Air contamination caused by human activity

AIIVITY1. AIR CONTAMINATIONInsertion into atmosphere or thecreation of the chemical agents and substances caused by natural, andanthropogenous factors forms an air contamination. The natural sources ofcontamination of an atmosphere are volcanos, wood fires, dusty storms, aweathering etc. These factors do not threaten with negative consequences tonatural ecosystems, except somecatastrophic natural phenomena.For example, the eruption of a volcano Cracataoin 1883, when into atmosphere 18 km cubes of ashes powder were thrown out eruption of a volcano Catmay Alaska in the 1912 that had thrown out 20 kmcubes of friable products.

The ashes of these eruptions were spread over large part of the surface of the Earth andhas caused the reduction of solar radiation by 10-20 that accordingly hascaused in northern hemisphere reduction of annual average temperature of air by0.5 C. 1 However per the last decades theanthropogenous factors of an air contamination became to exceed by scalesnatural factors, acquiring global character.

They can render various effects onatmosphere direct - on state of the atmosphere heating, change of humidityetc. influence on chemical properties of the atmosphere change of structure,increase of concentration of carbon dioxide, aerosols, freons etc. influenceon properties of a spreading surface change of size, albedo, system ocean -atmosphere etc. To basic sources ofcontamination we can refer the industrial enterprises, transport, powersystem, agriculture etc. Amongindustries especially toxic wastes are made by enterprises of colourmetallurgy, chemical, petrochemical, black metallurgy, wood-working,pulp amp paper industry etc. If you live in the advancedcountry, with probability 2 3 you breathe by air that does not meet thestandards 2 . Is thisair bad enough? It s bad enough to cause 50 thousand anticipatory deathannually.

It s potentially enough bad to destroy ecosystem and to make theEarth uninhabited. 2. AIR CONTAMINATION IIONThe ecological problems of the Russian societyhave become aggravated recently so, that without their consideration it isimpossible to decide political and economic tasks, to form a notion ofprospects of social development. A Level of ecological safety, in opinion ofthe experts, is lowest 94 of the interrogated experts have evaluated anecological situation in country as unsuccessful 3 .The analysis of the statisticaldata of the amount of wastes of harmful substances in atmosphere during 90-s has shown that on the whole in Russian Federation during this period there wasa significant decrease of wastes by 6525000 tons or 19 4 . So, in 1992 in comparison with1991 wastes of contaminating substances in atmospheric air from stationarysources have decreased less than by 17 . Althogh the level of production inalmost all branches was decreased by 35-30 5 . Leaders of wastes of harmfulsubstances in an atmosphere during 3 years are Krasnoyarsk region, the Tyumen,Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk, Kemerovo area and these areas only by the givenparameter it is necessary to attribute to a zone of the ecological catastrophe see table . As you see most contaminated regions are economic centers ofRussian Federation and unfortunately most populated.AIR CONTAMINATION IN RUSSIAN FEDERATION Region Wastes into atmosphere Thousands tons Russian Federation 31804,2 100,0 Including Krasnoyarsk region 3182,7 10,0 Sverdlovsk area 2401,8 7,5 The Tyumen area 2369,8 7,4 The Chelyabinsk area 2060,5 6,0 The Kemerovo area 1208,9 4,0 The Vologda area 978,0 3,0 Irkutsk area 967,0 3,0 The Orenburg area 911,8 3,0 Source Demidenko L.О. Changing atmosphere.

Moscow 1996.78 p. For example, as a result ofactivity of the industrial enterprises Cherepovetsk is lead up to the verge ofthe ecological catastrophe.

And the main part here belongs to joint-stockcompany Severstal the share of the company in wastes into atmosphere annuallyhas constituted 95 of all-urban s. 6 As to Yakutsk, in opinion of the chief ofthe group of the monitoring center of the environment pollution of Yakutskhydroweather station headquarter Ludmila Yushkova, it is contaminated by theweighted substances dust , oxide of carbon, dioxide of nitrogen and, thatespecially alarms, by benzapiren.

In winter northern part of Yakutsk hardlysuffer where the industrial objects are concentrated.

The greatest pollution bydust and oxide of carbon is noted in the center of the city owing to the largecongestion of motor-vehicle transport there.

Nevertheless the concentration ofheavy metals in air is lower than norm and lower than estimates over cities ofRussian Federation. 7 Now 2 3 population of Russiacontinues to live in conditions of dangerous air contamination.

It undoubtedlyhas an effect on their health, as the various chemical elements are mostintensively absorbed by organism during breathing.

But the effect of changes ofthe environment is especially harmful for quality of genofond. 3. ATMOSPHERE PROTECTION MEASURES Measures of the protection ofatmosphere are subdivided into three large groups. First group decreasemeasures of gross amount of contamination, thrown out into atmosphere.This isthe improvement of the quality of fuel, using of special liquids in fuel etc.Same group of measures includes perfecting of technological processes includingdevelopment of the closed cycle production without making of harmful substancesinto atmosphere.

The second group includesmeasures of protection of atmosphere by dispersion, processing andneutralization of harmful wastes.And finally the third group of measuresassumes prevention of the air contamination by rational placing of the dirty enterprises - sources of harmful wastes with consideration of naturalconditions and potential possibility of the air contamination.For realization of atmosphere protection measures the strict statecontrol of air environment, economic and legal stimulation of measures forcontrol of its pollution are also important.But no one company begins to reduce its wastes if it does not meettheir interests, if it is not profitable for them especially for Russia .Unfortunately it is hard to make them reduce pollution by prohibitions.

In thisconnection it is offered to distribute interesting experience of the USA,Canada, Germany and Austria where enterprises redeem quotas for wastes ofharmful gases i.e. pay for using of natural environment belonging to all worldcommunity . Other variant is introduction of the international green tax for harmful wastes.

In this case firms would be interested inecologically clean production. 8 But unfortunately in most cases nature protection activity does notyield a profit for enterprises, except of cases connected with useful using,that is utilization of wastes caught during cleaning of waste water and gases.The most of these substances are valuable raw material sulfur, a dust ofcolour metals etc. and can be used in production, promoting thereby forreceiving of the additional profit.Thismeasure, certainly, requires forward scientific technologies.

So, for example,in Norway in 80 s there was one factory on production of aluminium, it threwout into an atmosphere many weighted particles, especially lead, and themanagement of this factory was compelled to use special dustcatchers.

By 90 sthe factory became unprofitable, then it has paid attention to this thrownleaden dust, It appears that this dust is a very valuable material forproduction of completely new high-strength plates 9 .Now this factory exists only due to waste of this dust. In Russia, much to ourregret, there are no such examples.Finallylarge significant part has an ecological culture of the population one ofexamples of respect of the nature is the act of the board directors chairman ofthe company Monsanto Reachard Mahoney.

He, having seen, how much toxic wasteshis company makes, was shocked and has decided to reduce a level of toxicwastes by 90 10 . 1 Raimers N.F. Ecology theory, laws,rules, principles иhypothesis . Moscow 1994. 6 p. 2 Gregg Easterbrook.Cleaning Up Newsweek. 1989.24 July.p.27-42. 3 Sosunova I.A. All-Russian conference Ministryof the Nature of RF 1994.Health.1994. Nov. 4 Aisenshtat R.D. Ecological situation in Russian Federation.

Moscow, 1993.45 p. 5 Roubin L.N.Especially protected territories.Moscow,1995.67 p. 6 Kulikov L.М Bases of economic knowledge Moscow, 1998. 233 p. 7 Yushkova L.What we breathe, what we drink.Yakutia.1997.22 March. 8 Karin P.R. Ecological boomerang Science and life. 1996. 5. P.34 9 Politkovskaya А. Till catastrophe? Newtimes,1994. 18 19.P.51-53. 10 .Stanley H. Evolution as a Disease Chemtech. 1995. 8. P. 46-69.