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Air What causes air pollution? Chapter 12 Section 1.

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Presentation on theme: "Air What causes air pollution? Chapter 12 Section 1."— Presentation transcript:

1 Air What causes air pollution? Chapter 12 Section 1

2 Air Pollution Harmful substances build up in the air to unhealthy levels Primary – put directly into the air by human activity Secondary – primary pollutant comes into contact with other primary pollutants or other substances such as water vapor and a chemical reaction takes place

3 Primary Pollutants in the U. S. Carbon monoxide – cars, trucks, buses, small engines Nitrogen oxide – burning fuels in vehicles, power plants, industrial boilers Sulfur dioxide – burning fossil fuels Volatile organic compounds – burning fuels, especially vehicles Particulate matter – construction, agriculture, forestry & fires, vehicles, industry

4 Motor Vehicle Emissions One-third of air pollution comes from gasoline burned in vehicles Clean Air Act of 1970 and 1990 allows EPA to regulate emissions ZEV – zero emission vehicles, no tailpipe, no emissions form gasoline, and no emission control systems that wear-out over time. Est. in 1990 in California, adopted by Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Vermont

5 Industrial Air Pollution Industry and power plants burn fossil fuels which release nitrogen oxide and sulfur dioxide Clean Air Act requires scrubbers to clean air from smoke stacks Smog – combination of auto exhaust and ozone, caused by pollutants from vehicles and industry

6 Smog

7 Temperature Inversions Air above is warmer than the air below so pollution is trapped in the lower layer


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