Atmospheric Contamination in the United States

Atmospheric Contamination in Environmental Law

Although ozone depletion, global warming, and acid deposition are separate topics, the causes leading to all these problems are the same: air emissions. The propellants and refrigerants used in products, fossil fuel burning, and population growth have combined to disturb the balance of our ecosystem.

Ozone Depletion

At ground level, ozone is harmful, impacting breathing and lung efficiency. It is one of the major components of smog and is regulated indirectly by controlling volatile organic compounds, emissions commonly associated with fossil fuel combustion. High above the earth in the stratosphere, though, a layer of ozone protects life on earth by serving as a screen to filter out some of the sun’s more harmful ultraviolet rays. So in 1985, scientists were alarmed to discover a hole developing in that layer above Antarctica that is constantly growing bigger.

The main culprit in ozone depletion is a group of chemicals called chlo rofluorocarbons (CFCs). Like so many chemicals that have turned into Frankenstein’s monsters, CFCs were originally hailed as a scientific breakthrough. Very stable compounds, they are used as propellants, refrigerants, firefighting agents, air conditioning fluids. They are not immediately harmful to humans, except in extreme overexposure.

The complication: CFCs break apart in the stratosphere when they come in contact with ultraviolet radiation. Then they form chlorine ions, which react with and destroy the ozone molecules.

Global Warming

Global warming is a controversial theory. Depending on whom you ask, global warming is definitely established, only contested by a few mavericks, totally unproven, or a hoax. There is no reliable way to verify the effects of the gases in our upper atmosphere, short of measuring them over a long period. So, given the controversial nature of the evidence, a nonbinding agreement among a few nations to reduce the amount of carbon dioxide they emit is the most stringent antiglobal warming measure enacted so far.

The issue keeps surfacing, though. Because of the dire implications of a global temperature increase, it is, and will likely remain, one of the most important environmental issues in the next decade and longer, while scientists gather more information.

Though many question the validity of the global warming theory, no one doubts the existence of the greenhouse effect. It is caused by carbon dioxide combined with water vapor, which traps some of the heat from the sun in the upper atmosphere so that it doesn’t all return to its source. It is an essential part of earth’s systems, serving to keep the world warm and habitable under the right conditions, that is. The problem associated with the greenhouse effect, as perceived by many scientists, is both in the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the addition of other gases. The carbon dioxide levels in the upper atmosphere have increased by 25 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. As more and more heat is trapped, the temperatures on earth may begin to rise. Up until the last decade or so, carbon dioxide was almost the sole constituent of the greenhouse gases.

The culprits that could bring about projected intensification of the greenhouse effect are CFCs, methane, nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, and other trace gases that have increased in the upper atmosphere. The carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide comes from the same primary activities: fossil fuel burning, deforestation, and soil cultivation. Methane is generated by landfills, cattle, rice paddies, and some other agricultural activities. Molecule for molecule, methane and nitrous oxide are the biggest part of the problem.

The controversial aspect of global warming turns on the difficulty of isolating the relative effects of various natural phenomena on weather patterns. Many events influence the atmosphere. A volcano discharges enough debris to lower temperatures over periods lasting up to a year or more. Erosion and dust storms have a similar effect. Population growth and the need for food and other basic comforts influence human activity, which increases greenhouse gases or conditions that cause them. With all of these factors to account for, it is difficult to establish the effect of a single factor. But one fact remains: we have altered the mixture of gases in the upper atmosphere, setting the stage for changing normal weather cycles.

The issue keeps surfacing, though. Because of the dire implications of a global temperature increase, it is, and will likely remain, one of the most important environmental issues in the next decade and longer, while scientists gather more information.

Though many question the validity of the global warming theory, no one doubts the existence of the greenhouse effect. It is caused by carbon dioxide combined with water vapor, which traps some of the heat from the sun in the upper atmosphere so that it doesn’t all return to its source. It is an essential part of earth’s systems, serving to keep the world warm and habitable under the right conditions, that is. The problem associated with the greenhouse effect, as perceived by many scientists, is both in the increase of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and the addition of other gases. The carbon dioxide levels in the upper atmosphere have increased by 25 percent since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. As more and more heat is trapped, the temperatures on earth may begin to rise. Up until the last decade or so, carbon dioxide was almost the sole constituent of the greenhouse gases.

The culprits that could bring about projected intensification of the greenhouse effect are CFCs, methane, nitrous oxide, carbon dioxide, and other trace gases that have increased in the upper atmosphere. The carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide comes from the same primary activities: fossil fuel burning, deforestation, and soil cultivation. Methane is generated by landfills, cattle, rice paddies, and some other agricultural activities. Molecule for molecule, methane and nitrous oxide are the biggest part of the problem.

The controversial aspect of global warming turns on the difficulty of isolating the relative effects of various natural phenomena on weather patterns. Many events influence the atmosphere. A volcano discharges enough debris to lower temperatures over periods lasting up to a year or more. Erosion and dust storms have a similar effect. Population growth and the need for food and other basic comforts influence human activity, which increases greenhouse gases or conditions that cause them. With all of these factors to account for, it is difficult to establish the effect of a single factor. But one fact remains: we have altered the mixture of gases in the upper atmosphere, setting the stage for changing normal weather cycles.

Acid Deposition

Acid deposition, usually referred to as acid rain, is another newly created problem when viewed from the perspective of the earth’s history. It results from the burning of fossil fuels, primarily coal. Industrial activity, power generation, and transportation primarily automobiles have caused most of these emissions. The combustion process releases sulfur dioxide and nitrous oxides, which combine with water vapor to form acidic clouds. Acid clouds move along air currents, then release their moisture in the form of acid rain, snow, or other precipitation.

Acid deposition damages forests and other vegetation, lakes and streams, aquatic life, and even etches buildings. Canada has been disturbed by the acid deposition it has received as the immediate neighbor of the heavily industrialized northeastern United States. Because Europe, too, is heavily industrialized, it has also grappled with the difficulties caused by its industries.
Based on “Environment and the Law. A
Dictionary”.