Environmental Pollution and

Waste: Air, Water, and Land

Media

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 Air pollutant impacts
• Greenhouse effect
• Ozone depletion
• acidification
• smog formation
• eutrophication
• human health
• ecosystem health
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 Criteria Air Pollutants
• EPA uses six "criteria pollutants" as
indicators of air quality
• EPA established for each of them a
maximum concentration above which
adverse effects on human health may occur.

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 Criteria air pollutants
• Nitrogen Dioxide: NO2
– brownish gas irritates the respiratory system originates from
combustion (N2 in air is oxidized); NOx sum of NO, NO2, other
oxides of N
• Ozone: ground level O3
– primary constituent of urban smog
– reaction of VOC + NOx in presence of heat +sun light
• Carbon monoxide: CO
– reduces bloods ability to carry O2
– product of incomplete combustion

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• Lead: Pb
– cause learning disabilities in children , toxic to liver,
kidney, blood forming organs
– tetraethyl lead – anti knock agent in gasoline
• leaded gasoline has been phased out
• Particulate Matter: PM10 (PM 2.5)
– respiratory disorders
• Sulfur Dioxide: SO2
– formed when fuel (coal, oil) containing S is burned
and metal smelting
– precursor to acid rain along with NOx
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 Water Pollution
• Based on current water quality standards, over
70 percent of our rivers, 68 percent of our
estuaries and 60 percent of our lakes now meet
legislatively mandated goals.
• Some of the risks include
– pollutant runoff from agricultural lands
– stormwater flows from cities
• About 40,000 times each year, sanitary sewers overflow and
release raw sewage to streets and waterbodies.

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 Water Pollution
– seepage into ground water from nonpoint
sources
– the loss of habitats such as wetlands.
– we cannot always eat what we catch because
fish flesh is contaminated by the remaining
discharges and sources of toxic substances.
– Microbial contamination of drinking water still
presents problems in many communities.

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 Pollution Sources
• Point sources are direct discharges to a
single point;
– examples include discharges from sewage
treatment plants, injection wells,and some
industrial sources.

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 Pollution Sources
• Non-point sources are diffused across a
broad area and their contamination cannot
be traced to a single discharge point.
– Examples include runoff of excess fertilizers,
herbicides, and insecticides from agricultural
lands and residential areas; oil, grease, and
toxic chemicals from urban runoff and energy
production; and sediment from improperly
managed construction sites, crop and forest
lands, and eroding stream banks.
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US EPA Toxic Release Inventory
• Certain industrial facilities are mandated to
annually report to US EPA specified toxic
chemicals
– mandated under Emergency Planning &
Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) in
1986 and enacted under Superfund
Amendments & Reauthorization Act in 1987
– response to Bhopal (1984) and other accidents

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 Limitations of TRI
1) TRI does not cover all toxic chemicals that have the
potential to adversely affect human health or the
environment.
2) TRI does not require reporting from many major sources
of pollution releases.
3) TRI does not require companies to report the quantities of
toxic chemicals used or the amounts that remain in
products.
4) TRI does not provide information about the exposures
people may experience as a consequence of chemical use.

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 Industrial Waste
• Industrial waste is process waste associated
with manufacturing.
– This waste usually is not classified as either
municipal waste or hazardous waste by federal
or state laws.
– Regulatory programs for managing industrial
waste vary widely among state, tribal, and some
local governments.
• Each year, industrial facilities generate and
manage 7.6 billion tons of nonhazardous
industrial waste in land application units.
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 Municipal Solid Waste
• EPA definition
– includes wastes such as durable goods,
nondurable goods, containers and packaging,
food scraps, yard trimmings, and miscellaneous
inorganic wastes from residential, commercial,
institutional, and industrial sources.
• Examples of waste from these categories include
appliances, automobile tires, newspapers, clothing,
boxes, disposable tableware, office and classroom
paper, wood pallets, and cafeteria wastes.
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