APES Unit 9

atmosphere layers

Bottom to Top: Troposphere

ozone layer

a layer in the stratosphere (at approximately 20 miles) that contains a concentration of ozone sufficient to block most ultraviolet radiation from the sun

air gases

79% Nitrogen

natural air pollution

• Wind storms that spread dust clouds

• Salt evaporation along the earth's coasts

• Production of materials that have a biologic origin (e.g.

mold spores

• Forest fires

• Volcanic eruptions

asian brown cloud

a massive dark brown cloud of mostly industrial smog stretching nearly continuously across much of India

primary pollutants

pollutants that are put directly into the air by human or natural activity.

secondary pollutants

pollutants that form from chemical reactions that occur when primary pollutants come in contact with other primary pollutants or with naturally occuring substances

carbon monoxide

(CO) Sources include incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Effects: binds to hemoglobin reducing bloods ability to carry O2. Reduction accomplished by catalytic converters

Particulate Matter

sources include burning fossil fuels and car exhaust. Effects include reduced visibility

Lead

Home Piping

Ozone

Secondary pollutant

Nitrogen Oxides

(Source: auto exhaust) (Effects: acidification of lakes

Volatile Organic Compounds

Fossil fuels

Sulfur Dioxide

produced by chemical interacting between sulfur and oxygen. Contributes to acid rain. Harm plant life

industrial smog

smog resulting from emissions from industry and other sources of gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels.

ground ozone

bad ozone

photochemical smog

formed by chemical reactions involving sunlight (NO

grasshopper effect

During the summer in tropical and temperate climates

temperature inversion

atmospheric condition in which warm air traps cooler air near the earth's surface

acid deposition

Precipitation with a pH less than 5.6 that forms in the atmosphere when certain pollutants mix with water vapor.

sick building syndrome

headaches

radon

radioactive gas

formaldehyde

a naturally occuring VOC found in small amounts of animals and plants; a carcinogenic and an irritant to most people when present in high concentrations. Want to eliminate in composite wood. Interiors can test for formaldehyde and carbon monoxide in buildings.

Clean Air Acts

An act meant to reduce smog and pollution

National Ambient Air Quality Standards

Health-based pollutant concentration limits established by EPA that apply to outside air.

criteria pollutants

particulate matter

emissions trading

programs where companies have cut pollution by more that they're required to can sell credits to other companies that exceed allowed levels

wet scrubbers

type of particle remover; for particles

electrostatic precipitators

An air pollution control device that gives ash a positive electrical charge so that it adheres to negatively charged plates

catalytic converters

Causes the exhaust gases (carbon monoxide

CFC's

Chlorinated Fluorocarbons are chemicals that break down the ozone layer

Rowland and Molina

found in 1974 that CFCs might actually attack the ozone layer

Montreal Protocol

meeting in 1987 where a group of nations met in Canada and agreed to take steps to fight against Ozone Depletion-CFC's banned

urban sprawl

an aggregation or continuous network of urban communities

urban heat island

Local heat buildup in an area of high population density

shantytowns

Unplanned slum development on the margins of cities

zoning

dividing an area into zones or sections reserved for different purposes such as residence and business and manufacturing etc

urban growth boundary

geographical boundaries placed around a city to limit suburban growth within that city

cluster development

urban development where high-density housing units are concentrated on one portion of a parcel

greenbelt

a belt of parks or rural land surrounding a town or city

Kyoto Protocol

an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change(UNFCCC) that commits state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that global warming is occurring and that human-made CO₂ emissions are driving it.

Paris Agreement 2015

wass an international treaty on climate changethat was adopted in 2015. The treaty covers climate change mitigation, adaptation, and finance.