Text l air pollution

Air pollution has been recognised for several decades as being a major problem especially for developed nations with large industrial bases and highly developed infrastructures. Every year billions of tons of pollutants are released into the atmosphere, the sources ranging from electric power plants burning fossil fuels to the effects of sunlight on certain materials.

Among air pollutants emitted by natural sources, only the radioactive gas radon is recognised as a major health threat. The rest of the air pollutants released into the atmosphere are a direct result of man's activities and we have only ourselves to blame for producing life threatening pollutants. The following is a list of the major air pollutants and their causes:

• Carbon Monoxide...Some industrial processes, mainly motor vehicle exhaust

• Lead......Battery plants, lead smelters, motor vehicle exhaust

• Sulphur Dioxide......Sulphuric acid plants, mainly power generating plants burning fossil fuels

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• Nitrogen Oxides......Motor vehicle exhaust, burning of fossil fuels, nitric acid plants, explosives, fertiliser plants

• Carbon Dioxide.....Any combustion source

• Photochemical oxidants...Formed in the atmosphere by the action of sunlight on nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons eg. Ozone

• Methane...Natural decomposition of organic matter (not considered dangerous, but has long term global implications eg. "greenhouse effect'')

• Non methane hydrocarbons......Industrial processes, solvent evaporation, fuel combustion, exhausts, solid waste treatments

• Particulate matter......Motor vehicle exhaust, industrial processes, incineration, power generation, pollution reaction to gases in the atmosphere (may include carbon, nitrates, sulphates, and metal fragments/dusts)

The level is usually given in terms of atmospheric concentrations (micrograms of pollutants per cubic metre of air) or, for gases, in terms of parts per million, that is, number of pollutant molecules per million air molecules. Many come from directly identifiable sources; sulphur dioxide, for example, comes from electric power plants burning coal or oil.

Others are formed through the action of sunlight on previously emitted reactive materials (called precursors). For example, ozone, a dangerous pollutant in smog, is produced by the interaction of hydrocarbons and nitrogen oxides under the influence of sunlight. Ozone has also caused serious crop damage. On the other hand, the discovery in the 1980s that air pollutants such as fluorocarbons are causing a loss of ozone from the Earth's protective ozone layer has caused the phasing out of these materials. What are the main sources of Air Pollution?

The biggest and most obvious cause is the combustion of coal, oil, and petroL More than 8o96 of the sulphur dioxide, 50% of the nitrogen oxides, and 30 to 40% of the particulate matter emitted to the atmosphere are produced by fossil-fuel-fired electric power plants, industrial boilers, and residential furnaces. 80% of the carbon monoxide and 40% of the nitrogen oxides and hydrocarbons come from vehicle exhaust emissions. Other major pollution sources include iron and steel mills; zinc, lead, and copper smelters; municipal incinerators; oil refineries; cement plants; and nitric and sulphuric acid plants.

What are the effects of Air Pollution?

Certainly those who suffer from asthma or any respiratory complaint will notice the effects of increased air pollution whether it be near a city, an industrial area, or near a main road. For others the clues He in the flora and fauna around us.

The tall smokestacks used by industries and utilities do not remove pollutants but simply boost them higher into the atmosphere, thereby reducing their concentration at the site. These pollutants may then be transported over large distances and produce adverse effects in areas far from

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the site of the original emission. Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide emissions from western Europe are causing acid rain in Norway and Sweden.

The PH level, or relative acidity, of many freshwater lakes has been altered so dramatically by acid rain that entire fish populations have been destroyed. Sulphur dioxide emissions and the subsequent formation of sulphuric acid can also be responsible for the attack on limestone and marble at large distances from the source.

The increase in the burning of coal and oil has led to ever-increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide. The resulting "greenhouse effect" could lead to a warming trend that might affect the global climate and lead to a partial melting of the polar ice caps. Possibly an increase in cloud cover or absorption of excess carbon dioxide by the oceans (in the so-called carbon cycle) would check the greenhouse effect before it reached the stage of polar melting.

Nevertheless, many research reports released during the 1980s have indicated that the greenhouse effect is definitely under way and that the nations of the world should be taking immediate steps to deal with it. ("The Bell Curve". June 2004)

Provide English equivalents of the following Russian terms.

Загрязнение воздуха, развитые страны с мощной индустриальной базой, хорошо развитая инфраструктура, ископаемые ресурсы, результаты человеческой деятельности, автомобильные выхлопы, взрывчатые вещества, органическое разложение, частицы, сгорание топлива, концентрация в атмосфере, ущерб урожаю, отказаться от материалов, свинец, плавильня, печь для сжигания отходов, нефтеперегонный завод, респираторные заболевания, дымовая труба, коммунальное хозяйство, относительная кислотность, известняк, ледник.

Fill in the following table.

AIR POLLUTANT	SOURCE	EFFECT

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