for resolving and/or preventing them”—Provided by publisher. ISBN 978-1-60870-308-1 1. Pollution Juvenile literature. I. Title. TD176.P46 2010 333.73—dc22 2008030816 Editor: Christine Florie Publisher: Michelle Bisson Art Director: Anahid Hamparian Series Designer: Sonia Chaghatzbanian Expert Reader: Dr. Hugo A. Loaiciga, Professor, Department of Geography, University of California at Santa Barbara Photo research by Marybeth Kavanagh Cover photo by UNEP/Vladimir Akimov/Topham/The Image Works The photographs in this book are used by permission and through the courtesy of: Agefoto: Datacraft, 2; Nils-Johan Norenlind/Nordic Photo, 64; Getty Images: Peter V. Bianchi/National Geographic, 6; Robert Reiff/Taxi, 21; David Woodfall/Stone, 35; David McNew, 61; Corbis: Kreisarchaeologie Konstanz/epa, 8; Ted Spiegel, 15; Bettmann, 30; Kurt Rogers/San Francisco Chronicle, 48; The Granger Collection: 13; Photo Researchers, Inc.: Publiphoto, 22; SPL, 31; Sally Bensusen, 69; Michael Gilbert, 70; NASA, 79; The Image Works: DPA, 24; Mitch Wojnarowicz, 37; Jim West, 44; RIA Novosti/Topham, 49; SuperStock: 75; agefoto, 26, 76; Michael Rutherford, 74; Phototake: BSIP, 41 Printed in Malaysia (T) 135642

Contents One

A Timeline of Pollution 7

Two

Mystery Pollution 19

Three

The Original Pollutants 28

Four

Water Worries 46

Five

Something in the Air 66

Notes 82 Further Information 104 Bibliography 106 Index 108

One

A Timeline of Pollution Many people have never heard of the Colorado Plateau, though it sprawls across much of the southwestern United States. Some call this 75,300-square-mile (195,000-squarekilometer) region the Four Corners, because it encompasses four states—New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Colorado—with borders that meet like a cross. Once part of a great shallow sea, today the Colorado Plateau is a lush landscape that supports many diverse habitats and species. Demands on this land are increasing. It is needed for ranching, logging, recreation, and roads along which to set up electrical lines, as well as for its supplies of oil, natural gas, and minerals. For now this remains one of the most undeveloped regions in the United States. The echoing call of a canyon wren can lead you across its mesas, into woodlands, and down arroyos, to find secrets of human history. Arizona’s Mesa Verde is among the grandest of these hidden ruins, containing more than The cliff dwellers in Arizona’s Mesa Verde left behind glimpses of their lives through the trash they accumulated over many centuries. 7

six hundred “apartments” that are built against sheer sandstone cliffs and perched atop the mesa. Intrepid explorers have found similar ruins throughout the region. For 2,500 years the Anasazi people thrived in these villages. The remains of mudbrick houses, wooden ladders, and rock art give insight into their lives. But a closer look reveals something that may not make it into the history books. Small, dried corncobs, animal bones, and bits of broken pottery are often hidden in corners or found in piles outside the villages. These weren’t sacrifices to the Anasazi gods. They are pieces of trash that have been preserved in the dry desert climate for more than seven hundred years. Archaeologists have uncovered ancient trash sites around the world. Two thousand years ago the Greek civilization dominated the region around the Aegean and northeastern Mediterranean seas. A few outposts were set up as far away as Egypt. In one, called Oxyrhynchus, a trash dump was created outside the city. It eventually reached a height of 30 feet

These artifacts—flint stone tools, broken stone hatchets, and animal bones—date back to the fifth millennium BCE. They were discovered in an ancient trash pit in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. 8

A Timeline of Pollution (9 meters). When scientists discovered this site more than a century ago, they uncovered countless bits and pieces of scrolls—the contents of an ancient library. Although almost unreadable when they were discovered, these papers have been deciphered using new technology. They include stories written in many languages, text of the New Testament, and writings by famous ancient philosophers and poets. A much older site in France contains animal bones and more than a million broken stone tools. These were left by hunter-gatherers during the last ice age, approximately 18,000 years ago. Pollution Goes Global Pollution is the introduction of any substance that contaminates air, water, soil, or living things. It was once a local phenomenon, such as the small piles of trash made by ice age people, the ancient Greeks, and the Anasazi. But as human populations increased and cultures became more complex, the environmental impact of pollution grew. Ancient evidence of pollution’s effects can be found in Rome. In a feat of sophisticated engineering, a series of elevated aqueducts and underground tunnels was constructed to deliver water to ancient Rome’s many buildings. Branched channels provided more than 100 million gallons (378.5 million liters) each day to different parts of the city for drinking, cooking, and bathing. Maps reveal that Rome is fed by a large river, the Tiber, so why was more water required? Roman citizens had long used the Tiber as a dumping place for their sewage. Raw sewage includes untreated human bodily wastes, often combined with food scraps and other liquid trash. The stink of raw sewage is not the only reason to avoid it: it may also carry pathogens (disease-causing organisms) such as typhoid and cholera. Due to their careless treatment of the Tiber River, the ancient Romans had no clean water in their own backyards. Beginning in 510 BCE and for more than a thousand years thereafter, the Romans held lands across much of Europe and around the Mediterranean Sea. They sought metals such as iron, copper, tin, lead, gold, and silver. Some of these metals were valuable; others were used to make items both for war 9

and for everyday life. The smelting process was much the same as the one we use today: ore is superheated in furnaces to separate metals from the rock. Nonmetal components of the ore cool into glassy blocks called slag. Though the ancient Romans may not have known this, slag typically contains high levels of toxic materials, including lead and arsenic. In adults lead poisoning can damage the nervous system and kidneys. Children are particularly vulnerable to lead’s effects, which include learning disabilities and anemia (a condition in which the blood produces too few red blood cells, resulting in weakness). Arsenic poisoning can cause the body’s organs to shut down; long-term exposure even at low levels, may cause cancer. At ancient Roman mining sites, such as Plasenzuela, in Spain’s Cáceres Province, slag dumps are still highly polluted after two thousand years. The soils at Plasenzuela contain five hundred times more lead than soils outside the mined area; zinc and arsenic levels are also elevated. Lead has also been found in riverbed sediments from the Río Tamuja, which flows near Plasenzuela. The ancient Romans may also be responsible for creating the first form of global pollution. In addition to highly toxic slag, metal smelting produces airborne lead. This can be carried on the wind and deposited on distant soil surfaces. In the 1990s researchers collected ice cores from Greenland. This is the world’s largest island, located in the northern Atlantic. Greenland’s ice sheets are laid down in consecutive layers over time, one on top of another (much as rock layers are formed). By taking samples vertically through the ice, scientists can see a “timeline” of environmental conditions. Ice cores reveal that from 500 BCE to 300 CE, Greenland was exposed to a shower of lead particles that was four times higher than natural levels. These particles were transported by the wind from Roman smelting sites around the Mediterranean. King Coal After conquering Britannia (England) in 43 CE, the Romans began to make use of a substance they found in local rocks. Romans often used the shiny black mineral to make jewelry. 10

A Timeline of Pollution They also discovered a property of this mineral that the Britons had not—it burned well, providing a good source of heat. The mineral was coal. Residents of northeastern China had already discovered the properties of coal and had begun to use it as a fuel by 300 BCE. In most places wood remained the fuel of choice. It could be burned directly or made into charcoal, which is easier to store (or carry) and burns at a higher temperature than regular wood. British landowners and the Roman Catholic Church did not begin mining coal until the twelfth century. Burning coal made such acrid, thick smoke that in 1306, King Edward I banned its use. This may be the world’s first pollutioncontrol law, though it had little effect. Coal was cheap and easy to obtain, and by the mid-1600s, there was no other option. Forests on the once-lush British Isles were reduced to small patches, and coal was the only viable replacement fuel to meet the needs of Britain’s rapidly expanding population. Few could have foreseen how the adoption of this fuel would impact society. Coal’s low cost encouraged the development of new technologies. The steam engine was the first and most influential of these. In 1776 steam engines were first used to pump water in British coal mines and to blow air through iron-smelting furnaces. The Industrial Revolution was underway. The Legacy of the Revolution The Industrial Revolution led to amazing changes. Coal brought a source of heat to individual homes, to steam engines, and eventually to large power plants. It continues to be the fuel of choice, providing more than half of the electricity made in the United States. Advances in agriculture included improved farm machinery and irrigation techniques, as well as the invention of chemical fertilizers and pesticides that made fields more productive. Transportation was the next sector to experience great change. Prior to 1900 cars had been luxury items. As companies began to successfully drill for petroleum (crude oil) in the United States, cars became common means of transportation for average citizens. 11

Steam Engines Change the World The steam engine proved to be more than a machine; it was a catalyst for change. Not long after its invention, coal-powered steam engines were used to run factory machines, ships, and locomotives in many parts of the world. This brought about improvements in manufacturing, agriculture, transportation, science, and more. It also resulted in a dramatic increase in the human population. In 1825 one billion humans inhabited the planet. During the next two centuries population growth doubled at ever-shorter intervals. Scientists refer to this as exponential growth, and it is common among populations that have access to plenty of food and other resources. By 2008 the world’s population had reached more than 6.6 billion.

The most recent developments made possible by oil came in the fields of chemistry and electronics, including improved medicine and communications systems. Petroleum played an important role in all of these developments. In addition to its role as a fuel and lubricant, components of crude oil are used to make many common products, from plastics and synthetic fabrics to fertilizers, medicines, and food additives. These advances have come at a price. Today, natural resources (water, minerals, trees, fossil fuels, etc.) are consumed faster than they can be replaced. There is a huge demand for energy, and our wastes are voluminous. In 2007 the Blacksmith 12

A Timeline of Pollution

A working coal mine in the English countryside is powered by the Watts steam engine.

Institute identified ten of the world’s most polluted sites, based on their effects on human health. These sites are spread across four continents and directly affect the health of more than 12 million people by polluting air, water, or soil. The primary sources are mining, industry, and pollution left over from the cold war (mid-1940s to early 1990s). The United States does not appear on this list, but it has not escaped the damage of pollution. Here are a few statistics that have made news in recent years. • The “National Water Quality Inventory,” published by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), compiles water-quality data for all U.S. states, tribes, and jurisdictions. The most recent survey of U.S. waters took place in 2002. More than one-third of lakes, rivers, and bays monitored in this survey were listed as “impaired”—unsafe for some designated use, such as drinking water, wildlife habitat, fishing, swimming, agriculture, industry, or navigation. • According to the EPA, more than 251 million tons (227.7 million metric tons) of municipal solid waste—some of it 13

toxic—went to landfills, incinerators, or recycling centers in 2006. Landfills and incinerators contribute pollution to soil, water, and air. Even recycling requires the use of energy (often derived from fossil fuels) and can produce polluting chemicals. • The use of renewable energies from such sources as wind, the sun, and Earth’s internal heat, as well as the development of hybrid and alternative-fuel cars, has advanced over the past decade. Still, the United States obtains 85 percent of its energy from fossil fuels. The U.S. Department of Energy reports that this nation is responsible for 25 percent of all man-made carbon dioxide pollution that enters the atmosphere each year. Increasing CO2 emissions are believed to contribute to global climate change. If an unhealthy environment does not encourage us to curb pollution, our own bodies can offer evidence that it’s time to act. In its 2007 annual report on air pollution, “State of the Air,” the American Lung Association reported that 46 percent of Americans were at risk of lung or heart disease due to high levels of ozone and particulate matter in the air. Ozone is made when chemicals produced by combustion (especially of fossil fuels) react with sunlight. It is harmful to the heart and lungs. Particulates may be microscopic pieces of dust, sand, soil, soot, or chemicals in liquid droplets. These particulates have been implicated in lung and heart disease, stroke, and cancer. People with asthma or pre-existing lung diseases are particularly vulnerable to ozone and particulate pollution. In 2006 a National Geographic author underwent blood tests to determine the levels of 320 common chemicals in his body. Some of these chemicals are known to cause health damage, while the long-term effects of others are still being studied. More than half of these chemicals were found in the author’s blood. They included heavy metals, pesticides, and other chemicals that people—even those living in remote locations on the planet—are exposed to through air, 14

A Timeline of Pollution

An early morning layer of ozone shrouds the Los Angeles skyline, causing a pollution alert day for the area. 15

NIMBYism and Environmental Justice NIMBY is an acronym for “Not In My Back Yard.” It became a common term in the 1980s, when citizens began to complain about having hazardous waste facilities, factories, and sewage-treatment plants built in their neighborhoods. To quiet protesters, these sites were often relocated—near low-income communities. Although it can be difficult to prove the relationship between pollution and disease, these communities appear to be at higher risk. In 1992 the U.S. EPA published a report explaining its new approach for preventing such inequity. A low-income community which is surrounded by multiple sources of air pollution, waste treatment facilities and landfills and which has lead-based paint in the residences is clearly a community that faces potential environmental risks. A racial or cultural group whose children commonly have harmful levels of lead in their blood is also living with a greater environmental risk. In addition, as a result of factors affecting health status, such communities may be more likely than the general population to experience disease or death due to a given level of exposure. On February 11, 1994, President Bill Clinton signed Executive Order 12898, which stated:

To the greatest extent practicable and permitted by law . . . each Federal agency shall make achieving environmental justice part of its mission by identifying and addressing, as appropriate, disproportionately high and adverse human health or environmental effects of its programs, policies, and activities on minority populations and low-income populations in the United States. Despite this clear goal, it has proven difficult to clean up American “backyards.” In response, Senator Barack Obama introduced the Healthy Communities Act of 2007 to the U.S. Senate. Although the legislation did not pass, it provided an important reminder: Research has shown that three of every five individuals of African-American or Latino background live in communities with one or more toxic waste sites. More than 15,000,000 African-Americans, more than 8,000,000 Hispanics, and about 50 percent of Asian and Pacific Islanders and Native Americans are living in communities with one or more abandoned or uncontrolled toxic waste sites. These statistics make a clear statement. Environmental justice demands that polluting facilities not be “dumped” on particular populations. Each community must also be given a chance to participate in decision making that affects the health of its citizens.

food, water, and even mothers’ milk. In the United States more than 82,000 different chemicals are currently in use. Twenty-five percent of them have never been evaluated for their potential health effects. Few people would choose to turn back the clock and stop the Industrial Revolution from taking place. The past two centuries have brought many positive developments to our world. The challenge for twenty-first-century scientists and citizens is to use these advancements in a way that heals the planet’s past damage and prevents more pollution from being created.

18

Two

Mystery Pollution If a list were compiled of the world’s most magically beautiful places, Hawaii’s Kealakekua Bay would surely receive a high rank. Gray lava cliffs blanketed in emerald green vegetation plunge into the sea. Snorkelers and kayakers can gaze into a brilliant underwater world, where multicolored fish and sea turtles swim among coral reefs and dolphins cavort in the waves. To visitors the bay may seem almost like paradise on Earth—except for the gray haze that often hangs over the area. Many people who live here complain of wheezing, coughing, runny noses, headaches, and skin irritations. Air-quality tests reveal the cause: a high level of sulfur dioxide (SO2) in the lower atmosphere. SO2 is acidic. When the gas reacts with water particles, oxygen, and dust in the air, and then with sunlight, it undergoes a chemical reaction. The resulting mistlike aerosol contains a variety of sulfur products that irritate the eyes, sinuses, and lungs. Long-term exposure may lead to lung diseases such as bronchitis, asthma, and emphysema. Located half a world away from Hawaii, the Skeleton Coast of Namibia has its own dramatic beauty. The tall dunes of the Namib Desert roll into the sea, meeting the startlingly cold, green waters of the Atlantic Ocean. Huge colonies of seals lounge on the sand. Hyenas, lions, and even elephants have 19

been known to wander the coastline in search of food. The region is named for the shipwrecks and bleached whalebones that litter its beaches, but they are not its only casualties. Periodically, seawater off the Skeleton Coast turns milky and the air fills with the smell of rotting eggs. The local people begin to experience headaches, and they know that great numbers of dead fish will soon wash up in the waves. The plume of cloudy, blue-white water may cover 7,700 square miles (20,000 sq km) and can persist for weeks. Havana, Cuba. The Florida Keys. Padre Island, Texas. Campeche, Mexico. These are just a few locations along the Gulf of Mexico that attract millions of visitors each year to sunbathe, surf, snorkel, and fish. Actually a sea with an area of approximately 600,000 square miles (1.5 million sq km), the Gulf of Mexico supports a wide range of natural habitats and species. From its shallow tidal marshes, eelgrass beds, and sunlit reefs to the muddy seafloor at depths of 12,300 feet (3,750 m), the gulf teems with life. More than two-thirds of the shrimp and oysters sold in the United States come from Gulf of Mexico waters, as does approximately 16 percent of the commercial fish eaten in the nation. It’s also an important reserve of fossil fuels, providing roughly 20 percent of the U.S. supply of natural gas and 30 percent of its crude oil (petroleum). Since the early 1990s scientists have studied satellite photos that reveal patches of floating oil in the gulf. More than 42 million gallons (159 million L)—the equivalent of 140,000 barrels—may leak into the gulf each year from dozens of different sources. Who’s to Blame? Pollution makes the news every day, and it is usually associated with human activities. It may therefore come as a surprise that no vehicles, factories, man-made chemicals, or careless humans are responsible for the cases of pollution described above. They are all the results of natural events. Scientists have a special name for the smoky air on the island of Hawaii: vog. Kealakekua Bay’s vog comes from sulfur dioxide gases emitted by Mount Kilauea, on the southeastern side of the island. Kilauea began to erupt in 1983 and has continued to 20

Mystery Pollution

Nature contributes to pollution in several ways. One example is through sulfur dioxide and other gases emitted by Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano.

produce steady streams of lava and gases, including an average of 2,000 tons (1,800 metric tons) of sulfur dioxide per day. In addition to health hazards, vog has been blamed for damage to some crops on the island. Conditions along the Skeleton Coast are caused by another noxious gas. Periodically, rapid population increases occur among plankton (small, floating organisms) in these rich ocean waters. Dead plankton drift to the seafloor, where bacteria in the oozy mud decompose them. Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas is a waste product created during this process. H2S is poisonous to fish; it affects their gills’ ability to collect oxygen. This gas can also undergo a chemical reaction in which its three atoms separate. The elemental sulfur rises to the surface, producing the rotten-egg smell. The hydrogen atoms bond with oxygen, forming water molecules. The rapid removal of oxygen from the water creates a hypoxic zone, where there is little oxygen available for use by fish and other organisms. Marine life is damaged as the hypoxic zone drifts along the coast, pushed by surface winds and currents. 21

Crude oil naturally occurs in rocks that form the Gulf of Mexico seafloor. Oil seeps slowly from cracks in these rocks. Some floats up, forming extremely thin slicks on the surface. This oil has a minor environmental impact because the gulf is so large and because bacteria in the sunlit surface waters often consume it quickly. Studies suggest that individual oil particles typically remain in the water for less than a day. Much of the seeped oil never leaves the seafloor. Populations of bottom-dwelling bacteria can use oil as a source of food. They make H2S as a waste product, causing hypoxic zones in the deepwater environment. Oil also contains toxic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which animals may absorb through their gills and other tissues. Poisoning from PAHs, H2S, and hypoxia tends to reduce the diversity of species around seeps. Natural Pollution Evidence exists of natural pollution from far back in Earth’s history. One dramatic example can be found in the fossil record from 65 million years ago, at the end of what

An extremely early form of natural pollution occurred 65 million years ago when a meteorite collided with Earth, creating ash and debris that blocked the Sun’s rays, causing the extinction of living things. 22

Mystery Pollution geologists call the Cretaceous Period. At that time at least 60 percent of all species on land and in the oceans went extinct. The dinosaurs are the most familiar group of animals that was lost. There are a number of good hypotheses that explain this extinction event. Several of them suggest air pollution played a role. Rocks from that time period contain evidence of massive, long-term volcanic eruptions as well as materials thrown up after an asteroid impact. (A large impact crater is located at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, near the Yucatán Peninsula.) Ash and debris created by either of these events would have been carried by the wind far from their point of origin. Dense clouds of such particles could have blocked sunlight and caused the planet’s climate to cool. Over time a mass extinction would have resulted. Catastrophes are unpredictable, but some types of natural pollution are all around us. Allergens are sometimes called biological pollutants. They include pollen, molds, mildew, dust mites, and animal dander and saliva. Every year biological pollutants have significant health impacts on humans around the world. Physicians report that one in five people in the United States is affected by allergies, making allergies one of the most common chronic (long-term) health conditions. Twenty million Americans have asthma, and biological pollutants are primary triggers for their symptoms. Additional studies conducted in the United States and Canada suggest that at least 30 to 50 percent of buildings are too moist, which promotes the growth of biopollutants. A less familiar natural pollutant is radon. Radon is one of a series of elements formed during the decay of uranium-238, a highly radioactive chemical distributed throughout many of the rocks in Earth’s crust. Because it is a gas, radon can move easily through the environment. After rising up through the soil, it penetrates buildings through cracks. Radon then diffuses through rooms or is moved by air currents—but there is no color, smell, or taste to suggest its presence. Radon is inert (chemically inactive), so it’s harmless. The real concern is that radon has a half-life of less than four days. The products of 23

A Wave of Disaster

Natural disasters—including tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, landslides, wildfires, and more— occur somewhere on the planet every year. These can quickly pollute air, water, or soil. In December 2004 an exceptionally strong earthquake, measuring 9.1 on the Richter scale, took place on the floor of the Indian Ocean. The energy of the earthquake created a series of tsunamis, or tidal waves, in the water that moved east and west until they struck the coasts of Indonesia and India. On the island of Sumatra, closest to the earthquake’s epicenter, waves rushed inland as far as 3 miles (5 km). Hundreds of thousands of people were killed. Local rivers, lakes, and wells were tainted by exposure to salt water. Broken sewer and factory pipes added wastes and chemicals to the water.

Survivors faced thirst, poisoning, and diseases carried in the water. Relief workers from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) identified E. coli bacteria in 90 percent of drinking water samples from the sites they visited in Indonesia. E. coli is found in human and animal feces. It is an indicator of sewage pollution and is often accompanied by other even more harmful pathogens (bacteria or viruses). UNICEF also learned that people had no place to wash up after going to the bathroom. Poor hygiene is the greatest risk factor for the spread of waterborne diseases. Similar challenges existed after a magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck the Sichuan Province of China in May 2008, killing tens of thousands of people and leaving more than 5 million people homeless.

Biological pollutants, such as pollen, dust, and mold, cause asthma and other upper respiratory conditions.

its rapid decay are polonium and lead, both of which are hazardous. In the United States only tobacco smoke and asbestos present a greater risk for causing lung cancer than radon. The EPA estimates that 7 percent of American homes may have unsafe radon levels. Perspectives on Pollution There are countless sources of natural pollution. Every year, wildfires in the United States contribute approximately 320 million tons (290 million metric tons) of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Volcanoes add more of this gas, at the rate of about 255 million tons (230 million metric tons) a year. Sulfur is emitted from volcanoes and from the surface of open oceans. Methane comes from biological decay (especially in wetlands); it is also produced by livestock and termites and is emitted from the ocean. These pollutants can affect the quality of air, water, and soil and can be harmful to human health. Regardless, scientific evidence clearly points to human activity as the major source 26

Mystery Pollution of every type of pollution. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration summarizes the situation: [In 2007] global levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide, the primary driver of global climate change, increased by 0.6 percent, or 19 billion tons. Additionally methane rose by 27 million tons after nearly a decade with little or no increase. . . . The burning of coal, oil, and gas, known as fossil fuels, is the primary source of increasing carbon dioxide emissions. Earth’s oceans, vegetation, and soils soak up half of these emissions. The rest stays in the air for centuries or longer. The lesson is clear. Any pollution we create today influences the quality of life on Earth long into the future.

27

Three

The Original Pollutants In nature, wastes are consumed by scavengers and broken down by decomposers. As long as the waste is not excessive, these organisms can maintain equilibrium by returning the elements of life—carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and others—to the environment, where they are used again. For hundreds of thousands of years humans and our ancestral species lived within this balance. This was possible because our population was small. Imagine one midsize American metropolitan area (a city plus its suburbs), such as Atlanta or San Francisco—each of which contains about 4 million people— spread across all the continents. People took what they needed from the local environment and left behind a moderate amount of waste that was naturally recycled. Living and Dying with Waste About ten thousand years ago, humans began to discover the benefits of agriculture. Instead of living in small groups and wandering in search of food, some cultures began to settle down. They found that cultivating crops and raising livestock could provide most of their food. Several cultures arose from 28

The Original Pollutants these early farming communities in Egypt, Mesopotamia, China, Mesoamerica (now southern Mexico), the Andes Mountains of South America, and the Indus Valley (India/Pakistan). These highly organized civilizations maintained careful control over natural resources, such as water, soil, and minerals. As these populations grew, the volume of trash and sanitary sewage (human waste) they made began to overwhelm the environment’s natural cleanup systems. Over the centuries a few cultures devised solutions. Hundreds of years ago both the Chinese and the Aztecs established well-organized systems for collecting and removing sanitary sewage, which was used on farms as fertilizer. Recognizing that waste could foul sources of water, in 1388 the English Parliament made it an offense punishable by hanging to dispose of sanitary sewage, trash, or dead animals in a river. Yet most people continued to deal with trash and sanitary sewage as the Romans and other cultures had: by dumping them into city streets or waterways. In the mid-1800s some cities began to build sewer systems and to collect trash. Sewers piped sanitary wastes away from cities, which improved urban conditions somewhat—but it intensified the problem of water pollution by flushing sewage directly into local rivers and lakes. The first dumps were no great solution, either. Rarely more than holes into which trash was heaped, they tended to be smelly and attracted flies, rats, and other pests that can carry disease. Two devastating diseases, bubonic plague (sometimes called the black plague) and cholera, demonstrate the dangers of pollution from human waste and trash. In 1348 cases of bubonic plague began to appear in Europe. During the fourteenth century the plague recurred in several waves throughout Europe, killing millions of people. At the time people believed that a miasma—smelly “bad air” that comes from decomposing matter—caused many diseases. Disease was also attributed to moral pollution (being very sinful): the illness was considered a punishment from God. We now know that the source was rats, which stowed away aboard ships that traveled from Asia to Europe. These rats carried fleas that had plague-causing bacteria in their blood. Rats spread into the 29

This 1888 woodcut depicts garbage removal in New York City at that time.

cities, where unsanitary conditions allowed them to thrive. A fleabite transmitted the plague into human blood. Cholera and other waterborne diseases struck Europe and the United States in the 1800s. This health crisis demanded the attention of physicians and scientists, who slowly began to make a connection between wastes and disease. One theory suggested that disease was spread by small particles in the environment called germs. A London physician named John Snow supported this idea. In 1848 he realized that cholera was transmitted through sanitary waste that polluted drinking water. Several years later Snow wrote of this problem: As soon as I became acquainted with the situation and extent of the late outbreak of cholera in Broadstreet, Golden Square, and the adjoining street, I suspected some contamination of the water. . . . On proceeding to the spot, I found that nearly all the 30

The Original Pollutants deaths had taken place within a short distance of the pump. . . . The pump-well in Broad Street is from 28 to 30 feet in depth, and the sewer, which passes a few yards from it, is 22 feet below the surface. This sewer proceeds from Marshall-street, where some cases of cholera had occurred before the great outbreak. Snow suggested that sewage leaked into the water supply and that some germ in the sewage was responsible for causing cholera. Anyone who drank the contaminated water would sicken and die.

This illustration was created after Dr. John Snow linked a cholera outbreak in London to a pump contaminated by a sewer pipe running nearby. 31

An Italian physician named Filippo Pacini first observed the cholera bacterium through a microscope in 1854. Despite his evidence and Snow’s, most scientists found it hard to accept that such small organisms or particles could cause disease. In the 1860s, shortly after John Snow’s death, Louis Pasteur proved that microscopic organisms are present in the environment and will grow (increase their population size) if given a food source. Thirty years later the German doctor Robert Koch studied the bodies of people in India who had died of cholera. Unaware of Pacini’s earlier discovery, he found a distinctive type of bacterial cell in the feces of cholera victims. He identified it as the source of cholera, but his work was also met with resistance. Opinions slowly began to change as evidence mounted. By the early 1900s many cities had built drinking-water treatment plants to reduce the risk of waterborne diseases. Sand was the first material used to remove pollutants. It filters a variety of large organic particles, on which pathogens often cluster. A disinfectant is required to kill small particles and free-floating pathogens. In 1908 the Jersey City, New Jersey, water-treatment plant pioneered the use of chlorine. Six years later the U.S. Public Health Service passed the nation’s first water-quality regulations. These paved the way for more extensive legislation: the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1972 and the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) of 1974. The SDWA was initially passed with the goal of providing safe drinking water at faucets. In 1996 amendments to the SWDA required that drinking water sources—lakes, rivers, wells, and others— also be protected from contamination. The CWA supports this goal by controlling sources of pollution that enter water and regulating wastewater treatment. Thanks to water treatment, cholera and many waterborne diseases are now virtually nonexistent in the United States. The spread of bubonic plague quickly came under control after cities began building sanitary landfills where solid waste could decompose in enclosed, underground compartments. Isolated cases occur in the Southwest and in California because of contact with fleas that have fed on infected wild rodents. Unfortunately, cholera is common—along with other 32

The Original Pollutants waterborne diseases and bubonic plague—in parts of the world where effective water-treatment and sanitation measures are still unavailable. Diarrheal diseases are caused by a variety of waterborne pathogens; they result in the deaths of approximately 2.2 million people each year. More than three thousand cases of the plague are also reported every year, on four continents. More and More Waste has given us intriguing information about ancient cultures. Similarly, future archaeologists will be able to learn about our way of life by studying our landfills. Their first impression may be that we had a real passion for stuff. According to the EPA, the United States has 1,654 landfills. This number has declined from a high of almost 8,000 in 1988. Since that time the trend has been to use fewer landfills but to make them much larger. In 2005 more than 54 percent of the nation’s trash went into landfills. The remainder was recycled or incinerated (burned). (See chart below.) Municipal Solid Waste Disposal, 2006

RECYCLING 32.5% INCINERATION 12.5%

LANDFILLS 55%

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 33

Experts have a formal name for the trash made in homes, schools, restaurants, and businesses: municipal solid waste (MSW). (Municipal refers to cities and towns with their own governments.) The U.S. EPA describes MSW in this way: MSW . . . consists of everyday items such as product packaging, grass clippings, furniture, clothing, bottles, food scraps, newspapers, appliances, and batteries. Not included are materials that also may be disposed in landfills but are not generally considered MSW, such as construction and demolition debris, municipal wastewater treatment sludge, and nonhazardous industrial wastes. Population size has a noticeable impact on waste and pollution. In the period from 1960 to 2000, the U.S. population increased by more than 36 percent. Over this same period each person’s daily production of waste increased by 58 percent. In 2006 Americans produced an average of 4.6 pounds (2.1 kilograms) of solid waste per day. Although this number has not changed significantly since 1990, the United States is struggling to deal with all of its trash. This isn’t for lack of landfill space; experts on both sides of the environmental debate state that the nation can accommodate the volume of MSW that will be generated in the coming century. The main issue is cost. Every state used to have landfills close by, so waste was inexpensive to transport. Now, with fewer landfills spread across the nation, some states must ship their waste over long distances. Rising fuel costs add to the burden. It is also expensive to construct landfills that meet modern pollution-prevention criteria. The other side of the problem is not the actual waste in landfills but the habit of wastefulness. The United Nations World Food Programme charges that Americans throw away enough food each year to feed every hungry person on the continent of Africa. A long-term study conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture determined that families typically dispose of 14 percent of their food, while waste in fast-food restaurants reaches 40 percent. It’s true that food and yard 34

The Original Pollutants

As the population increases, so do the volume of waste and pollution. 35

Types of Materials in Landfills by Percentage, 2005 OTHER 2%

YARD WASTES 13%

FOOD 12%

DURABLE GOODS

(appliances, furniture, plastics, etc.)

16%

CONTAINERS/ PACKAGING 31%

NONDURABLE GOODS

(paper, clothing, etc.)

26%

Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

wastes are broken down fairly quickly by decomposer organisms. Paper products, which are the most common item found in landfills, are also biodegradable. But many types of solid waste are durable. Archaeologists exploring our landfills in the coming centuries will find barely decayed containers (plastic, aluminum and steel cans, glass, Styrofoam, etc.), toys, tires, electronics, appliances, disposable diapers, cigarette filters, and more. (See chart above.) To combat this problem, every person should visit a landfill. These are different from old-fashioned dumps. Each day trucks haul in tons of MSW, construction and industrial waste, and other unwanted materials. It is piled into open holes called cells. Each cell is lined with clay or plastic. The waste is crushed to reduce its volume, and layers of it are covered in soil. Once full, cells are covered with clay and landscaped. Microorganisms in the landfill begin to do their work, decomposing any organic materials in the cell. Decomposition produces methane gas, which can be pumped out of landfills. It is used to make electricity or is converted 36

The Original Pollutants

Workers at this landfill in Amsterdam, New York, roll a layer of geotextile fabric over a municipal landfill. The goal is to prevent leachate from penetrating the soil. 37

Avoiding the Hazards Many people seem unaware of the risks posed by hazardous wastes. This is made clear when people dispose of two highly toxic items: motor oil and electronics. In the United States 43 million people change their own motor oil. A poll conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Transportation showed that 5 percent of these people put dirty oil down the drain or in the trash. Many are unaware that oil can be recycled or don’t know where to take it. Dirty motor oil is highly polluting: 1 gallon (3.8 L) can contaminate a million gallons (3.8 million L) of water. When recycled, however, old motor oil is precious. It can be cleaned and used as a lubricant or fuel, which reduces the amount of crude oil that must be obtained from the ground. If you change your own oil, the U.S. EPA recommends a four-step process that makes it easy to recycle: 1. Drain the oil into a drip pan to prevent spills. 2. Use a funnel to careful pour oil from the drip pan into a clean, leak-proof bottle. (The bottle should not contain residue of any drinks, foods, or chemicals.) Screw the lid on very tightly to contain the coil in the bottle. Reuse the drip pan; it should not be washed! 3. Don’t mix other vehicle fluids, such as antifreeze, in the same container with oil. 4. Recycle the oil at an authorized station. Many service stations recycle oil.

Electronics also contain extremely valuable parts that can be recycled or reused. Yet 70 to 80 percent of computer monitors, CPUs (central processing units, or desktops), and televisions, along with countless printers, cell phones, and other electronics, are dumped into landfills each year. These electronics contain a multitude of heavy metals and chemicals—including lead, dioxins, and mercury—that pose serious health hazards if they enter the soil or water. Between 2003 and 2007 the EPA’s Plug-In To eCycling effort promoted programs that recycled more than 142 million pounds (64.4 million kg) of electronics. Plug-In partners include cities, states, and dozens of electronics manufacturers and retailers. Because the recycling of electronics is not yet regulated, private companies may send products to Asia and India, where scrap collectors—many of them children—earn a living tearing apart the items in heavily polluted settings. Always recycle your electronics—but avoid further environmental problems by doing it through an official program.

into fuel. If not contained, however, methane is a harmful greenhouse gas that can trap heat in the atmosphere. Landfills produce 34 percent of the methane emitted in the United States. Another harmful product of landfills is leachate. This is a chemical-water stew created from hazardous wastes people often put in the trash, such as motor oil, lead-based paints, fertilizers and pesticides, batteries, electronics, and household cleaners. Leachate can be piped out of cells and treated. This reduces the risk of it leaking out of the landfill. During the water cycle rainwater percolates (filters down) through the soil. It settles in the tiny air spaces in soil and rock, forming groundwater. More than 40 percent of the U.S. population obtains its drinking water from groundwater sources. Leachate also penetrates the soil. The best way to prevent contaminated leachate from entering groundwater is to keep hazardous wastes out of landfills. City and county government websites usually provide information about drop-off centers or special collection events. Wastes in the Water Excess waste has been a global problem for decades, and the oceans have received a lot of the overflow. In the United States the practice of dumping waste into the ocean continued until the public began to notice and hear news about the amount of trash washing up on beaches. The federal Ocean Dumping Act was passed in 1973. According to the U.S. EPA, the goal of this legislation was to monitor “both the transportation of material to be dumped and the dumping itself. Banned entirely are the ocean disposal of radiological, chemical and biological warfare agents and high-level radioactive wastes.” Trash was a nasty part of this waste, but sewage sludge—the leftover products of sewage treatment—made up almost half of the volume. Modern sewage is more than bodily wastes; it also contains rainwater runoff and chemicals poured down drains. Runoff is a source of multiple pollutants: sediments, road salt, motor oil, fertilizers, acids from rain, animal wastes, and anything else that is on the ground. Sewage treatment is designed to remove 40

The Original Pollutants

In an effort to eliminate the illegal dumping of waste into the oceans, the federal Ocean Dumping Act was passed in 1973. However, ocean pollution still occurs. On this beach trash was washed ashore by the tides. 41

organic solids (which promote the growth of oxygen-consuming bacteria if they are not broken down) and disease-causing pathogens. Ideally, it produces water that is safe enough to release into rivers or the ocean, or for use in irrigation. But the leftover sludge contains many toxins, sometimes at high levels. Recognizing these hazards, in 1988 the federal government finally amended the Ocean Dumping Act to ban the dumping of sewage sludge, industrial wastes, and medical wastes. That same year an amendment was made to the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL). Under Annex V of the convention, ships from all nations were banned from dumping garbage in international waters and restricted from doing so near coastlines. More than two decades later, sailors still describe long stretches of sea that are covered in floating plastic trash. These floating dumps contain cigarette lighters, drink bottles, toys, syringes, and many more items. Researchers suggest that there may be 100 million tons (90.7 million metric tons) of plastic trash in the Pacific Ocean. Plastic enters the food chain when birds and marine mammals mistake floating trash for food. When biologists examined dead fulmars (seabirds that usually eat jellyfish and small fish), they found an average of 44 plastic items in their stomachs; one bird had eaten 1,603 pieces. Invertebrate animals such as barnacles and worms also consume tiny pieces of plastic. Marine food webs are based on these small organisms, and their decline could pose an even more serious problem than the deaths of birds and mammals. Reducing Solid Waste Pollution The U.S. EPA established a new solid waste program in 1989. Its goals were as follows (in order of priority): 1. An overall reduction of waste. 2. Use of recycling programs. 3. Incineration of wastes to reduce landfill use and produce energy. Landfilling was considered a last choice. 42

The Original Pollutants Incinerators are an improvement over landfills. They prevent waste from piling up and generate heat that can be used to produce electricity. They also prevent methane emissions. It’s good to consider such alternatives in a time when our main sources of fuel—coal, oil, and natural gas—are costly, limited, and cause many types of pollution. Unfortunately, incineration is also a polluting process. Because the materials in MSW are often toxic, the emissions from incinerators are also unhealthy. Ash is produced at the base of an incinerator and atop its smokestack. The bottom ash is sometimes landfilled, but critics say that it contains too many heavy metals to do so safely: lead, arsenic, mercury, and others that can cause health problems even at very low concentrations. Top ash, from the smokestack, is filtered, but sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, carbon dioxide, dioxins, and furans are in the emissions. CO2 is a greenhouse gas; dioxins and furans build up in body tissues, affecting hormones and potentially causing cancer. Modern incinerators filter dioxins and furans well, but releases of any amount are a concern. To reduce pollution we need to generate less waste. Consumers can exert a lot of influence here. By choosing products with less packaging, we not only create less trash but also send a clear message to manufacturers that excess packaging is unnecessary and unacceptable. We can also select products from companies that show responsible habits. Retailers and manufacturers are beginning to catch on. At the Subaru car factory in Lafayette, Indiana, 97 percent of its scrap metal, paper products, wood, water, and other waste is recycled; the remainder is incinerated to produce energy. Whole Foods Market Inc., a natural grocery chain with stores in three countries, phased out the use of plastic grocery bags on Earth Day, April 22, 2008. In place of the 150 million plastic bags that used to leave its stores each year, Whole Foods now offers recycled paper bags and sells reusable bags. One type is even made from recycled plastic bottles. Governments are also getting on board. Berkeley, California, and Glen Cove, New York, were among the first cities to ban the use of polystyrene containers, in the early 1990s. Polystyrene 43

A protester demonstrates at the Michigan Waste Services plant, which planned to burn medical and low-level radioactive waste in its incinerator. 44

The Original Pollutants is a plastic that is easy to mold, and it holds heat well. It was once widely used to make Styrofoam drink cups and insulated food containers for fast-food restaurants. It decomposes very slowly and also tears easily into small pieces that can harm wildlife. San Francisco and Oakland, California, banned polystyrene containers in 2006. San Francisco has since prohibited the use of plastic grocery bags, while New York City passed a law requiring all large stores to set up plastic bag recycling programs. China and several African and European nations have also established programs or laws to reduce bag waste. As of 2005 more than 8,500 curbside recycling programs had been established across the United States. Some communities offer curbside pickup of food waste as well, and millions of people compost at home and use the resulting rich, fresh soil in their gardens. The “three Rs”—reduce, reuse, recycle— have even caught the attention of artists, designers, builders, and inventors. Contractors have begun to recover old building materials instead of sending them to a landfill. Steel and other metals, wood, stone, and many valuable and beautiful materials can be torn out of old buildings, cleaned up, and built into new structures in exciting ways that save resources. In Europe a new type of garbage disposal is available that not only grinds up organic wastes but also decomposes them to produce methane, which is used to produce electricity. There is an old proverb that warns “Waste not, want not.” Your great-grandparents probably embraced this notion—and it may be time to bring it back into style. If each of us reduces our production of waste by just a small amount, the impact on pollution will be great.

45

Four

Water Worries

In the early morning hours of November 7, 2007, the atmosphere around San Francisco Bay seemed like something out of a Sherlock Holmes mystery. A dense bank of gray-white fog blanketed the region, muffling sounds and concealing the landscape. In the Port of Oakland, on the east side of the bay, several ships were forced to delay their departure due to poor visibility. The crew of the Cosco Busan waited on board for conditions to improve. Repeated fog advisories from the National Weather Service and the U.S. Coast Guard may have seemed redundant as the bow of their ship appeared and disappeared behind the swirling veil of fog. San Francisco Bay is notorious for its natural hazards, including shallow water, sandbars, reefs, islands, tides, currents, and winds; man-made obstacles also endanger large ships. For this reason a local pilot had been hired to navigate the Cosco Busan to the open waters of the Pacific Ocean, 12 miles (19 km) outside the Golden Gate. At approximately 7:45 AM, the pilot declared that the fog had lifted enough to permit departure. The 901-foot (275-m) ship eased out of port and headed toward the Bay Bridge, which crosses the bay between Oakland and San Francisco. The support towers on the west 46

Water Worries side of the bridge are tall and widely spaced, and thousands of ships pass safely between them each year. The Cosco Busan would not be so lucky. As the ship moved into the middle of the bay, fog quickly closed in again. Visibility declined to barely a tenth of a mile (0.16 km)—less than the length of the ship. The pilot continued toward the bridge, using radar as he ordered a turn and increased speed. A warning call came from the U.S. Coast Guard Vessel Traffic Service: the ship was off course. Moments later, one of the massive bridge towers appeared out of the fog, directly in the ship’s path. The pilot turned hard to starboard (right), averting a head-on collision. But it was too late to alter the Cosco Busan’s course completely. Its port (left) side scraped along the base of the tower, ripping off pieces of the concrete, wood, and plastic bumper. The impact peeled back a long section of the ship’s metal hull, exposing a cluster of tanks that lay beneath. Three of these, punctured by the impact, began to spill their contents into the bay. One tank held harmless ballast water, which gave the ship additional weight. The other two contained heavy fuel oil. At least 53,000 gallons (200,000 L) poured into San Francisco Bay. Almost immediately, powerful tides and currents began to pull plumes of fuel away from the accident site. Within a day the entire 400-square-mile (1,036-sq-km) expanse of the bay was at risk of contamination, as were long stretches of coastline north and south of the Golden Gate. Environmental Effects of Oil Heavy fuel oil is made from the leftover products of the oilrefining process that are combined with lighter oils to dilute them. The resulting fuel is favored by the shipping industry because it is so inexpensive—roughly half the cost per gallon of the gasoline used in cars. Environmentalists believe it’s one of the most polluting forms of fuel. When spilled in water, the components of heavy fuel oil separate. The lightest components form microthin layers that coat the surface. These oil slicks can be transported long distances by tides and currents. 47

Oil drifts southward in San Francisco Bay after the Cosco Busan spilled 53,000 gallons (200,000 liters) there in 2007. 48

Water Worries Denser parts of the fuel congeal around particles in the water, forming sticky tar balls that bob along in the waves or gather on shorelines, where they may sink into sediments. Tar balls also glom onto the feathers of seabirds. Normally, feathers trap air to keep these birds warm and dry. Tar-covered birds freeze to death or are poisoned after they clean tar off their feathers. Crude oil has the same effect and can be devastating for wildlife after an oil tanker spill. In San Francisco, oil cleanup experts scrambled to contain as much of the fuel as possible. Despite their efforts, thirty beaches had to be closed as tides washed up tar that coated the sand. More than 2,500 seabirds died; an additional 400 had to be meticulously cleaned and cared for before they could be released. Though their bodies may never be found, the death toll among birds may actually have been 20,000, including many species that breed in or migrate through the Bay Area’s

Wildlife is threatened when oil is leaked or spilled in their natural habitat. Seabirds are at great risk as the oil sticks to their feathers, resulting in death. 49

Oil on Water One month after the Cosco Busan incident, an even more devastating accident took place off the coast of South Korea. A barge boat that had run off course struck an anchored oil tanker, the Hebei Spirit. Approximately 2.8 million gallons (10.6 million liters) of crude oil spilled into the Yellow Sea. Oil clean-up experts, soldiers, and residents banded together to clean the 12-mile (19-km) stretch of coastline that was initially affected. Thousands of workers and volunteers formed a firemen’s brigade, wading through frigid water to scoop the floating oil into cans and buckets and then passing them along the beach to be removed. But as chocolate-brown waves washed over a beloved vacation beach and adjacent tidepools and fish farms, few held hope that the damage could be corrected. Within weeks oil reached offshore islands, and at least 233 miles (375 km) of shorelines were affected. The barge captains and owners were later charged with crimes related to pollution and negligence of their duties. Analysts have tracked oil spills since 1974. Data from 1999 is often used to represent the average amount of oil that is spilled annually around the world. That year, the total was 32 million gallons (121.1 million L). Ships and oil platforms spill oil into the water, but accidents and equipment failures can also cause it to leak or spill from trucks, trains, pipelines, and petroleum-processing plants. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) gives statistics for the United States: 1.3 million gallons [5 million L] of petroleum are spilled into U.S. waters from vessels and pipelines in a typical year—

a single major spill can double that amount. Petroleum fuels also leak from storage tanks, contaminating groundwater and streams. The U.S. EPA has reported around 200 confirmed releases each week since 2000. Using less oil may help reduce the number or volume of leaks. Given the variety of pollutants associated with fossil fuels, perhaps reducing our use is good advice for many reasons.

rich shoreline habitats. Costs of cleaning up the Cosco Busan spill were estimated to reach more than $60 million. Bacteria can consume some oil after a spill, as they do in the Gulf of Mexico. Oil is also weathered by exposure to waves, wind, and sunlight. But a variety of toxic chemical compounds is released during the breakdown of heavy fuel oil. Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are among the most persistent oil toxins. In 2004, two years after the tanker Prestige spilled 12.4 million gallons (47 million L) of oil off the coast of Spain, gulls still showed PAH levels that were 120 percent higher than those of birds outside the spill zone. This is the result of oil toxins entering the food web. They are first consumed or absorbed by small, floating organisms called plankton and then taken in by filter-feeding species, such as mussels (which collect food in their gills). Larger animals eat these organisms. Eventually, the toxins reach large fish, birds, and other longlived animals, which can accumulate oil toxins in their body tissues over many years. People are also part of these food webs, because we eat a variety of fish and other seafood. High toxin concentrations in our bodies can lead to serious health conditions or death. Because of its tendency to sink into sediments, oil can reemerge years after it is spilled. One of the biggest oil-related accidents in history took place in 1989, when the Exxon Valdez oil tanker spilled 11 million gallons (41.6 million L) into Alaska’s pristine Prince William Sound. Oil remains in that ecosystem, hidden under sands and rocks along the beaches and in the mud of delicate shoreline marshes. Diesel fuel from a 1969 spill in Cape Cod can still be found in marsh sediments around Buzzards Bay in Massachusetts. The decomposition process often stops while oil is hidden in sediments, due to the lack of oxygen. But when disturbed, these hidden deposits may begin to reappear in water and on beaches. Local birds and mammals can be coated as if a new spill has occurred, and concentrations of oil toxins can increase in the water. It’s easy to recognize oil spills as sources of pollution. But experts are learning that most oil pollution happens slowly, in small amounts that can easily go unnoticed. When 52

Water Worries

You Are in a Watershed A watershed is all the land that drains into a particular basin, or low point in a landscape. The basin usually contains a body of water. Watersheds can be viewed at many scales. A single county may house many small watersheds, each draining a separate local wetland, stream, or pond. These are interconnected by the flow of water, forming larger watersheds. The Mississippi River watershed drains more than 40 percent of the United States! Watersheds can cross the political boundaries of cities, states, and even nations. For this reason governments must collaborate to solve environmental problems and to prevent the degradation of this shared resource.

scientists from the State of Washington studied the impact of oil on Puget Sound, near Seattle, the results were surprising. They found that up to 8 million gallons (30 million L) of oil enters the sound each year—almost the amount spilled by the Exxon Valdez. On average, however, only 4 percent of this comes from spills. Most of the oil is spilled during oil changes and leaked by vehicles. This is carried into the water by runoff from paved roads. Gravity pulls runoff downward along land surfaces and deposits it into local wetlands, rivers, lakes, and bays. This land-water connection is called a watershed. The continuous, though sometimes unnoticed, input of oil (and many other pollutants) seems to have consequences for aquatic species that are similar to the 53

consequences of a major spill. Fish in many U.S. waters— the Chesapeake Bay, Puget Sound, and elsewhere—have concentrations of PAHs in their bodies sufficient to cause skin cancer and other diseases in humans. Getting to the Point of Pollution Throughout the twentieth century, pollution accumulated in rivers, lakes, and oceans around the world. In the United States it took a series of near catastrophes during the 1960s and 1970s to draw public attention to the problem. Among the most newsworthy was a sequence of fires that broke out on the surface of Ohio’s Cuyahoga River, which had become thick with chemicals, oil, and sewage. But bad news came from other locations as well. Water from the Potomac River had to undergo extra treatment before it was safe for drinking, sewage pollution in Lake Erie had caused a large hypoxic zone, and many other bodies of water were labeled unhealthy for people or wildlife. These situations led to the passage of increasingly stringent water pollution laws, all based on the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 (FWPCA). The FWPCA had been written to protect the public from pollution. It particularly stressed the treatment of sewage to prevent illness. In 1965, amendments to the FWPCA allowed the federal government to set standards for water quality and goals for upholding them. The most powerful water pollution law was the Clean Water Act (CWA) of 1972. It placed all uses of water—drinking, maintaining aquatic ecosystems, navigation, irrigation, recreation, and more—on equal footing. The CWA defined two distinct categories of water pollution: • Point sources are those that can be easily located in space and time. The Cosco Busan was a point source. Others include factories that release effluents (liquid wastes), animal feeding operations (where large groups of animals are raised indoors), construction sites, mines, and plants that treat sewage or wastewater (water that drains down showers, sinks, etc.). 54

Water Worries • Nonpoint sources are scattered around the watershed and cannot be identified. Runoff is a type of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution. The legislation required states, tribes, and other U.S. jurisdictions to evaluate the bodies of surface water within their boundaries (wetlands, river, lakes, and bays) and to establish water-quality standards for their protection. Standards have three components: (1) designated uses (the uses appropriate for each body of water); (2) water-quality criteria (goals to protect each use); and (3) antidegradation policy (efforts to prevent or reduce water pollution). The CWA focused on point sources, especially from factories and sewage-treatment plants that continuously produce great volumes of effluent. It established the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), which issues permits to point-source polluters. Permit holders must monitor effluents and the water into which they are released, and install technologies that help them meet water-quality standards. The Next Wave of Pollution The CWA’s point-source pollution controls were successful in some ways. Yet water-quality testing conducted in the 1980s continued to show high levels of pollution. Sewage remained a problem, as did such NPS sources as nutrients, sediments, and acids. Nitrogen and phosphorus are called nutrients because organisms require them for life. On farms, nutrients are added to fields to promote plant growth; they are also often present in the feed given to livestock. But excess nutrients in soil and in animal wastes are washed into water that runs off farm fields and animal-feeding operations. Once the run off reaches a body of water, these nutrients encourage the growth of algae and aquatic plants. Bacterial populations decompose these—and in doing so, they deplete oxygen from the water. Nutrients can also come from detergents and fertilizers (including those used on lawns and open spaces such as golf courses). Beginning in the 1990s some 55

The Water Cycle Charles C. Johnson Jr., former assistant surgeon general of the United States (1947–1971), summarized the goals of the FWPCA when he said: Everything that man himself injects into the biosphere—chemical, biological or physical—can ultimately find its way into the earth’s water. And these contaminants must be removed, by nature or by man, before that water is again potable. Three-quarters of the planet’s surface is covered in water, 97 percent of which is stored in the oceans. The remainder is in freshwater sources: frozen into ice sheets and glaciers; as water vapor in the atmosphere; or in liquid form in freshwater lakes, rivers, groundwater, and inside the bodies of living things. Water moves through land, air, and living things in a cycle. It changes state in response to environmental conditions. Liquid water evaporates into the atmosphere, condenses to become clouds, and falls again as precipitation. Some runs off, returning to bodies of water. Animals drink and absorb water, which helps to transport nutrients and wastes, lubricates cells and joints, and more. Water also infiltrates the soil. Plants may collect it near the surface, or it may percolate deep under the surface. Groundwater is returned to the cycle when humans draw it up in wells or at springs (where groundwater-containing rocks are exposed to the surface). Because water is an excellent solvent, chemicals can contaminate it at any of these stages.

Water Worries communities and states began to ban the use of phosphorus in these products. Thanks to such bans, some bodies of water are showing lighter phosphorus loads. Within a few years of banning phosphorus detergents, water in the Chattahoochee River, downstream of Atlanta, Georgia, experienced a 77 percent reduction in phosphorus levels. Over the past few decades runoff rates have increased because there are more impervious surfaces in cities and towns. Water speeds over these surfaces, entering bodies of water very quickly. This causes sediments to erode into streams. In the water, sediment particles block light that plants need for growth. Sediments absorb heat, increasing the water temperature. Fish and some other aquatic species live within very specific ranges of temperature. In addition, warmer water holds less oxygen. This causes many fish species to decline in waters with sediment pollution. Trout and salmon, for example, cannot thrive in waters above 70 degrees Fahrenheit (21 degrees Celsius), and generally prefer much cooler water. Acids are also considered NPS pollution. Acid precipitation occurs when fossil fuels are burned in vehicles and electric power plants. The resulting chemicals—especially sulfur dioxides (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOX)—rise into the atmosphere, where they react with water. They may then fall as precipitation or as dry particles that lower the pH of surface waters. Acids can also drain from mines. Many aquatic organisms are intolerant of acidic pH levels below 5.0. Populations of decomposing bacteria, many fish, and macroinvertebrates (the aquatic larvae of insects and other small invertebrate animals) can begin to die off even before this point. Since the mid-twentieth century all sewage has received primary treatment. This uses filters to remove larger particles. Sewage then sits in tanks, where heavy materials settle to the bottom and oily materials float for easy skimming. The Clean Water Act of 1972 required that larger municipal treatment plants increase the level of treatment. Secondary treatment uses bacteria to decompose organic materials— especially pathogens—in order to remove 95 percent of the 57

Legacies of Pollution There is a long history of paper milling around the Great Lakes. Paper production uses chlorine gas to bleach out wood’s brown color. Bleaches react chemically with the wood and produce dioxins. These are believed to be among the most carcinogenic (cancer-causing) of all chemicals and are also known to disrupt the body’s hormone systems, to cause birth defects, and to impact the nervous system in humans, fish, frogs, and other aquatic animals. Dioxins are released into bodies of water with paper plants’ effluent. Unfortunately, this pollution was not discovered until 1985, when fish populations already showed signs of accumulating dioxins in their bodies. By this time, four of the Great Lakes showed dramatic declines in lake trout and other sensitive fish populations. Chemicals absorbed by female fish were passed on in their eggs. As a result, hatchling fish were never strong enough to reach maturity. It took a decade of cleanup and restocking to see a gradual recovery in these species. Dioxins are also produced when materials are burned, such as in incinerators or electric power plants. After they are released into the air, they can be breathed in or deposited in water. Amendments to the Clean Air Act in the early 1990s required large incinerators to control their emissions. This produced a noticeable decline in airborne dioxins—for a few years. But dioxins are also produced when gasoline and diesel are burned

in vehicle engines. As a result, dioxin concentrations remain at unsafe levels. These chemicals are now so widespread that every human on the planet has some amount in his or her tissues—newborns can even ingest the chemicals through breast milk. Other industrial chemicals can enter groundwater. One example is the category called perfluorocarbons (PFCs). For decades these were manufactured for use in nonstick cookware, firefighting foams, and as water and stain repellants for fabrics. They were taken off the market in 2002, but the damage had already been done. A factory near Saint Paul, Minnesota, provides an example. Effluents were buried instead of being properly disposed of. PFCs gradually collected in the soil and now exceed the EPA’s designated safe levels. Local groundwater has been polluted (though drinking water sources have not), and runoff has carried some sediments down to the Mississippi River. Cleanup costs are estimated at $18 million.

solid materials. Some systems added tertiary (third-level) treatments that remove nutrients or heavy metals or that add pathogen-killing disinfectants, such as chlorine. Unfortunately, this did not entirely resolve sewage pollution. The first problem comes with older-style sewage-treatment systems called combined sewer systems (CSSs). These have two sets of pipes. One set carries sanitary sewage from homes and other buildings directly to the nearest treatment plant. Another set of pipes carries storm water that flows from the streets. Storm water pipes flow into the sanitary sewers. In dry weather or during a gentle rain, runoff trickles into the sanitary sewer lines. Under these conditions all of the combined wastewater receives a minimum of primary treatment. But if there is heavy rainfall, the pipes may become overwhelmed. A set of overflow valves is built into the CSS. These release water to prevent the treatment plant from flooding. Overflow water is discharged, untreated, directly into local bodies of water. A second problem arises when too many homes are connected to the sewer system. This may also cause overflow, resulting in the release of untreated wastewater into the environment. Overflow is a significant source of nutrients, pathogens, sediment, and other pollutants. Newer wastewater treatment systems are called municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s). Sanitary sewage and storm water runoff are transported in completely separate pipe systems. The systems don’t experience overflows, and the sewage component always receives treatment. Until 1987, however, storm water in MS4s was often diverted directly into surface waters. A 1987 amendment to the Clean Water Act required MS4s to receive permits under NPDES as a point source of pollution. Large cities, industries, and construction sites obtained their permits by 1992; smaller sites had to be permitted by 2003. CSSs are unaffected by this amendment. Although the problems with MS4s have largely been taken care of, the risk of CSS overflows remains a serious health concern. Public health officials, scientists, and citizen volunteers must regularly test bodies of water for coliform bacteria. This is the same group of bacteria that is of concern to relief 60

Water Worries workers in disaster areas. If present, coliform bacteria indicate that water has been contaminated by sewage. Every year popular beaches along U.S. coastlines, bays, and Great Lakes are closed to the public for days or weeks due to the presence of fecal coliform bacteria. In 2007 there was a total of 29,023 days during which some U.S. beach either was closed or had a warning posted about unhealthy conditions. Other pathogens that often accompany fecal coliform include those that cause stomach and respiratory illnesses, as well as hepatitis and other very serious viral and bacterial diseases. The Natural Resources Defense Council reports that combined sewer overflows release 850 billion gallons (3.2 trillion L) of sewage into oceans and the Great Lakes every year. Most recently, water-quality experts have become concerned that wastewater contains pharmaceutical drugs, hormones, and other chemicals that are not being filtered out during treatment. In 1999 and 2000 the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted the first national study to determine the presence of ninety-five

Due to a pumping station failure in August 2006, a Los Angeles beach was closed when 30,000 gallons (113,600 L) of raw sewage flowed into the sea. 61

Watch Out for That Fertilizer! Sludge is the semisolid, mudlike material that is left over after wastewater treatment. This material is also referred to as biosolids. According to the USGS: Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the United States generate approximately 7 million dry tons of biosolids each year. Since biosolids are rich in plant nutrients, farmers, landscapers, and homeowners use about 50 percent of the annual production of biosolids as fertilizers for plants. Biosolids must meet standards for nutrient, metal, and pathogen content before they can be used to fertilize plants and to improve the quality of soil. The use of sewage sludge (biosolids) as fertilizer is regulated under the Clean Water Act. Under this law, the U.S. EPA regulates concentrations of certain heavy metals in biosolids, including arsenic, cadmium, copper, lead, mercury, molybdenum, nickel, selenium, and zinc. But studies are beginning to show that biosolids contain a variety of other chemicals, which slip through the wastewater treatment process. In a study similar to the one done previously on streams, scientists tested nine biosolid samples, looking for eighty-seven organic chemicals. Fiftyfive of the chemicals were present in at least one

sample; some samples contained as many as fortyfive different chemicals. Some of the chemicals were very common, occurring in all of the samples. These included antimicrobial disinfectants, fragrances, diphenhydramine (an antihistamine sold over the counter), and carbamazepine (an antiepileptic drug that is also prescribed to treat bipolar disorder and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. In addition to biosolids, wastewater treatment produces effluent (treated water). Effluent is released into local bodies of water or is used for irrigation. The eighty-seven organic chemicals are found at much lower levels in effluents than in biosolids, proving that wastewater treatment successfully removes them. But by applying biosolids as fertilizers to the land, the chemicals may once again return to our water supply—through runoff.

A rain barrel catches rooftop water to be used later for “green” landscaping.

chemical pollutants in water. A total of 139 streams were tested in 30 states. Eighty-two of the chemicals were found. Every stream had at least one drug in it, and 34 percent of streams contained ten or more drugs. The most common were steroids, insect repellants, and caffeine; other chemical groups included fire retardants, detergent by-products, and plastic additives. The health effects of these chemicals on humans and animals are not yet entirely clear. Some have been shown to cause hormonal changes in fish and amphibians, even at very low concentrations. Because there are no official waterquality standards for many of these chemicals, and it is not yet known what effects they may have when mixed together, scientists must monitor them closely. 64

Water Worries Slowing the Flow Today, the main priority of many environmentalists is to stop water pollution before it can occur. To accomplish this, states have begun to implement education programs and bestmanagement practices. Farmers are encouraged to reduce their use of nitrogen- and phosphorus-based fertilizers and feeds. They can reduce runoff by keeping some crop residue (pieces of old plant material) in the fields when planting season is over. Planting trees blocks wind erosion; vegetation planted along the banks of streams collects sediment and absorbs nutrients from runoff. Cities use street sweeping to remove organic materials that would otherwise decay or carry pathogens into the runoff. Settlement ponds are used to remove pollutants from runoff. In these ponds chemicals sink to the bottom before water is discharged into streams and lakes. It’s important for cities and watershed districts to work with building contractors so that construction sites cause less erosion and buildings are designed to use and protect water more effectively. Everyone can learn how to properly dispose of oil, pet wastes, and household hazardous wastes. Other important steps include composting yard and food wastes and avoiding the use of lawn and garden chemicals that enter the air and leak into groundwater. Green landscaping is a popular new way to reduce the impact of impervious surfaces. The possibilities in this area increase yearly. Rain barrels catch water pouring off rooftops for later use in the yard. Permeable pavers replace sidewalks or driveways, allowing runoff to infiltrate the soil. Rain gardens and green rooftops also encourage infiltration, while also providing a touch of beauty. It’s not necessary to completely renovate your home to prevent pollution. Stopping household leaks and reducing water use in showers and other daily activities can be very beneficial. Choosing non-toxic household cleaners and detergents is another inexpensive step that consumers can take. Containing oil spills may be out of our hands, but small, everyday actions such as these allow citizens to play an important role in preventing water pollution. 65

Five

Something in the Air Every day 24 million American children hop

on the school bus. The average round-trip ride, to and from school, is ninety minutes—long enough to get some homework done, listen to about twenty songs on an MP3 player, read several chapters in a good book, or have a deep conversation with friends. If the school bus is an older one, something else is going on during the ride—kids are breathing in a lot of diesel exhaust. In its “School Bus Pollution Report Card 2006,” the Union of Concerned Scientists reports that more than half a million school buses serve U.S. schools, and 95 percent of them run on diesel fuel. Exhaust is released out of the tailpipe and can leak in through the windows. As a result, children are exposed both while riding the bus and while waiting at the bus stop. Diesel exhaust contains a wide variety of air pollutants, including particulate matter and nitrogen oxides that are linked to bronchitis, asthma, and other lung diseases. Other emissions include sulfur dioxide and hydrocarbons that can cause lung disease, carbon dioxide (considered the main culprit in global climate change), and more than three dozen chemicals categorized as hazardous air pollutants (HAPs). The EPA lists 188 chemicals as HAPs because they 66

Something in the Air

Sources of Air Pollution Experts distinguish between two sources of air pollution: mobile and stationary. Mobile sources are vehicles, airplanes, trains, ships, and equipment such as bulldozers, snowmobiles, and lawn mowers. Stationary sources are divided into point and nonpoint subcategories, as in water pollution. Point sources are power plants, factories, waste incineration facilities, manufacturing sites, and other locations that can be located and monitored over time. Some nonpoint sources (NPSs) of air pollution may be traced to a particular location, but their pollution cannot be controlled because it is widespread. These include wildfires and farm fields where fertilizers, pesticides, and other chemicals are used. NPS air pollution also comes from the use of chemicals in homes and buildings.

are “known or suspected to cause cancer or other serious health effects, such as reproductive effects or birth defects, or adverse environmental effects.” Take a Deep Breath Breathing is a natural rhythm of the human body. You might take 24,000 breaths in a day but notice only a few of them. This is because breathing, heartbeat, and blood pressure, is controlled automatically by your brain stem. The brain stem is hidden deep inside the brain. It developed in fish more than 400 million years ago and is present in all vertebrate animals— reptiles, amphibians, birds, and mammals—that evolved from 67

them. You are able to control your breathing consciously, but the brain stem quickly takes over when you forget. (It also forces you to gulp air if you hold your breath for too long.) This function is vital because without air, life ceases within a few minutes. With every normal breath, an adult takes in about 17 ounces (0.5 L) of air. We don’t take deep breaths as often, but these may contain six to eight times as much air. Air passes from the throat into the trachea. Two tubelike structures called bronchi extend from the trachea, one each to the right and left sides of the body, toward the lungs. The bronchi divide further, forming a network of smaller, branching passages that bring air to every part of the lung tissue. The smallest of these passages terminate in balloonlike sacs called alveoli. Tiny capillaries surround each of these. This is where oxygen and other chemicals are absorbed into the bloodstream. Air seems empty, but it is actually like a clear soup that contains a great variety and volume of matter in the form of gases and particles. This “soup”—better known as the atmosphere—extends from Earth’s surface upward for approximately 6,200 miles (10,000 km). The atmosphere occurs in layers, each of which has a different range of temperature, chemical composition, and density. Hovering like a thin skin over the surface of the planet is the troposphere, or the lower atmosphere. On average the troposphere is only 4 to 12 miles (6 to 19 km) thick. Despite this comparative thinness, of all the layers, it contains the greatest density of gases. Nitrogen is the most abundant gas, comprising 78 percent of the air. Oxygen accounts for another 21 percent. The remainder of the troposphere consists of argon, carbon dioxide, and other gases in trace amounts. Above the troposphere are the stratosphere, mesosphere, thermosphere, and exosphere. Gases in these layers are increasingly less dense, and temperatures reach great extremes. Concentrations of water vapor, carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, and nitrous oxide are not high in the troposphere, but they play an extremely important role. Sunlight can shine through them, and it warms the planet. Heat radiates back 68

Something in the Air

This illustration depicts the layers of Earth’s atmosphere. Weather occurs in the troposphere (lower left). The stratosphere (at balloon) is where the ozone layer occurs. Meteor showers occur in the mesosphere. Above that is the Aurora effect (space shuttle). Waves of electromagnetic radiation (right) penetrate the layers.

up into the atmosphere, and these gases trap some of it. A similar effect takes place inside a greenhouse, where glass traps heat inside a room. For this reason these are known as greenhouse gases. Without them the planet’s temperature would be approximately 91 ˚F (33 ˚C) lower. Ozone is another essential, naturally occurring greenhouse gas. In the stratosphere ozone absorbs ultraviolet (UV) radiation that comes from the sun. UV-B radiation (a particular wavelength of ultraviolet radiation) can cause damage to the eyes and immune system, and high exposure leads to skin cancer. The functions and balance of all the atmospheric gases make life possible on Earth. Burn, Baby, Burn Transportation is the primary source of air pollution around the world. Diesel is often described as a cleaner form of fuel than gasoline because it produces very little carbon monoxide, less CO2, and fewer hydrocarbons. The trade-off comes in particulates and nitrogen oxides; diesel emits these in higher 69

This diagram illustrates the greenhouse effect. The buildup of gases in Earth’s atmosphere traps solar radiation and leads to a gradual warming of the planet.

concentrations than gasoline does. All fossil fuels produce similar air pollutants when burned. Combustion in a waste incinerator, factory, fireplace, or other source does the same. Fossil fuels are not the only culprit. Industrial processes, agriculture, and the use of various household products also give off air pollutants. (See Table 1.) Some air pollutants contribute to the formation of particulate matter (PM) and ambient ozone (also known as ground-level ozone, or smog), acid rain, and global climate change. Others have serious health effects. In the stratosphere ozone is beneficial. At ground level it is a pollutant. Researchers at the California Institute of Technology recently confirmed a link between the health effects of ambient ozone and PM. When PM enters the lungs, it lowers the pH of lung fluids. Under these acidic 70

Something in the Air conditions, the lungs can’t break down ozone. Instead, they react with ozone to form a new chemical compound that further irritates lung tissue. Even short-term exposure to ambient ozone (less than twenty-four hours) can cause death in people who are already vulnerable, such as the elderly, children, and those with lung diseases. Indoor Pollution In the past few decades the focus of American life has turned indoors. On average children watch three hours of television a day. Americans and residents of other industrialized regions (such as Canada and the European Union states) spend about 90 percent of their time inside. This puts many people at risk from indoor air pollution. In less developed parts of the world indoor pollution is often present because food must be cooked over open fires indoors or on stoves that do not meet guidelines for pollution control. The World Health Organization estimates that indoor pollution is responsible for diseases that affect 2.7 percent of the global population. Indoor air pollution in the developed world comes from a variety of sources. People often don’t realize how many fossil fuels are burned in the home: in natural gas ovens, wood-burning stoves, oil space heaters, and other equipment. Furniture and cleaning products give off a variety of fumes. Biopollutants are also very common. These include dust; mold from damp carpets, humidifiers, and heating or air-conditioning systems; and others. Asbestos is a product that was once used in insulation; its tiny fibers cause lung irritation and are found in many older houses. Radon (mentioned previously), along with carbon monoxide, is often present. Carbon monoxide is made during the combustion of fossil fuels. Because it is colorless, odorless, and flavorless, residents may have no idea that carbon monoxide is present until they begin to show signs of exposure: dizziness, headache, and nausea. These symptoms result from a lack of oxygen in the blood—and they can be deadly. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an average of 439 deaths in the United States are caused by carbon monoxide poisoning each year. 71

Table 1.

Air Pollutants and Their Sources

Pollutant

Natural Sources

Nitrogen oxides (NOx)

lightning, volcanoes, oceans, biological decay

Hydrocarbons (such as methane)

oceans, decomposition in wetlands, termites

Particulate matter (PM)

volcanoes, dust, forest fires

Sulfur dioxide (SO2)

hot springs and volcanoes, decay of dead plants

Carbon monoxide (CO)

volcanoes, wetlands, forest fires, lightning

Carbon dioxide (CO2)

biological decay, volcanoes, evaporation from oceans

Ambient ozone (O3)

lightning, reactions from naturally produced methane and nitrates

Lead

dust from lead-containing rocks, oceans, forest fires, volcanoes

Mercury

rocks, volcanoes, undersea vents

Something in the Air

Man-made Sources

fossil fuel combustion in vehicles and electric power plants

fossil fuel combustion and evaporation, landfills, livestock

fossil fuel combustion, industrial manufacturing, mining, construction, agriculture fossil fuel combustion in vehicles and electric power plants

fossil fuel combustion in vehicles and homes, industrial manufacturing, burning cigarettes, deforestation fossil fuel combustion, deforestation

forms when NOX and hydrocarbons react with sunlight in the lower atmosphere

metal smelting, plumbing pipes, old paint, batteries

combustion of coal in electric power plants, incinerators

Once source of indoor air pollution is the fumes from aerosol products.

When ventilation (air flow) is poor in a building, pollutant levels can become high. Symptoms of exposure to indoor pollutants can be hard to identify, however, as they often mimic those of viruses. Over the long term some indoor pollutants can cause lung diseases or even cancer. Carbon monoxide monitors should be installed to prevent poisoning from this chemical. Radon tests are available through most state health or pollution-control departments. In order to reduce other pollutants, people must change their habits. Outdoor air can be circulated through buildings by opening windows or turning on fans installed in attics, windows, or air conditioners. Woodstoves, fireplaces, and other sources of combustion must be properly vented. Biological contaminants can be controlled by keeping humidity levels low and cleaning regularly. Chemical cleaning products are a source of pollution, however, and should be chosen wisely. Many of these can be replaced by soap and water, vinegar diluted in water, or borax, all of which are available at most grocery stores. Finally, cigarette smoking should always be discouraged indoors—especially in homes where there are children, elderly people, or people with health conditions. 74

Something in the Air Air Pollution and the Environment Preventing air pollution has become more than a health issue or one that impacts quality of life—it may be a matter of survival. Acid precipitation results when nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide combine with water in the atmosphere. The combustion of fossil fuels—especially coal, which contains a great amount of sulfur—is responsible for a large percentage of acid precipitation. The airborne pollutants can travel over long distances from their sources before falling to the ground through precipitation; clouds can also move many miles before precipitation is released. Acids may also form dry particulates. Either form of deposition—wet or dry—has significant effects on ecosystems and can even degrade stone and metal. Some streams and lakes are better able to resist the effects of acidification because their underlying rocks contain chemicals that act as buffers. Where these buffers are absent, pH changes in water harm aquatic organisms, and soils can be stripped of nutrients. Acids kill leaves, reducing plants’ ability to produce food. The northeastern U.S. states are particularly vulnerable to acidification. In part this is because their soils have little buffering capacity;

Balsam trees in North Carolina reflect the damage from acid rain. 75

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes

One source of carbon monoxide and many other air-polluting chemicals is cigarette smoke. A variety of statistics are worth noting: • Approximately 4,000 chemicals occur in cigarette smoke. At least 250 of these are released in secondhand smoke (smoke from the end of a cigarette and exhaled smoke).

• Some of these chemicals are also used in paint thinners, household cleaners, and pesticides. • Secondhand smoke also contains PAHs, benzene (both produced by fossil fuels), arsenic, formaldehyde, and other toxins. • More than sixty chemicals in smoke are carcinogenic. Cigarette smokers—and the people around them—suffer the consequences of exposure to these pollutants. The National Cancer Institute reports that cigarette smoking causes 30 percent of cancer deaths in the United States, as well as chronic lung diseases and stroke.

more significantly, they are downwind of the midwestern states, where a great amount of electricity is obtained by burning coal. Some of the environmental impacts of pollution are not so obvious. Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) were commonly used in aerosol cans, packaging, insulation, and cooling systems throughout most of the mid-twentieth century. They seemed fairly harmless, presenting no obvious health effects or environmental damage. As scientists became better able to study the atmosphere, however, it became clear that CFCs were doing a great deal of harm. CFC molecules break down when they are exposed to solar radiation in the atmosphere, releasing their chlorine atoms. Chlorine then breaks down stratospheric ozone. This effect speeds up in cold conditions. In the early 1980s a large hole was discovered in the ozone layer over Antarctica. Every year since, this hole has re-formed in varying sizes during the southern hemisphere’s spring season. Based on data collected from 1979 to 2007, the hole was largest in 2006; it covered 10.6 million square miles (27 million sq km). Scientists also measure the overall density of ozone in the atmosphere; this was lowest in 1998. The Montreal Protocol was written to deal with the ozone hole. Passed in 1987, this international agreement requested that the use of CFCs be phased out by 1996 in the world’s industrialized nations. In 1992 amendments to the U.S. Clean Air Act were passed to supplement the Montreal Protocol. These required that several highly ozone-depleting substances be taken out of production and use. Hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs)—a class of chemicals developed to replace CFCs—will be gradually phased out by 2040. These are valuable steps and will allow the ozone layer to gradually recover. But because free chlorine persists in the atmosphere for decades, the full effect of banning CFCs and HCFCs may not be apparent until the mid-twenty-first century. A second challenge created by the use of CFCs and HCFCs is that they behave like natural greenhouse gases, trapping heat in the atmosphere. Increases in global greenhouse gas concentrations have an impact on global temperature, and thus on climate. Each greenhouse gas affects this balance 78

Something in the Air

This satellite image taken in 2006 illustrates the ozone hole over the Antarctic. The purple area reflects the lowest level of ozone and yellow, the highest.

differently, based on its ability to absorb radiation. This is called its global warming potential (GWP). Chlorinecontaining chemicals have a very high GWP, which is supplemented by their tendency to break down ozone that would normally protect the planet. Fluorine-containing chemicals have even higher GWPs. GWPs are determined by their place on a scale showing their impact over a period of time, with CO2 always having a value of 1. The one-hundredyear GWP of methane is 21. By contrast, HCFCs have GWPs as high as 260. Some CFCs have GWPs that are 50,000 times higher than that of CO2. 79

Scientists from NASA’s Goddard Flight Center have reviewed climate data dating back to 1850. They report that the period from 1990 to 2007 included fourteen of the hottest years on record. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has evaluated a variety of possible causes for this, including increases in solar radiation and volcanic activity. Its calculations indicate that climate change is five times more likely to have been caused by human activities than by natural factors. As global greenhouse gas concentrations increase, Earth’s average temperature is predicted to increase. Changes in snow and ice cover, sea level, wind and weather patterns, and ecosystems are just a few of the expected outcomes. Clean Air Laws The Clean Air Act (CAA) of 1970 was the first legislation to set standards for air quality. It sought to reduce six “criteria pollutants”: sulfur dioxide, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, nitrogen dioxide, and photochemical oxidants (such as ozone) that are made when nitrogen and VOCs react with sunlight. The CAA also gave the federal government more power to enforce air-pollution requirements. The reduction of motor vehicle emissions received particular attention in this law. Amendments to the CAA passed in 1990 required significant reductions in emissions from electric power plants. Plants achieved this reduction in a variety of ways—for example, by switching to less-polluting fuels (such as different types of coal or natural gas), installing cleaning mechanisms, or shutting down some of their facilities. Sulfur dioxide levels are monitored through the Acid Rain Program, and the NOX Budget-Trading Program controls nitrogen oxide reductions. These were the first in what promises to be a series of cap-and-trade programs for pollutants. Cap-andtrade programs limit (cap) the number of “pollution units” that can be emitted. (A unit equals 1 ton of SO2 or NOX.) Each unit has a value, called an allowance. These are bought and sold within the power industry. At the end of the year each power plant must have purchased enough allowances to cover the units of pollution it produced. In 2005 additional federal 80

Something in the Air rules were passed dealing with air pollution from diesel, ozone, and particulates. Several CO2 emission-reduction programs are underway as well. As of 2008 the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative included ten member states that share a cap-and-trade program. The Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement passed in 2005 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, includes a carbontrading program. In October 2008, almost 220 million tons (200 metric tons) of CO2-offset certificates were being traded each day among Kyoto signatory nations. Thoughts for the Road Henry David Thoreau had simple advice for his peers, who in the 1850s were busy building railroads, clearing land for farms and cities, and mining for precious metals. “Simplify, simplify,” wrote the great naturalist. Thoreau believed that people are weighed down by constantly seeking more belongings and status. For many years he chose to live in a small cabin beside Walden Pond, in the woods outside Concord, Massachusetts. Few people today want to live the kind of life that Thoreau advocated. His words serve as an important reminder, however. Every role we play in our lives—student, homeowner, voter, consumer—allows us to impact the level of pollution that enters the environment. If you think that your “drop in the bucket” doesn’t make a difference, put a bucket under a leaky faucet to see how quickly it fills up. Challenge yourself to find just three ways to simplify this year. Your impact on pollution will be reduced accordingly. Encourage three friends to do the same, and you will have started a revolution.

81

Notes Chapter One p. 7, “Some call this 75,300-square-mile . . .”: “Colorado Plateau Semidesert Province.” U.S. Forest Service, n/d. http://www. fs.fed.us/colorimagemap/images/313.html. (Accessed 17 April 2008) p. 8, “For 2,500 years the Anasazi . . .”: “Anasazi: The Ancient Ones—Manitou Cliff Dwellings.” Manitou Cliff Dwellings Museum, 2008. http://www.cliffdwellingsmuseum.com/ anasazi.htm. (Accessed 17 April 2008) p. 8, “In one, called Oxyrhynchus . . .”: Gugliotta, Guy. “Imaging Technology Makes Ancient Text Readable.” Washington Post, 30 May 2005. http://www.washingtonpost.com. (Accessed 12 March 2008) p. 9, “A much older site in France . . .”: Ponting, Clive. A New Green History of the World. New York: Penguin Books, 2007, pp. 342–343. p. 9, “. . . approximately 18,000 years old.”: Peregrine, Peter and Melvin Ember (Eds.). Europe: The Encyclopedia of Prehistory. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum, 2001, pp. 179–180. 82

Notes p. 9, “. . . a series of elevated aqueducts . . .”: Hassan, Fekri A. “Water Management and Early Civilizations: From Cooperation to Conflict.” UNESCO World Water Assessment Programme, n/d, p. 10. http://webworld. unesco.org/water/wwap/pccp/cd/pdf/history_future_ shared_water_resources/water_management_early.pdf. (Accessed 18 December 2007) p. 9, “Roman citizens had long used the Tiber . . .”: Hughes, J. Donald. An Environmental History of the World: Humankind’s Changing Role in the Community of Life. New York: Routledge, 2001, pp. 74–75. p. 10, “At ancient Roman mining sites . . .”: Schmidt, Robert G. et al. “More Than Broken Jars and Roof Tiles: The Environmental Legacy of a Roman Industry at Plasenzuela, Extremadura, Spain.” U.S. Geological Survey, February 2001. http://minerals.usgs.gov/ east/plasenzuela/background.html. (Accessed 13 April 2008) p. 10, “Ice cores reveal that from 500 BCE . . .”: Hong, Sungmin et al. “Greenland Ice Evidence of Hemispheric Lead Pollution Two Millennia Ago by Greek and Roman Civilizations.” Science, 23 September 1994, pp. 1841–1843. p. 10, “After conquering Britannia (England) . . .”: Freese, Barbara. Coal: A Human History. New York: Penguin Books, 2003. p. 11, “. . . by the mid-1600s, there was no other option.”: Ponting, pp. 278–179. p. 11, “In 1776 steam engines were first used . . .”: Freese, Ch. 3. p. 11, “It continues to be the fuel of choice . . .”: “Coal.” U.S. Department of Energy, n/d. http://www.doe.gov/ energysources/coal.htm. (Accessed 13 May 2008) 83

p. 12, “In 1825 one billion humans . . .”: Ponting, p. 231. p. 12, “By 2008 the world’s population had reached . . .”: “U.S. and World Population Clocks.” U.S. Census Bureau, 22 November 2006. http://www.census.gov/main/ www/ popclock.html. (Accessed 27 May 2008) p. 12, “In 2007 the Blacksmith Institute identified . . .”: “The 2007 Top Ten of Worst Polluted Places.” The Blacksmith Institute, 12 September 2007. http://www. blacksmithinstitute.org/press.20070912.php. (Accessed 19 May 2008) p. 13, “The ‘National Water Quality Inventory . . .’ ”: “The National Water Quality Inventory: Report to Congress for the 2002 Reporting Cycle—A Profile.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, October 2007. http://www.epa.gov/ 305b/2002report/. (Accessed 27 December 2007) p. 13, “According to the EPA, more than 251 million tons . . .”: “Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for 2006.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, n/d. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/pubs/ msw06.pdf. (Accessed 7 April 2008) p. 14, “. . . the United States still obtains 85 percent . . .”: “Greenhouse Gases, Climate Change, and Energy.” U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2 April 2004. http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/ggccebro/chapter1. html. (Accessed 13 April 2008) p. 14, “In its 2007 annual report on air pollution . . .”: “State of the Air 2007: Executive Summary.” American Lung Association, 2007. http://lungaction.org/reports/sota07 exec_summ.html. (Accessed 10 April 2008) p. 14, “In 2006 a National Geographic author . . .”: Duncan, David Ewing. “The Pollution Within.” National Geographic, October 2006, pp. 116–133. 84

Notes p. 16, “A low-income community which is . . .”: “Environmental Equity: Reducing Risks for All Communities.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Office of Planning, Policy and Evaluation, June 1992. http://www.epa.gov/ history/topics/justice/01.htm. (Accessed 14 May 2008) p. 17, “To the greatest extend . . .”: Clinton, William J. “Executive Order 12898: Federal Actions to Address Environmental Justice in Minority Populations and Low-Income Populations.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 11 February 1994. http://www.epa.gov/Region2/ej/ exec_order_12898.pdf. (Accessed 13 November 2008) p. 17, “Research has shown . . .”: U.S. Senate Advisory Committee on Environmental Health. “Healthy Communities Act of 2007.” The Library of Congress, 2007. http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:S.1068. (Accessed 13 November 2008) Chapter Two p. 19, “Many people who live in the area complain . . .”: “Vog— Volcanic Smog—Kills Plants, Casts Haze Over Hawaii.” The Associated Press, 5 May 2008. http://www.ap.org. (Accessed 5 May 2008) p. 20, “. . . blue-white water may cover 7,700 square miles . . .”: Weeks, Scarla et al. “Massive Emissions of Toxic Gas in the Atlantic.” Nature, 31 January 2002, pp. 493–494. p. 20, “Actually a sea with an area of . . .”: Nipper, M. et al. (eds.). “General Facts About the Gulf of Mexico.” GulfBase: Resource Database for Gulf of Mexico Research, n/d. http:// www.gulfbase.org/facts.php. (Accessed 19 April 2008) p. 20, “More than two-thirds of the shrimp and oysters . . .”: Bruckner, Monica. “The Gulf of Mexico Dead Zone.” Science Education Resource Center: Microbial Life Education Resources, n/d. http://serc.carleton.edu/ microbelife/ topics/deadzone. (Accessed 19 May 2008) 85

p. 20, “It’s also an important reserve of fossil fuels . . .”: “Katrina in Context: Understanding Impacts in Light of Southern Louisiana’s Social and Environmental Landscapes.” The Bureau of Applied Research in Anthropology, n/d. http://sola.bara.arizona.edu/1-connected.htm. (Accessed 19 May 2008) p. 20, “Since the early 1990s scientists have studied . . .”: National Research Council. Oil in the Sea III: Inputs, Fates, and Effects. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2003. p. 20, “Kilauea began to erupt in 1983 . . .”: “Volcanic Air Pollution—A Hazard in Hawai’i.” U.S. Geological Survey, 14 October 2004. http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs169–97. (Accessed 25 April 2008) p. 22, “Studies suggest that individual oil particles . . .”: National Research Council, p. 191. p. 23, “. . . at least 60 percent of all species . . .”: Hutchinson, John. “What Killed the Dinosaurs?” DinoBuzz: University of California Museum of Vertebrate Paleontology, 27 September 2005. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/diapsids/ extinction.html. (Accessed 16 April 2008) p. 23, “Physicians report that one in five people . . .”: “Allergy Facts and Figures.” Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, n/d. http://www.aafa.org/display.cfm?id=9&sub=30#_ ftnref2. (Accessed 27 April 2008) p. 23, “Twenty million Americans have asthma . . .”: “Indoor Air Quality.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 12 May 2008. http://www.epa.gov/iaq. (Accessed 14 May 2008) p. 23, “. . . 30 to 50 percent of buildings are too moist . . .”: “Biological Pollutants in Your Home, CPSC Document #425.” Consumer Product Safety Commission, n/d. http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/pubs/425.html. (Accessed 19 May 2008) 86

Notes p. 24, “. . . an exceptionally strong earthquake . . .”: “Indian Ocean Tsunami 2004.” EarthGuide: University of California, 2005. http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/tsunami/ tsunami/links.html. (Accessed 30 April 2008) p. 24, “On the island of Sumatra . . .”: Joyce, Christopher. “Study Tracks Path of Indian Ocean Tsunami.” National Public Radio, 11 June 2005. http://www. npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4699772. (Accessed 2 May 2008) p. 25, “. . . E. coli bacteria in 90 percent . . .”: “Chad Operations Room Situation Report Number 33: Indian Ocean Earthquakes and Tsunamis.” United Kingdom Department for International Development, 21 February 2005. http://www.dfid.gov.uk/pubs/files/ asian-earthquake-sitrep27.pdf (Accessed 18 April 2008) p. 25, “. . . after a magnitude 7.9 earthquake . . .”: Foreman, William. “China Monitors Flood Threat from Blocked Rivers.” The Associated Press, 23 May 2008. http:// www.ap.org. (Accessed 23 May 2008) p. 26, “. . . 7 percent of American homes have unsafe radon levels.”: “A Citizen’s Guide to Radon: The Guide to Protecting Yourself and Your Family From Radon.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 9 May 2008. http:// www.epa.gov/radon/pubs/citguide.html. (Accessed 11 May 2008) p. 26, “Every year, wildfires in the United States . . .”: “U.S. Fires Release Large Amounts of Carbon Dioxide.” Science Daily, 1 November 2007. http://www. sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071101085029.htm. (Accessed 18 May 2008) p. 26, “Volcanoes add more of this gas . . .”: “Volcanic Gases and Their Effects.” U.S. Geological Survey, 10 January 2006. http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/Hazards/What/VolGas/ volgas.html. (Accessed 1 November 2007) 87

p. 27, “[In 2007] global levels of . . .”: “Carbon Dioxide, Methane Rise Sharply in 2007.” National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 23 April 2008. http:// www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080423_ methane.html. (Accessed 5 May 2008) Chapter Three p. 28, “. . . one midsize American metropolitan area . . .”: “Census 2000 PHC-T-29. Ranking Tables for Population of Metropolitan Statistical Areas, Micropolitan Statistical Areas, Combined Statistical Areas, New England City and Town Areas, and Combined New England City and Town Areas: 1990 and 2000 (Areas defined by the Office of Management and Budget as of June 6, 2003.)” U.S. Census Bureau, 30 December 2003. http://www.census.gov/population/cen2000/ phc-t29/tab03a.pdf. (Accessed 18 April 2008) p. 28, “About ten thousand years ago, humans began to . . .”: Ponting, Ch. 4. p. 29, “Hundreds of years ago both the Chinese and the Aztecs . . .”: Ponting, p. 348. p. 29, “Recognizing that waste could foul . . .”: “Rivers: Facts.” UK Wildlife Trusts, n/d. http://www. wildlifetrust.org.uk/facts/rivers.htm. (Accessed 12 May 2008) p. 29, “In the mid-1800s some cities began to build sewer systems . . .”: Schladweiler, Jon C. et al. “Tracking Down the Roots of Our Sanitary Sewers: The New American Roots.” Arizona Water & Pollution Control Association, 2004. http://www.sewerhistory.org/chronos/new_amer_ roots.htm. (Accessed 27 December 2007) p. 29, “In 1348 cases of bubonic plague . . .”: Strong, Roy. The Story of Britain: A People’s History. London, England: Pimlico, 1988, Ch. 16. 88

Notes p. 30, “As soon as I became acquainted with . . .”: Snow, John. “The Cholera Near Golden Square at Depford (September 1854).” The John Snow Archive and Research Companion, 16 January 2008. http:// matrix.msu.edu/~johnsnow/pub_Deptford1854.php. (Accessed 10 April 2008) p. 32, “An Italian physician named Filippo Pacini . . .”: Frerichs, Ralph R. “Who First Discovered Vibrio cholera?” UCLA Department of Epidemiology, 5 August 2001. http:// www.ph.ucla.edu/EPI/snow/firstdiscoveredcholera. html. (Accessed 23 April 2008) p. 32, “By the early 1900s many cities had . . .”: “The History of Drinking Water Treatment.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, February 2000. http://www.epa. gov/OGWDW/consumer/pdf/hist.pdf. (Accessed 12 December 2007) p. 32, “Isolated cases occur in the Southwest . . .”: “Bubonic Plague Factsheet.” National Park Service Public Health Program, 26 January 2007. http://www.nps.gov/public_ health/inter/ info/factsheets/fs_plague.htm. (Accessed 2 May 2008) p. 33, “Diarrheal diseases are caused by . . .”: Dobson, Roger. “Handwashing programmes could be intervention of choice for diarrhoeal diseases.” British Medical Journal, 10 May 2008. http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/ full/326/7397/1004/f. (Accessed 21 May 2008) p. 33, “More than three thousand cases of the plague . . .”: “Climate linked to plague increase.” BBC News, 22 August 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/ nature/5271502.stm. (Accessed 23 April 2008) p. 33, “. . . the U.S. has 1,654 landfills . . . 54 percent of the nation’s waste . . .”: “Municipal Solid Waste in the United 89

States 2005.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, October 2006, pp. 13–15. http://www.epa.gov/ epaoswer/non-hw/muncpl/pubs/mswchar05.pdf. (Accessed 6 August 2008) p. 34, “MSW . . . consists of everyday items . . .”: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (October 2006), p. 4. p. 34, “In the period from 1960 to 2000 . . .”: “United States Population Growth.” CensusScope/University of Michigan, n/d. http://censusscope.org/us/chart_popl. htm. (Accessed 5 June 2008) p. 34, “. . . each person’s daily production of waste increased . . .”: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (October 2006), p. 3. p. 34, “In 2006 Americans produced an average of 4.6 pounds . . .”: “Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling, and Disposal in the United States: Facts and Figures for 2006.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, November 2007, p. 1. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/nonhw/muncpl/ pubs/msw06.pdf. (Accessed 6 August 2008) p. 34, “This isn’t for lack of landfill space.”: Brower, Michael and Warren Leon. The Consumer’s Guide to Effective Environmental Choices: Practical Advice from the Union of Concerned Scientists. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1999, Ch. 2. p. 34, “. . . Americans throw away enough food . . .”: Oliver, Rachel. “All About: Food Waste.” CNN, 22 January 2008. http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/ asiapcf/09/24/food.leftovers/index.html. (Accessed 25 April 2008) p. 34, “. . . families typically dispose of 14 percent . . .”: O’Hanlon, Larry. “Food Waste Epidemic in America.” Discovery Channel News, 24 November 2004. http://dsc.discovery. 90

Notes com/news/ briefs/20041122/foodwaste.html. (Accessed 7 May 2008) p. 36, “Paper products, which are the most common . . .”: “Recycling Paper and Glass.” U.S. Department of Energy: Energy Information Administration, September 2006. http://www. eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/saving/ recycling/solidwaste/paperandglass.html. (Accessed 25 April 2008) p. 38, “In the United States 43 million people change . . .”: Lotz, Roger. “BTS Survey Finds 2.3 Million Americans Dispose of Motor Oil Improperly.” U.S. Department of Transportation: Bureau of Transportation Statistics, 5 November 2002. http://www.bts.gov/press_ releases/2002/ bts027_02.html. (Accessed 3 June 2008) p. 39, “Yet 70 to 80 percent of computer monitors . . .”: Carroll, Chris. “High-Tech Trash.” National Geographic, January 2008, pp. 64–81. p. 39, “Between 2003 and 2007 the EPA’s . . .”: “Plug-In To eCycling with U.S. EPA: 2007 Activities.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 2007. http://www. epa.gov/epaoswer/osw/conserve/plugin/pdf/activ-07. pdf. (Accessed 29 May 2007) p. 39, “Because the recycling of electronics is not yet regulated . . .”: Carroll, pp. 64–81. p. 40, “Landfills produce 34 percent of the methane . . .”: Oliver (January 2008). p. 40, “More than 40 percent of the U.S. population . . .”: “Ground Water Use in the United States.” U.S. Geological Survey, 27 March 2006. http://ga.water.usgs. gov/edu/wugw.html. (Accessed 12 December 2007) p. 40, “The federal Ocean Dumping Act . . .”: “Administering the Ocean Dumping Act.” EPA Journal, July/August 91

1975. http://www.epa.gov/history/topics/mprsa/01.htm. (Accessed 17 May 2008) p. 42, “. . . in 1988 the federal government finally amended . . .”: “Ocean Dumping Ban Act of 1988.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 21 November 1988. http://www. epa.gov/history/topics/mprsa/02.htm. (Accessed 19 May 2008) p. 42, “Under Annex V of the convention . . .”: “Prevention of Pollution by Garbage from Ships.” International Maritime Organization, 2002. http://www.imo.org/ Environment/mainframe. asp?topic_id=297. (Accessed 9 May 2008) p. 42, “. . . 100 million tons of plastic trash . . .”: Marks, Kathy, and Daniel Howden. “The World’s Rubbish: A Garbage Tip That Stretches from Hawaii to Japan.” The Independent, 5 February 2008. http://www. independent.co.uk. (Accessed 11 April 2008) p. 42, “When biologists examined dead fulmars . . .”: Connor, Steve. “Why Plastic Is the Scourge of the Sea.” The Independent, 5 February 2008. http://www.independent. com. (Accessed 11 April 2008) p. 42, “. . . a new solid waste program in 1989.”: “Municipal Solid Waste in the United States: 2005 Facts and Figures.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, October 2006, p. 16. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/ nonhw/muncpl/pubs/msw char05. pdf. (Accessed 4 May 2008) p. 43, “At the Subaru car factory in Lafayette . . .”: “Subaru of Indiana becomes WasteWise’s 2006 New Partner of the Year.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 18 March 2008. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/ osw/conserve/2007news/04-subaru.htm. (Accessed 23 May 2008) 92

Notes p. 43, “Whole Foods Market, Inc. . . .”: Martin, Andrew. “Whole Foods Chain to Stop Use of Plastic Bags.” New York Times, 23 January 2008. http://www.nytimes. com/2008/01/23/business/23bags.html. (Accessed 24 January 2008) p. 43, “Berkeley, California, and Glen Cove, New York . . .”: Castro, Janice. “One Big Mac, Hold the Box!” Time Magazine, 25 June 1990. http://www.time.com/time/ magazine/article/ 0,9171,970470,00.html. (Accessed 24 January 2008) p. 45, “San Francisco and Oakland, California, banned polystyrene . . .”: Seina, Robert. “Supervisors Ban Plastic To-Go Boxes, Ease Pot Enforcement.” San Francisco Chronicle, 15 November 2006. http://www.sfgate.com/. (Accessed 24 January 2008) p. 45, “As of 2005 more than 8,500 curbside . . .”: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (October 2006), p. 13. p. 45, “In Europe a new type of garbage disposal . . .”: Brat, Ilan. “Garbage Out, and Fuel In.” Minneapolis StarTribune, 29 February 2008, p. D-6. Chapter Four p. 46, “. . . a local pilot had been hired to navigate . . .”: “The Bar Pilots at Work.” San Francisco Bar Pilots Association, 2007. http://www.sfbarpilots.com. (Accessed 30 April 2008) p. 46, “At approximately 7:45 a.m. . . .”: “Incident Specific Preparedness Review (ISPR)—M/V Cosco Busan Oil Spill in San Francisco Bay, Report on Initial Response Phase.” U.S. Coast Guard, 11 January 2008, p. 1. http:// www.uscgsanfrancisco.com/posted/823/CoscoBusan ISPRFinal.190115.pdf. (Accessed 23 March 2008) p. 46, “The 901-foot (275-meter) ship . . .”: Allen, Admiral Thad W. “The Cosco Busan Spill—Finding Answers.” 93

Leadership Journal, 16 November 2007. http://www.dhs. gov/journal/leadership/2007/11/cosco-busan-oil-spillfinding-answers.html. (Accessed 13 December 2007) p. 47, “Visibility declined to barely a tenth of a mile . . .”: Nolte, Carl. “State Charges Bay Spill Pilot with Misconduct.” San Francisco Chronicle, 7 December 2008, p. A-1. http://www.sfgate.com. (Accessed 8 December 2008) p. 47, “The pilot continued toward the bridge . . .”: U.S. Coast Guard, pp. 1–4. p. 47, “. . . the entire 400-square-mile (1,036-sq-km) expanse . . .”: “About the Bay.” The Bay Institute, n/d. http://www.bay.org/about_the_bay.htm. (Accessed 13 December 2007) p. 47, “The resulting fuel is favored . . .”: Taugher, Mike. “Container Ship ‘Bunker’ Fuel Cheap, But Highly Polluting.” Oakland Tribune, 16 November 2007. http:// www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune. (Accessed 19 November 2007) p. 49, “. . . thirty beaches had to be closed. . . . More than 2,500 seabirds died . . .”: “The Bay of Oiled Birds.” International Bird Rescue Research Center, January 2008. http://www. ibrrc.org/Cosco_Busan_spill_2007.html. (Accessed 2 February 2008) p. 50, “. . . accident off the coast of South Korea”: Sang-Hun, Choe. “South Korea Cleans Up Big Oil Spill.” New York Times, 9 December 2007. http://www.newyorktimes. com. (Accessed 5 May 2008) p. 50, “Analysts have tracked oil spills since 1974.”: “Accidental Discharges of Oil.” United Nations Environmental Program: Global Oil Marine Pollution Information Gateway, n/d. http://oils.gpa.unep.org/facts/oilspills. htm. (Accessed 26 April 2008) 94

Notes p. 50, “1.3 million gallons [5 million L] of petroleum . . .”: “Oil Spills.” U.S. Department of Energy, n/d. http:// www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/oilspills.shtml. (Accessed 1 June 2008) p. 52, “Costs of cleaning up the Cosco Busan spill . . .”: Lindlaw, Scott. “Ship That Spilled Oil in S.F. Bay Blames U.S.” The Associated Press, 8 June 2008. http://www.ap.org. (Accessed 8 June 2008) p. 52, “. . . the tanker Prestige spilled 12.4 million gallons . . .”: “Whitman Visits Spain in Aftermath of Prestige Oil Spill.” Oil Spill Program Update, p. 4. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, July 2003. http://www.epa.gov/ OEM/docs/oil/newsletters/0703update.pdf. (Accessed 29 May 2008) p. 52, “. . . PAH levels that were 120 percent higher . . .”: “Gulls’ Blood Records Oil Impacts.” BBC News, 16 January 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/ nature/7181910.stm. (Accessed 27 April 2008) p. 52, “One of the biggest oil-related accidents in history . . .”: “Researchers to Determine Why Oil Still Remains from Exxon Valdez Disaster.” Science Daily, 21 March 2007. http://www. sciencedaily.com/releases/ 2007/03/07032109 3410.htm. (Accessed 29 April 2008) p. 52, “Diesel fuel from a 1969 spill in Cape Cod . . .”: Pickrell, John. “Oil Spills Pollute Indefinitely and Invisibly, Study Says.” National Geographic News, 22 November 2002. http://news. nationalgeographic.com/ news/2002/11/1122_021122_OilSpill.html. (Accessed 9 April 2008) p. 53, “The Mississippi River watershed drains . . .”: “Mississippi River Facts.” National Park Service, 25 April 2008. http://www.nps.gov/miss/riverfacts.htm. (Accessed 13 May 2008) 95

p. 53, “. . . scientists from the State of Washington studied . . .”: Cornwall, Warren. “Stormwater’s Damage to Puget Sound Huge, Report Says.” The Seattle Times, 1 December 2007. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/ html/localnews/2004045940_ecology01m.html. (Accessed 2 June 2008) p. 54, “Fish in many U.S. waters . . .”: “Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs).” Chesapeake Bay Program, 20 February 2008. http://www.chesapeakebay.net/pahs. aspx?menuitem=19500. (Accessed 9 April 2008) p. 54, “. . . fires that broke out on the surface of Ohio’s Cuyahoga River . . .”: “Cuyahoga River Area of Concern.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 25 June 2007. http:// www.epa.gov/glnpo/aoc/cuyahoga.html. (Accessed 15 May 2008) p. 54, “Water from the Potomac River had to undergo . . .”: “Potomac Basin History.” Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, n/d. http://www. potomacriver.org/about_potomac/history.htm. (Accessed 12 May 2008) p. 54, “. . . sewage pollution in Lake Erie had caused . . .”: “Lake Erie Lakewide Management Plan 2008.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 29 April 2008. http://www.epa.gov/grtlakes/lamp/le_2008/index.html. (Accessed 12 May 2008) p. 54, “. . . Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1948 (FWPCA).” “The Challenge of the Environment: A Primer on EPA’s Statutory Authority.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, December 1972. http://www.epa.gov/history/topics/fwpca/05.htm. (Accessed 19 December 2007) p. 56, “Everything that man himself injects into . . .”: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (December 1972). 96

Notes p. 56, “Three-quarters of the planet’s surface is covered in water.”: Suzuki, David, with Amanda McConnell. The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering Our Place in Nature. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1997, p. 52. p. 56, “. . . 97 percent of which is stored in the oceans.”: “Where Is Earth’s Water Located?” U.S. Geological Survey, 1 February 2008. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/ earthwherewater.html. (Accessed 23 October 2007) p. 57, “Within a few years of banning phosphorus detergents . . .”: “The Effects of Urbanization on Water Quality: Phosphorus.” U.S. Geological Survey, 26 October 2006. http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/ urbanpho.html. (Accessed 17 April 2008) p. 57, “Trout and salmon, for example, cannot thrive . . .”: Jones, Matthew P., and William F. Hunt. “Stormwater BMPs for Trout Waters: Coldwater Stream Design Guidance for Stormwater Wetlands, Wet Ponds, and Bioretention.” Urban Waterways (North Carolina A&T State University Cooperative Extension), August 2007. http://www.bae.ncsu.edu/stormwater/PublicationFiles/ BMPsColdTemps2007.pdf. (Accessed 3 April 2007) p. 57, “. . . intolerant of acidic pH levels below 5.0.”: Carlsen, William S. et al. Watershed Dynamics. Arlington, VA: NSTA Press, 2004, pp. 31–32. p. 58, “. . . this pollution was not discovered until 1985 . . .”: Paddock, Todd. “Dioxins and Furans: Where They Come From.” The Academy of Natural Sciences, July 1989. http://www.newmoa.org/prevention/topichub/107/ dioxins_and_furans-where_they_come_from.htm. (Accessed 17 May 2008) p. 59, “These chemicals are now so widespread . . .”: “Resolution for the City and County of San Francisco: Dioxin, Public 97

Health and the Environment.” Association of Bay Area Governments, 8 September 1998. http://www. abag.ca.gov/bayarea/dioxin/resolutions/san-francisco_ resolution.pdf. (Accessed 9 April 2008) p. 59, “One example is the category called perfluorocarbons (PFCs).”: Meersman, Tom. “Cleaning Up River Site May Cost 3M $18 Million.” Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 1 April 2008, p. B-1. p. 60, “A 1987 amendment to the Clean Water Act . . .”: “Phases of the NPDES Stormwater Program.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 10 January 2008. http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/stormwater/swphases.cfm. (Accessed 6 February 2008) p. 61, “In 2007 there was a total of 26,023 days . . . combined sewer overflows release 850 billion gallons . . .”: “Testing the Waters 2008: A Guide to Water Quality at Vacation Beaches.” Natural Resources Defense Council, 2007. http://www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/titinx.asp. (Accessed 19 May 2008) p. 61, “In 1999 and 2000 the U.S. Geological Survey . . .”: “Pharmaceuticals, Hormones, and Other Organic Wastewater Contaminants in U.S. Streams.” U.S. Geological Survey, June 2002. http://toxics.usgs.gov/ pubs/FS-027-02. (Accessed 13 May 2008) p. 62, “Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) . . . scientists tested nine biosolid samples . . .”: “Household Chemicals and Drugs Found in Biosolids from Wastewater Treatment Plants.” U.S. Geological Survey, 13 March 2008. http://toxics.usgs.gov/highlights/biosolids.html. (Accessed 19 April 2008) Chapter Five p. 66, “Every day 24 million American children . . .”: “Clean School Bus USA.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 98

Notes 11 March 2008. http://www.epa.gov/cleanschoolbus. (Accessed 16 May 2008) p. 66, “In its ‘School Bus Pollution Report Card 2006 . . .’ ”: “School Bus Pollution Report Card: Grading the States.” Union of Concerned Scientists, May 2006. http:// www.ucsusa.org/ clean_vehicles/big_rig_cleanup/cleanschool-bus-pollution.html. (Accessed 23 January 2008) p. 66, “The EPA lists 188 chemicals as HAPs . . .”: “About Air Toxics.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 4 February 2008. http://www.epa.gov/ttn/atw/allabout. html. (Accessed 3 April 2008) p. 67, “Experts distinguish between two sources of air pollution . . .”: “Mobile Source Emissions: Pollutants.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 9 July 2007. http://www. epa.gov/oms/invntory/overview/pollutants/ index.htm. (Accessed 13 April 2008) p. 67, “You might take 24,000 breaths . . .”: Suzuki, Ch. 2. p. 67, “The brain stem is hidden . . .”: Shubin, Neil. “Fish Out of Water: Human Ailments as Varied as Hernias, Hiccups, and Choking are a Legacy of Our ‘Fishy’ Ancestry.” Natural History, February 2008, pp. 26–31. p. 68, “With every normal breath . . .”: Suzuki, pp. 33–34. p. 68, “. . . the atmosphere—extends from Earth’s surface upward . . . the troposphere is only 4 to 12 miles . . .”: “Layers of the Atmosphere.” National Weather Service, 29 August 2007. http://www.srh.noaa.gov/jetstream/ atmos/layers.htm. (Accessed 23 April 2008) p. 68, “Nitrogen is the most abundant gas . . .”: Suzuki, p. 42. p. 69, “Without them the planet’s temperature . . .”: “Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Transportation Sector, 99

1990–2003.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, March 2006, p. 3. http://www.epa.gov/oms/climate/ 420r06003.pdf. (Accessed 27 April 2008) p. 69, “Transportation is the primary source of air pollution . . .”: Siddique, Sharif. “Estimating the Relationship Between Traffic and Air Pollution.” Road & Transport Research, March 2004. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_ qa3927/ is_200403/ai_n9406253. (Accessed 23 April 2008) p. 70, “Researchers at the California Institute . . .”: Enami, Shinichi et al. “Acidity Enhances the Formation of a Persistent Ozonide at Aqueous Ascorbate/Ozone Gas Interfaces.” PNAS, 27 May 2008. http://www.pnas. org/cgi/content/abstract/105/21/7365. (Accessed 28 May 2008) p. 71, “Even short-term exposure to ambient ozone . . .”: Committee on Estimating Mortality Risk Reduction Benefits from Decreasing Ambient Ozone Exposure, National Research Council. Estimating Mortality Risk Reduction and Economic Benefits from Controlling Ozone Air Pollution. Washington, D.C.: National Research Council, 2008. http://www.nap. edu/catalog.php?record_ id=12198. (Accessed 3 June 1008) p. 71, “. . . children watch three hours of television a day.”: “Children’s Educational Television.” Federal Communications Commission, 10 March 2008. http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/childtv.html. (Accessed 24 April 2008) p. 71, “. . . spend about 90 percent of their time inside.”: “The Inside Story: A Guide to Indoor Air Quality.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 25 April 2008. http://www.epa.gov/iaq/pubs/insidest.html. (Accessed 8 May 2008) 100

Notes p. 71, “The World Health Organization estimates . . .”: “Indoor Air Pollution.” World Health Organization, n/d. http://www.who.int/indoorair/en. (Accessed 13 May 2008) p. 71, “. . . an average of 439 deaths in the United States . . . .”: “Carbon Monoxide-Related Deaths—United States, 1999–2004.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention), 21 December 2007, pp. 1309–1312. http://www.cdc.gov/ mmwr/preview/mmwr html/mm5650a1.htm. (Accessed 16 April 2008) p. 76, “Approximately 4,000 chemicals occur in cigarette smoke . . .”: “Cigarette Smoking and Cancer: Questions and Answers.” National Cancer Institute, n/d. http:// www.cancer.org/cancertopics/factsheet/Tobacco/ cancer. (Accessed 25 April 2008) p. 76, “At least 250 of these are released in secondhand smoke . . .”: “The Health Consquences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke: A Report to the Surgeon General, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.” U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 4 January 2007. http://www.surgeongeneral. gov/library/secondhandsmoke/factsheets/factsheet9. html. (Accessed 25 April 2008) p. 77, “. . . smoking causes 30 percent of cancer deaths . . .”: National Cancer Institute. p. 78, “In the early 1980s a large hole . . .”: Newman, Paul. “Ozone Hole Watch.” NASA, 18 January 2008. http:// ozonewatch.gsfc.nasa.gov. (Accessed 24 March 2008) p. 78, “Passed in 1987, this international agreement . . .”: “Ozone Layer & Montreal Protocol.” United Nations Development Programme, n/d. http://www.undp. 101

org/chemicals/montreal protocol.htm. (Accessed 29 May 2008) p. 78, “In 1992 amendments to the U.S. Clean Air Act . . .”: “The Phase-Out of Ozone-Depleting Substances.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 14 March 2008. http://www.epa.gov/ozone/title6/phaseout/index.html. (Accessed 13 April 2008) p. 78, “Each greenhouse gas affects this balance differently . . .”: “Greenhouse Gases and Global Warming Potential Values.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, April 2002. http://yosemite.epa.gov/oar/GlobalWarming.nsf/ UniqueKeyLookup/SHSU5BUM9T/$File/ghg_gwp. pdf. (Accessed 19 April 2008) p. 80, . . . fourteen of the hottest years on record.”: “2007 Was Tied As Earth’s Second-Warmest Year.” National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 16 January 2008. http://www. nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2008/earth_ temp.html. (Accessed 21 July 2008) p. 80, “The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has evaluated . . .”: Pachauri, R. K. and Reisinger, A (Eds.) IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Working Group I Report, ‘The Physical Science Basis’. Geneva, Switzerland: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, November 2007. http://www.ipcc.ch/ ipccreports/ar4-wg1.htm. (Accessed 17 February 2008) p. 80, “The Clean Air Act (CAA) of 1970 was the first legislation . . .”: “Clean Air Act.” U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 30 January 2008. http://www.epa. gov/air/caa. (Accessed 23 February 2008) p. 81, “. . . the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative . . .”: “Participating States.” Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, n/d. http://www.rggi.org/states.htm. (Accessed 6 August 2008) 102

Notes p. 81, “In October 2008, almost 220 million tons . . .”: Szabo, Michael. “EU, Kyoto Carbon Link to Cut Climate Costs.” Reuters, 16 October 2008. http://www.reuters. com. (Accessed 13 November 2008) p. 81, “Simplify, simplify.”: Thoreau, Henry David. Walden. Boston: Shambhala, 2004, Ch. 2.

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Further Information Books Alters, Sandra. Water: No Longer Taken for Granted. Wylie, TX: Information Plus, 2007. Gerdes, Louise (Ed.). Pollution. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2006. Gore, Al. An Inconvenient Truth: The Crisis of Global Warming. New York: Viking Juvenile, 2007. O’Connor, Rebecca. Acid Rain. Farmington Hills, MI: Lucent Books, 2004. Young, Mitchell (Ed.). Garbage and Recycling. Farmington Hills, MI: Greenhaven Press, 2007. Websites AirNOW http://airnow.gov/ Check air-quality conditions anywhere in the United States and find out more about air pollution from this site, which provides information from federal, state, local, and tribal agencies. 104

Earth 911 http://earth911.org Find information on how to live sustainably: where to recycle in your area, how to set up a compost bin, which materials are too hazardous to trash, and more. Global Warming Facts & Our Future http://www.koshlandscience.org/exhibitgcc/index.jsp This site from the National Academies of Science gives an understandable but thorough introduction to global warming. Be sure to calculate your carbon footprint, and see how to reduce it. Scorecard: The Pollution Information Site http://www.scorecard.org Enter a zip code to get a report about pollution in any part of the United States. There is also information on specific pollution topics. Your Environment. Your Choice. http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/education/teens/index.htm The EPA developed this site to help young people learn about how their actions can impact the environment. It contains background information on the three Rs, as well as advice on pursuing environmental careers and attending college.

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Bibliography Brower, Michael, and Warren Leon. The Consumer’s Guide to Effective Environmental Choices: Practical Advice from the Union of Concerned Scientists. New York: Three Rivers Press, 1999. Carlsen, William S., Nancy M. Trautman, and the Environmental Inquiry Team. Watershed Dynamics. Arlington, VA: NSTA Press, 2004. Committee on Estimating Mortality Risk Reduction Benefits from Decreasing Tropospheric Ozone Exposure, National Research Council. Estimating Mortality Risk Reduction and Economic Benefits from Controlling Ozone Air Pollution. Washington, D.C.: National Research Council, 2008. Freese, Barbara. Coal: A Human History. New York: Penguin Books, 2003. Hughes, J. Donald. An Environmental History of the World: Humankind’s Changing Role in the Community of Life. New York: Routledge, 2001. National Research Council. Oil in the Sea III: Inputs, Fates, and Effects. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press, 2003. 106

Pachauri, R. K., and A. Reisinger (eds.). IPCC Fourth Assessment Report: Working Group I Report, “The Physical Science Basis.” Geneva, Switzerland: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, November 2007. Peregrine, Peter, and Melvin Ember (eds.). Europe: The Encyclopedia of Prehistory. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum, 2001. Ponting, Clive. A New Green History of the World. New York: Penguin Books, 2007. Strong, Roy. The Story of Britain: A People’s History. London, England: Pimlico, 1988. Suzuki, David, with Amanda McConnell. The Sacred Balance: Rediscovering Our Place in Nature. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1997. Thoreau, Henry David. Walden. Boston: Shambhala, 2004.

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Index Pages in boldface are illustrations. acid rain, 57, 75, 75, 78, 80 agriculture, 11, 28–29, 65 air pollution acid rain and, 57 components of air and, 68–69 dioxins and, 58–59 early civilizations and, 10, 11 environmental effects of, 75, 78–80 fossil fuels and, 66–67, 69–70 incinerators and, 43 indoor pollution, 71, 74 natural pollution and, 19, 23 ozone and, 15, 70–71 pollution-control laws and, 58, 78, 80, 80–81 sources of, 67, 72–73 allergens, 23 arsenic poisoning, 10 asbestos, 71 atmosphere, 68–69, 69, 78

chemicals cigarette smoke and, 76–77 diesel fuel exhaust and, 66–67 dioxins and, 58–59 health problems and, 13, 14, 18, 58, 59, 64, 66–67 sewage sludge and, 62–63 water pollution and, 61, 64 chlorine, 78, 79 chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), 78, 79 cigarette smoke, 74, 76–77 Clean Air Act (1970), 58, 78, 80 Clean Water Act (1972), 32, 54, 57, 60, 62 climate change. See global warming coal, 10–11 combined sewer systems (CSSs), 60–61 Cosco Busan oil spill, 46–47, 48, 49, 52

bacteria, 22, 29–30, 32, 52, 55, 57, 60–61 biopollutants, 23, 71, 74 biosolids. See sewage sludge birds, oil spills and, 49, 49, 52 breathing, 67–68

decomposition, 28, 36, 40, 45, 52, 55 detergents, 55, 57 diesel fuel, 66–67, 69–70 dinosaurs, extinction of, 22, 23 dioxins, industrial waste and, 58–59 drinking water, 24, 25, 32, 56 dumps, 8–9, 29 See also landfills

cap-and-trade programs, 80–81 carbon dioxide (CO2), 14, 26, 27, 68, 72–73, 81 carbon monoxide (CO), 71, 72–73, 74, 76, 80

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early civilizations, pollution and, 7–11, 29 effluents, 54, 55, 63

Index electronics, hazardous waste and, 38, 39 energy sources, 11, 14, 36, 40, 43, 45 environmental justice, NIMBYism and, 16–17 extinction events, 22–23 Exxon Valdez oil spill, 52 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (1948), 54, 56 fertilizers, 55, 62–63, 65 fluorine, 79 fossil fuels, 20, 71 air pollution and, 27, 58–59, 75 petroleum products, 11–12, 38, 47, 49, 66–67, 69–70 See also oil spills fuel oil, 47, 49 global warming, 14, 27, 78–80 global warming potential (GWP), 79 Great Lakes, the, 54, 58–59 greenhouse effect, 70 greenhouse gases, 68–69, 78–79 grocery bags, 43, 45 groundwater, 40, 56, 59 hazardous waste, 10, 38–39, 42, 43, 52, 65 health problems chemical exposure and, 13, 14, 18, 58, 59, 64, 66–67 cigarette smoke and, 77 combined sewer systems (CSSs) and, 60–61 indoor pollution, 71, 74 lead and arsenic poisoning, 10 low-income communities and, 16–17 lung diseases, 14, 19, 23, 26, 66–67 natural pollution and, 19, 20, 25 ozone and, 70–71 sanitary diseases and, 9, 29–33 ultraviolet (UV) radiation, 69 Healthy Communities Act (2007), 17 history, of pollution, 7–14, 18 hydrocarbons, 72–73, 80 hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs), 78 hydrogen, water pollution and, 21 hydrogen sulfide (H2S), 21, 22 hypoxic zones, 21, 22, 54

incinerators, 14, 42, 43, 44 indoor pollution, 71, 74 Industrial Revolution, the, 11–12 industrial waste, 13, 43, 58–59 Kealakekua Bay, Hawaii, 19, 20–21 Kyoto Protocol, 81 landfills, 35, 37 dumps and, 8–9, 29 incinerators and, 43 municipal solid waste (MSW) and, 14, 33–34, 36, 40 sanitary wastes and, 32 types of waste in, 36 lawn and garden chemicals, 65 leachate, landfills and, 40 lead, 10, 26, 72–73 leaks, oil spillage and, 50–51, 52–54 low-income communities, pollution and, 16–17 marine life chemical exposure and, 57, 58, 64 natural pollution and, 20, 21 oil exposure and, 22, 52, 53–54 plastic and, 42 mercury, 72–73 metal smelting process, byproducts of, 9–10 methane, 26, 36, 40, 45, 68 mining, 9–10, 13, 13 minority groups, environmental justice and, 16–17 Montreal Protocol, 78 motor oil, hazardous waste and, 38 motor vehicle emissions, 80 municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), 60 municipal solid waste (MSW) disposal methods, 13–14, 33 landfills and, 33–34, 36, 40 reducing, 42–43, 45 types of waste in landfills, 36 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), 55, 60

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Index natural disasters, pollution and, 24–25 natural pollution, 19–23, 26–27, 28, 72–73 natural resources, consumption of, 12–13 NIMBYism, environmental justice and, 16–17 nitrogen, 55, 68, 72–73, 80 nitrous oxide, 68 nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, 55, 57, 67 NOx Budget-Trading Program, 80 nutrients, nonpoint source (NPS) pollution and, 55, 57 ocean dumping, 40, 41, 42 Ocean Dumping Act (1973), 42 oil spills, 20, 22, 46–47, 48, 49, 50–51, 52–54 overflows, from sewage systems, 60–61 oxygen, 21, 68 ozone, 14, 15, 69, 70–71, 72–73, 79, 80 ozone layer, 78 packaging materials, 43, 45 particulate matter (PM), 14, 68, 70–71, 72–73, 75, 80 perfluorocarbons (PFCs), 59 pharmaceutical drugs, water pollution and, 61, 64 phosphorus, 55, 57 photochemical oxidants, 80 plankton, water pollution and, 21 plastic, ocean dumping and, 42 Plug-In To E-Cycling program, 39 point source pollution, 54, 55, 67 pollution-control laws air pollution, 11, 58, 78, 80, 80–81 reducing waste and, 43, 45 sanitary wastes and, 29 water pollution, 32, 42, 54, 54–55, 56, 57, 60, 62 polonium, 26 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), 22, 52, 54 polystyrene containers, 43, 45 population size, 12, 28, 34

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radon, 23, 26, 71, 74 rain barrels, 64, 65 recycling, 14, 38–39, 43, 45 Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, 81 renewable energy, 14 Romans, ancient, 9–10, 10–11 runoff, 40, 53–54, 57, 63, 65 Safe Drinking Water Act (1974), 32 sanitary wastes combined sewer systems (CSSs) and, 60–61 health problems and, 9, 29–32 natural disasters and, 25 ocean dumping and, 40, 42 See also sewage systems scavengers, waste products and, 28 school buses, air pollution, 66 sediment, runoff and, 57 seepage, of crude oil, 22 settlement ponds, 65 sewage sludge, 42, 62–63 sewage systems combined sewer systems (CSSs) and, 60–61 early civilizations and, 9, 29 Federal Water Pollution Control Act (1948), 54 fertilizers and, 62–63 natural disasters and, 24–25 ocean dumping and, 40, 42 sanitary diseases and, 31 sludge and. see sludge water pollution and, 57, 60–61 Skeleton Coast, Namibia, 19–20, 21 sludge. See sewage sludge Snow, John, 30–31, 32 sources, of air pollution, 67, 72–73 steam engines, 11, 12, 13 sulfur, 21, 26 sulfur dioxide (SO2), 19, 20–21, 72–73, 80 temperature, in the atmosphere, 68–69 Thoreau, Henry David, 81 toxic waste. See hazardous waste transportation, 11, 69–70

Index trash, 8, 8–9, 30, 40, 42, 43 See also municipal solid waste (MSW) tsunamis, pollution and, 24–25 ultraviolet (UV) radiation, 69 ventilation, indoor pollution, 74 volatile organic compounds (VOCs), 80 volcanoes, 20–21, 21, 23, 26 wastewater treatment systems. See sewage systems water cycle, the, 56 water pollution, 40, 65, 75 chemical exposure and, 61, 64 fertilizers, 62–63

industrial waste and, 58–59 natural pollution and, 19–20, 24–25 nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, 55, 57 ocean dumping, 40, 41, 42 oil spills, 20, 46–47, 48, 49, 50–51, 52–54 pollution-control laws, 32 pollution-control laws and, 54–55 sanitary wastes and, 9, 29, 30–31, 57, 60–61 watersheds, 53, 53–54 water temperature, runoff and, 57

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About the Author Christine Petersen is a freelance writer and environmental educator who lives near Minneapolis, Minnesota. Petersen spent the first few years of her career studying the behavior of North American bats. Later, as a science teacher, she helped develop environmental education and servicelearning curricula at an independent middle school. When she’s not writing, Petersen conducts naturalist programs on bats and spends time with her young son. She enjoys snowshoeing, kayaking, photography, and birding. A member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, she is the author of more than two dozen books for young people.

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