1 / 37

Welfare Effects of Air Pollution

Welfare Effects of Air Pollution. Monday, February 11, 2008 ENV 4101/5105 Godish Chapter 6 For extra reference: EPA http://www.epa.gov/air/urbanair/. Introduction. Criteria Air Pollutants: Review: NAAQS from CAA Primary standards Secondary standards

diamond
Download Presentation

Welfare Effects of Air Pollution

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Welfare Effects of Air Pollution Monday, February 11, 2008 ENV 4101/5105 Godish Chapter 6 For extra reference: EPA http://www.epa.gov/air/urbanair/

  2. Introduction • Criteria Air Pollutants: • Review: NAAQS from CAA • Primary standards • Secondary standards • Hazardous Air Pollutants: Hg, dioxins, etc • Regulated under 1990 CAA Amendments • Some other important welfare aspects • Bioaerosols, Fluorides • May not have specific regulations • What are welfare effects?

  3. Criteria Air Pollutants: Ozone • Cause: ______________________ • Source: ______________________ • “Good O3” vs. “Bad O3” • Primary component of photochemical smog • Sunlight and hot weather  Summertime pollutant Mostly local impact Los Angeles, Wikipeida, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Los_Angeles_(CA)

  4. Criteria Air Pollutants: Ozone • Unpleasant appearance in urban cities  photochemical smog • Deterioration of synthetic rubber, textiles, paints US EPA in How Stuff Works Website, http://science.howstuffworks.com/ozone-pollution.htm Gates Corporation http://www.gates.com/brochure.cfm?brochure=2833&location_id=3369

  5. Criteria Air Pollutants: Ozone • Leaf damage • Chlorophyll damage: “flecks” • Discoloration • Reducing crop yields and forest growth • US damage to crops est. as 1 billion dollars annually (1985) • 25% reduction: +$1.7 billion • 40% reduction: +$2.5 billion • Loss of forest in US and Europe Tobacco leaf which has sustained ozone damage http://www.lambtonwildlife.com/nature_notes_98/tobac.fld/tobacp.htm Ponderosa Pine (left: undamaged; right: damaged) Image from Miller et al (1996) USFS PSW-GTR-155 http://www.cbesurvey.org/aplv/panek/research.htm Ozone damage on white pine (Photograph courtesy of A. Heagle) NC State, http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/Ornamental/odin19/od19.htm

  6. Criteria Air Pollutants: NOx • Cause: • Source: • Regional impacts • Acid precursor (covered later) • Ozone precursor • Absorbs blue-green  • Plant damage • Necrosis at 2-10 ppm • Growth retardation at 0.5 ppm • Ecosystem • Eutrophication • Nitrophilous Brown haze over Fort Collins, Photo by M. Osecky http://ccc.atmos.colostate.edu/~hail/cool/polution/pages/ftc_12-19-2003.htm

  7. Criteria Air Pollutants: SOx • Cause: • Source: • Regional impacts • Acid precursor (covered later) • Damage to plants • Chlorosis: • Necrosis: • Plasmolysis: • Damage to animals • Similar to health effects in humans • Paper: converted to H2SO4, brittling paper • Leather: initiates cracking Lettuce with discoloration due to chlorosis UC IPM, photo by Jack Kelly Clark http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/L/D-CC-LIYV-FS.006.html http://www.dias.kvl.dk/Plantvirology/esymptoms/symp-color.html

  8. Criteria Air Pollutants: NOx and SOx Original limestone sculpture in Krakow, Poland, severely damaged after years of exposure to acid rain • Acid precipitation • Non-localized pollution • Normal precip: pH ~ 5 to 5.6 • Acid precip: pH ~ 3 to 4.5 • HNO3 and H2SO4 • Form acids in atmosphere • Wet deposition • Dry deposition • 60%- sulfur based; 35%- nitrogen based • Corrosion and deterioration of structures Replicate made to replace original Photo: Sebastian Wypych; http://www.atmosphere.mpg.de/enid/Nr_6_Feb__2__6_acid_rain/C__Formation_of_acids_5i8.html

  9. Criteria Air Pollutants: NOx and SOx • Decrease water/soil pH • Episodic acidification • Water Body acidification • Release of aluminum • Reduce fish populations • Lakes becoming fishless • Affect biodiversity • Little Echo Pond, Franklin, NY pH = 4.2 • Harmful to Trees • Dissolves nutrients and minerals from soil • Necrosis • Growth abnormalities US EPA, http://www.epa.gov/acidrain/effects/surface_water.html Effects of acid rain on forest in Jizera Mountains of Czech Republic; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acid_rain

  10. Let’s tie together different areas of env. eng… What are the components of the carbonate system? Carbonic Acid (H2CO3) Bicarbonate (HCO3-) Carbonate (CO32-) CO2 (aq) + H2O  H2CO3  HCO3- + H+  CO32- + H+ How is acid buffered? Alkalinity How is it defined? Alk (eq/m3) = [HCO3-] + 2[CO3-2] + [OH-] What water bodies/soils have natural buffering? What type does not? Natural buffering: limestone (CaCO3) Minimal natural buffering: granite (frequently silica/quartz based) Notes to be posted following lecture Criteria Air Pollutants: NOx and SOx

  11. Criteria Air Pollutants: NOx and SOx • 200+ now-fishless lakes in Adirondacks • Little Echo Pond, Franklin, NY pH = 4.2 • Thousands of lakes in Canada (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick) now-fishless http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/194acidraineffects.html

  12. Criteria Air Pollutants: Particulate Matter • Review from 1/24 lecture • Very small solids/liquids that remain suspended • Anthropogenic causes: materials handling, combustion processes, gas conversion reactions • Main sources: industrial processes, coal and oil burning, vehicles

  13. Criteria Air Pollutants: Particulate Matter • Visibility Reduction • PM2.5 haze (review from 1/28 lecture) • Eastern parks’ avg. visual range reduced from 90 to 15-25 mi. • Western parks’ avg. visual range reduced from 140 to 35-90 mi. • http://www2.nature.nps.gov/air/Permits/ARIS/index.cfm for more national parks air quality info • Wildfires • Weather Patterns • Serve as condensation nuclei • Effect on fog and precipitation Great Smokey Mountains National Park, US EPA, http://www.epa.gov/visibility/

  14. Criteria Air Pollutants: Particulate Matter • PM derivatives of SO2 and NOx (sulfates and nitrates) • Intensifier • Refer to SOx and NOx section • Environmental Damage • Lake/stream acidification • Nutrient depletion in soils • Plant damage • Ecosystem diversity upset • Aesthetics Damage • Stain and damage stone structures New York City building façade after century of dirt (PM) accumulation http://www.nycjpg.com/2003/pages/0802.html

  15. Criteria Air Pollutants: Carbon Monoxide • Review… • Cause: incomplete combustion • Source: transportation sector, energy production, residential heating units, some industrial processes • Ambient concerns addressed by NAAQS • OSHA (50 ppm avg over 8-hour period) • CO contributes to the formation of ground-level ozone (refer to ozone section)  photochemical smog • Otherwise, largely inert to plants and materials

  16. Criteria Air Pollutants: Lead (Pb) • Health effects in animals • Domestic and wild • Similar to humans • What would these include? • Slow vegetation growth • Crop damage http://www.eaglevalleyraptorcenter.org/rehabilitation.asp http://www.unbc.ca/nlui/wildlife_diseases_bc/lead_poisoning.htm

  17. Other Heavy Metals • Source: metal smelters • Copper, zinc, nickel • Severe vegetation destruction • Including crops Rock left barren by Nickel smelter emissions in the Sudbury area; Natural Resrouces Canada http://ess.nrcan.gc.ca/2002_2006/sdki/mine/geospatial_e.php Area of forest where vegetation cover has colonized as a result of reduced emissions; Natural Resrouces Canada http://ess.nrcan.gc.ca/2002_2006/sdki/mine/geospatial_e.php

  18. HAPs: Mercury • Elemental Hg inhaled as a vapor, absorbed by lungs • Cause: vaporized mercury • Sources: coal combustion, accidental spill, mining • Deposition in lakes, streams, estuaries • Biologically turned into methylmercury • Accumulation in fatty tissue • Effects: • Progresses up food chain http://www.friendsforourriverfront.org/2005/02/information-for-press-and-media.html Some Florida Fish Advisories: Lake Alto (Alachua Co.): Children & Women of Childbearing Age should NOT eat Large Mouth Bass, Bowfin, or Gar Lake Disston (Flagler Co.): No one should eat Large Mouth Bass, Bowfin, or Gar From coastal waters: No one should eat: Shark larger than 43 in.; King mackerel larger than 31 in. http://www.doh.state.fl.us/floridafishadvice/Fish_consumption_guide.pdf

  19. HAPs: Dioxins • Generic term for several chemicals that are highly persistent in the environment • chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (CDDs) • chlorinated dibenzofurans (CDFs) • certain polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) • Cause: burning chlorine-based compounds with hydrocarbons • Sources: waste incinerator 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzofuran 3,3',4,4',5,5'-Hexachlorobiphenyl

  20. HAPs: Dioxins Fish Consumption Advisory for Dioxins in Florida: Do NOT Eat Checker Puffer Fish or Striped Mojarra from Wagner Creek in Miami-Dade County http://www.doh.state.fl.us/floridafishadvice/Fish_consumption_guide.pdf • Airborne dioxins deposit in environment • Slowly decompose • Taken up by animals (domestic or wild) • Accumulate in fat • 95% of human dioxin exposure through dietary intake of animal fats http://www.southfloridasportfishing.com/species2.cfm?c=v&n=91&ct=5&l=S

  21. Fluoride • Source: metal and stone processing, fertilizer manufacturing • Livestock damage • Used to cause most domestic animal damage of all air pollutants • Still a concern in developing countries • Intake from contaminated forage • Fluorosis • Chronic: dental and skeletal changes • Plant damage • Uptake of gaseous HF through leaves • Uptake of soluble particulates through leaves/roots • Accumulate in leaf margins and tips  Tip necrosis • Glass etching Fluorine damage in Dracina leaf; http://www.plantpath.wisc.edu/PDDCEducation/MasterGardener/General/Slide57.htm

  22. Other Aerosols: Bioaerosols • Aerosols with organic origin • Non-viable: pollen, dander, insect excreta, sea salt • Viable: microorganisms • Cause: aerosolization of organic material • Sources: • Human: sneezing, coughing, agriculture • Non-human: wind, waves, WWTP • Welfare Effects: crop, livestock damage, GEM, tourism Mechanical aeration in oxidation ditch at UF WWTP

  23. Other Aerosols: Bioaerosols • Crop Damage • Fungi • Irish Potato Famine • Fungi phytophthora infestans • 500,000-1,000,000 people killed between 1849-1846 • 2,000,000 refugees to England, US, etc • Livestock Damage • Close quarters • Bovine Respiratory Disease • 1999 Deaths: ~60% • 1991 BRD deaths: $624 million • Genetically Engineered Crops • Cross-pollination w/ non-GE crops • Reduction of genetic diversity  allows for susceptibility http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irish_Potato_Famine_%281845%E2%80%931849%29

  24. Other Aerosols: Bioaerosols • Red tide • Dinoflagellate produces toxin • Broken in waves • Toxin released • Irritating Tourism  Woods Hole Oceanological Institution http://www.whoi.edu/redtide/page.do?pid=9257 Image courtesy of P. Schmidt, Charlotte (FL) Sun

  25. Odors • Largely nuisance • Common sources: WWTP, pulp and paper mills, feedlots/livestock, rendering plants • Amines, sulfur gasses (H2S, mercaptans), phenol, NH3, aldehydes, fatty acids Photo by Kurt Hegre, the Fresno Bee, 2000

  26. Ecosystem Destruction • Effects rarely isolated • Everything connected • Forest destruction • Habitat • Animal death or bioaccumulation • Food chain USGS South Florida Information Access http://sofia.usgs.gov/publications/fs/166-96/fig1.html

  27. Economic Losses • In light of the many welfare effects, in what ways could these have an economic impact? • Crop damage • Livestock damage • Property value • Odors, visibility, vegetation damage • Structural and metal damage • Increased maintenance • Cultural importance • Tourism • National parks • Cultural monuments • Losses due to illnesses (welfare effects from health effects) • No work • Medical visit • And likely many more! • Note: slide posted following lecture

  28. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • San Joaquin Valley… • Nation’s “Salad Bowl” • Major transportation sector • Western border: Coastal Range • Eastern border: southern Sierra Nevadas • Yosemite, Kings Canyon, Seqouia National Parks • Winds enter through Bay Area • Hot summers • A few large cities: Bakersfield, Fresno, Stockton, Modesto, Visalia • All cities <500,000 population • Population growth: +20% from ’90 to ’00 • Daily VMT: +25% from ’90 to ‘00

  29. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley American Lung Association 2006 State of the Air Best and Worst Cities http://lungaction.org/reports/sota06_cities.html

  30. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • Some of the nation’s most polluted air • Non-attainment for state or federal ozone and PM2.5 • 35-40 days exceeding federal ozone • >100 days over CA ozone • ~5 days exceeding federal PM2.5 • 90-100 days exceeding CA PM2.5 • Largely rural • ~3.5 million in entire valley (250 miles long by ~75 miles wide) • Compared to Miami-Dade/Broward/Palm Beach Counties: 5.4 million in area 110 miles long by 5-20 miles wide • Why the San Joaquin Valley?

  31. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • Group Activity… • What are the likely sources of pollutants in this valley? • Why is it so bad in this area? • What are the likely health effects of these pollutants? • What are the likely welfare effects of these pollutants?

  32. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley Oil Rigs near Bakersfield; http://www.ems.psu.edu/~elsworth/courses/ cause2000/SemesterReports/NWmacrofinal/ff_petroleum.htm • What are the likely sources of pollutants in this valley? • Agriculture • Fields - PM • Burning – PM, NOx (O3), SOx, • Airborne pesticide – PM, VOC • Transportation sector – PM, NOx (O3), SOx • Interstate 5 and Highway 99 • Increased commutes from Bay Area • Energy production/petroleum • Note: slide posted following lecture Far Top: www.thealpacastore.com/grapevinecam/ Top and Right: Photos by Tom Myers http://www.tommyersphotography.com/detail.asp?PhotoID=2361 http://www.tommyersphotography.com/detail.asp?PhotoID=2245 http://www.tommyersphotography.com/detail.asp?PhotoID=2365&CtgryID=33&Child=

  33. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • Why is it so bad in this area? • Geography • Winds • Mountains • Bay Area and Sacramento sources • 27% in north SJ Valley • 7% in South SJ Valley • Hot, stagnant summers • Normal high >95oF in July/Aug • Ozone formation • Note: slide posted following lecture USDA 1972 at http://www.cbesurvey.org/aplv/panek/ozone.htm

  34. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • What are the likely health effects of these pollutants? • San Joaquin County: 23.1% of children had lifetime asthma prevalence • Fresno County: highest childhood asthma rate in state • No. 1 reason for missing school • 2006 Summer: 23 Spare the Air Days • Health Advisories common in Valley • 2002: 11+ • 1998: 14 • Note: slide posted following lecture Courtesy NASA

  35. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • What are the likely welfare effects of these pollutants? • Decreased visibility • National parks • Sequoia one of worst polluted parks • Decline of CA pines from O3 • Pesticides • Water acidification/eutrophication • Crop and livestock damage • CARB estimates 10-20% crop reduction for grapes, cotton, tomatoes, oranges, alfalfa • CARB estimates by reducing avg O3 to 0.025 ppm from current avg. of ~0.05 ppm, increase in up to 70% of yield for some crops with $1.5 billion in direct benefits • Note: Slide posted following lecture Visibility Impairment at El Capitan in Yosemite with Half Dome in the background; http://epa.gov/air/visibility/parks/yosemite.html

  36. Case Study: San Joaquin Valley • What are the likely welfare effects of these pollutants? • Medical care • Missed work • Less enjoyable lifestyle • Note: slide posted following lecture

  37. Review of Lecture • Welfare Effects • Criteria pollutants • Purpose of primary standards • Wide range of welfare effects • Crop/vegetation damage • Livestock damage • Building and material damage • HAPs • Other aerosols • Trickle effect of welfare effects • Ecosystem destruction • Economic associations • Connections: Air is pervasive • Effects are felt throughout world

More Related