Noise pollution  120 - uncomfortably loud.

Conversation
impossible.
In the environmental noise survey guidance document
 140 - noise causing pain in ears.
most recently issued by the epa8 the definition of noise
is given (guidance only) as follows: 1+1+1 does not equal to 3
“any sound, that has the potential to cause disturbance, The decibel is a logarithmic unit of measure so we can’t
discomfort or psychological stress to a subject exposed simply add numbers.
to it, or any sound, that could cause actual physiological
harm to a subject exposed to it, or physical damage to
any structure exposed to it, is known as noise.”
Noise is difficult to define!
Three facets of sound:
 Source
 Transmission
 Effect
High frequency noise
3 major sets of sources for indoor sources and 5 for
outdoor sources  Power tools, saws, grinders
 Other high rpm equipment
Indoor:  Sudden release of pressure
 Apartments & houses High frequency noises deflect easier, are easier to
 Office & factory shield, are easier to insulate.
 Disco(?), entertainment
Outdoor:
 Transportation
 Construction, industrial operations
 Humans-shouting, boom box
 Miscellaneous (pets, air conditioners, sirens,
garbage can lids, lawn mowers)
Audible range
The ear can hear sounds ranging from 20hz to 20khz. It Low Frequency Noise
is most sensitive to frequencies between 500hz and
 Power Presses
4000hz, which corresponds almost exactly to the
 Pumps, Compressors
speech band. Note that this threshold increases
 Other Low RPM Equipment
significantly with lower frequencies
Low frequency Noises Can Travel Around and Through
Noise measurements
Objects and Are Harder to Shield and Absorb
Noise levels are expressed as decibels(db)
Dba description

 0 - absolute silence.
 25 - very quiet room.
 35 - rural night-time setting. No wind.
 55 - day-time, busy roadway 0.5 km away.
 70 - busy restaurant.
 85 - very busy pub. Voice has to be raised to be
heard.
 100 - disco or rock concert.
Harmful Effects
Harmful Effects of Noise Are Related to the Noise Dose
Is the Noise Harmful?
Ask Yourself:
How Loud, How Long, How Many Times?
Noise Dose is a Combination
Water conflicts: Global
 Intensity of noise (how loud)
 Duration of noise exposure (how long) Two main factors for water shortage: dry climate and
 Frequency (how many times during the day are too many people. Many people live in hydro poverty –
they exposed to such a noise) can’t afford clean water.

Effects of Noise Pollution

 Noise has many effects on humans, including

hearing loss, non-auditory physiological effects,
sleep disruption, annoyance, communication
interference, and other effects.
 Noise not only affects hearing.
 It affects other parts of the body and body
systems. It is now known that noise:
 Increases blood pressure
 Has negative cardiovascular effects such as
changing the way the heart beats Pollution Source terminology
 Increases breathing rate
 Disturbs digestion Point source = pollution comes from single, fixed, often
 Can cause an upset stomach or ulcer large identifiable sources
 Can negatively impact a developing fetus,
 smoke stacks
perhaps contributing to premature birth
 discharge drains
 Makes it difficult to sleep, even after the noise
 tanker spills
stops
 Intensifies the effects of factors like drugs, Non-point source = pollution comes from dispersed
alcohol, aging and carbon monoxide sources
Noise controls, hearing protection  agricultural runoff
 street runoff
 Changes in machinery, equipment;
 Enclosures of sources; Point Source of Polluted Water in Gargas, France
 Damping with absorption; soundproofing
Nonpoint Sediment from Unprotected Farmland Flows
 Sound insulation, separation, barriers
into Streams
Water Pollution
Types of Water Pollution
Water Resources
Sediment
Water
 logging, roadbuilding, erosion
 Earth’s surface is covered by 71% water
Oxygen-demanding wastes
 Essential for life –can survive only a few days
without water  human waste, storm sewers, runoff from
agriculture, grazing and logging, many others
Supply of Water Resources
Small fraction (.014%) is readily available for human use
BOD
 As micro-organisms decompose (through
respiration) organic matter, they use up all the
available oxygen.
 Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) Amount of
oxygen required to decay a certain amount of
organic matter.
 If too much organic matter is added, the
available oxygen supplies will be used up.
Types of Water Pollution
Eutrophication -> nutrient enrichment
 N, P from fertilizers, detergents
 leads to increased growth in aquatic systems,
ultimately more non-living organic matter
Disease-causing organisms
 from untreated sewage, runoff from feed lots
Toxic chemicals
 pesticides, fertilizers, industrial chemicals
Heavy metals
 lead, mercury
Acids
Elevated temperatures = Thermal Pollution
 water is used for cooling purposes, then heated
water is returned to its original source
 any increase in temperature, even a few
degrees, may significantly alter some aquatic
ecosystems.
Major sources of water pollution
Agriculture activities: leading cause of water pollution
 Sediment eroded from the lands
 Fertilizers and pesticides
 Bacteria from livestock and food processing
wastes
Industrial facilities
Mining
Oil Spills
Exxon Valdez released 42 million liters of oil in Prince
William Sound, contaminating 1500 km of Alaska
coastline in 1989
Most marine oil pollution comes from non-point
sources:
 runoff from streets
 improper disposal of used oil
 discharge of oil-contaminated ballast water
from tankers
Groundwater Pollution
 Agricultural products
 Underground storage tanks
 Landfills
 Septic tanks
 Surface impoundments
Growth of population
 Supply & demand are in growing conflict –
supply is finite –water management driven by
values and needs
 Increases demand/use of water
 Increases land use and changes vegetation and
permeability
 Increases demand for instream values –
instream flows are for people
 Waste Disposal Methods

Solid Waste What’s in our trash?

Key Concepts
 Types and amounts of wastes
 Preventing waste
 Methods of dealing with wastes
Wasting Resources
US waste: 11 billion metric tons/year

 Mining waste
 Agricultural waste
 Industrial waste
 Municipal solid waste (MSW)
 Sewage sludge
US consumers toss every year:
 aluminum cans to rebuild commercial airline
fleet 4 times
 e-waste by the millions
 tires to circle planet 3x
 diapers to moon and back 7x
 carpet to cover Delaware
 670,000 metric tons of food and much, much
more…

US Solid Waste since 1960

Producing Less Waste

 Waste management (high waste approach)

 Burying, burning, shipping
 Waste prevention (low waste approach)
 Reduce, reuse, recycle
 Chemically or biologically treat or incinerate
waste that cannot be reduced, reused, recycled
or composted Recycling
 Bury what is left in “state of the art “ landfill
 Primary (closed-loop)
 Refuse to buy products that cannot be recycled
 Secondary (open loop)
 BUY WHAT YOU NEED…NOT WHAT YOU
 Pre-consumer waste
WANT!!!
 Post-consumer waste
Dealing with Material Use and Wastes
Characteristics of Recyclable Materials

 Easily isolated from other waste

 Available in large quantities
 Valuable
Benefits of Recycling

Solutions: Cleaner Production

Eco-industrial revolution
Resource exchange webs

 waste from one industry is raw material for

another –see figure
Biomimicry (mimic nature)

 no waste in nature
Service-flow economy

 Selling services instead of things

Burning Wastes
 Mass burn incineration
 Air pollution
 Waste to energy
Burying Wastes
 Landfills most common method of waste
disposal -cheap and convenient.
 Open pits no longer acceptable.
 Complex impermeable bottom layers to trap
contaminants
 Daily deposits are covered by layer of dirt.
 Methane gas and leachate monitoring wells
Sanitary Landfill
Air Pollution
Key Concepts
 Structure and composition of the atmosphere
 Types and sources of outdoor air pollution
 Types, formation, and effects of smog
 Sources and effects of acid deposition
 Indoor air pollution
 Effects of air pollution
 Prevention and control of air pollution
Outdoor Air Pollution
 Primary - Released directly from planet’s
surface. Dust, smoke particles, Nitrogen, Carbon
etc.
  Secondary -Formed when primary pollutants  NOx is also a precursor to acid rain and
react or combine with one another, or basic photochemical smog (both secondary
elements. pollutants) and is a greenhouse gas
Primary Air Pollutants Secondary Air Pollutants
Carbon Monoxide—Produced when organic materials  Ground level ozone* (O3)
are incompletely burned.  PANs (Peroxyacetylnitrate)
 Aldehydes
 Single largest source is the automobile.
 all three formed by interaction between NOx
 Not a persistent pollutant.
and VOCs.
 Binds to hemoglobin in blood and makes the
hemoglobin less able to carry oxygen. *Note: -Ozone is a pollutant in the troposphere, but
 Most dangerous in enclosed spaces. natural and beneficial in the stratosphere (ozone layer).
 Cigarette smoking an important source.
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)
 Organic chemicals with high vapor pressure at
ordinary room temperature
 Paint solvents (e.g.: formaldehyde),
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), fossil fuels, tobacco
smoke (e.g.: benzene)
 Causes eye, nose, throat irritation; headaches,
loss of coordination, nausea; damage to liver,
kidney, and central nervous system; cancer
Particulates—Minute pieces of solid materials dispersed Photochemical Smog
into the atmosphere (<10 microns).
 Brown-air smog
 Smoke, Asbestos, Dust, Ash  Some primary pollutants react under the
 Can accumulate in lungs and interfere with the influence of sunlight (photochemical reaction),
ability of lungs to exchange gases, and even including NOx, O3, PANs. Corrosive, irritating.
cause lung cancer.  Common in urban areas of the west US: cars +
Primary Air Pollutants sun + mountains.

Sulfur Dioxide (SO2)—Sulfur and oxygen compound

produced when sulfur-containing fossil fuels are
burned.
 Burning coal is primary artificial source
 Volcanoes and hot springs are natural sources
 Mt St Helens releases 50 to 250 tons/day when
active
 Steam Plant recently: 200 tons/day
 After scrubbers (flue-gas desulfurization)
installed (cost $250 million): 27 tons/day
 SO2 is also a precursor to acid rain (a secondary
pollutant)
Primary Air Pollutants
Nitrogen Oxides (NO, NO2)—Formed when combustion
takes place in the air.
 Automobile exhaust is primary source.
Industrial Smog Acid Deposition and Humans

 Gray-air smog  Respiratory diseases

 From burning coal and oil (particulates, sulfur  Toxic metal leaching
dioxide, sulfuric acid).  Damage to structures, especially containing
 London was the smog capitol. In 1952, smog calcium carbonate
developed for days, no atmospheric mixing,  Decreased visibility
4,000 people died.  Decreased productivity and profitability of
 Now mainly a problem in LDCs with developing fisheries, forests, and farms
industries and no pollution control laws.
Acid Deposition and Aquatic Systems
 Fish declines
 Aluminum toxicity
 Acid shock

Acid Deposition, Plants, and Soil

Regional Outdoor Air Pollution from Acid Deposition  Nutrient leaching

 Heavy metal release
•Wet deposition and Dry deposition  Weakens trees