Strategy for the Control of Emissions

Acidification of lakes and forest degradation

The first alarm came in the early 60s from Scandinavian scientists have suspected that emissions of sulfur dioxide in urban most developed and industrialized countries of Europe such as the UK and Germany is probably the reason for the decline of fish stocks in lakes of Scandinavia. Apart from Scandinavia and the UK, to vulnerable areas are part of the Netherlands, Belgium, of Denmark, Switzerland, Italy, West Germany, and Ireland.

Evidence of acidification of lakes

Finland - More than 14 thousand lakes are heavily polluted, every seventh lake in the east (150 K) caused biological damage.

Norway - In reservoirs with a total area of ​​13 km2 destroyed fish and another 20 km2 - is affected.

Sweden - The 14 thousand lakes destroyed most sensitive to pH species; 2200 lakes almost dead..

UK – acidification lake located in the south-west Scotland, west Wales and the Lake District in the north of England.

In the early 80-s forests have also become a matter of concern because of their possible degradation under the influence of acid rain. The first signs of large-scale damage caused by acid rain , appeared in West Germany. Since 1982, when he first conducted a special survey of forests, woodlands portion of Germany, who had found signs of injury was 8 % and in 1983 it increased to 34% in 1984 - up to 50 %. In 1986 the figure peaked - 54% , then it was observed a slight decrease : up to 52% in 1988 but this is not necessarily indicative of the occurrence trend towards improvement. This can be explained by the fact that the dead tree in the assessment of this indicator were not considered.

The impact of air pollution on construction

If the damage caused by air pollution to lakes and forests, very large in scale, the effect of air pollution on construction is often a local problem. Although it is believed that sulfur dioxide and its derivatives are the major sources of damage to building structures. Adverse effects they have and nitrogen oxides, ozone and other pollutants emissions. Damage to historic monuments particularly evident in Europe and destroyed the Acropolis in Athens and the medieval monuments in Krakow. While some destruction of the buildings of ancient times is a natural phenomenon of atmospheric pollution is many times faster the process. Greek expert in corrosion caused by acidic chemical agents T.N.Skulikidis estimated that in the last 20-25 years the Athenian monuments destroyed by air pollution to a greater extent than in the previous 2,400 years. In an essay about Italy journalist

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for New York Times writes that in this country, " classical marble busts turn into noseless and bezvuhi plaster nonsense." In Katowice, in southern Poland, trains are forced to slow down some parts due to corrosion of tracks due to increased acidity.

Economic losses from the states of various types of corrosion are huge. The exact size of these losses is difficult to determine because it is difficult to distinguish between the effects of natural corrosion and corrosion caused by acid rain . While there is only approximate data. Scientists corrosion Swedish Institute in 1984 estimated that the loss of the country from all kinds of corrosion material is 2.5 billion. year. According made ​​in 1 980 to the Ministry of Health and the Environment of the Netherlands , the cost of damage caused to monuments , libraries and archives of this country is 10-15 million dollars a year. If you add up these costs and all other damages from air pollution and acid rain , the cost of the program to limit emissions to the atmosphere does not look too great.

Strategy for the Control of Emissions

Huge losses that cause human health and the environment as a result of air pollution and loss of acid rain, have not gone unnoticed by politicians and the public. In the industrialized countries of the West the last 20 years have been a period of active political and scientific research ways to solve the problem of air purification.

To reduce emissions of sulfur dioxidethermal power certainly serve as devices that carry gas desulphurisation of exhaust hoods, commonly known as a scrubber . They can remove 95% of sulfur dioxide emissions held in TPP. In the OECP countries in the early 1988 scrubbers are installed or were in the process of installation of power plants with total capacity of 140 MW . In 1987, similar devices were equipped in Germany - about 40% in Sweden - 50 , Austria - 60, Japan - 85%. By the late 80 -s ratios are as follows: 70 % in Italy , 85 - in Germany , 100 - in the Netherlands.

Different countries use different ways to combat emissions of nitrogen oxides in thermal power plants, reaching uneven results. The simplest remedy is to introduce modifications of the combustion process, thus reducing the discharge of nitrogen oxides by 30-50%. By real time Britain and Portugal have made some investments in this method. More expensive but more effective is a technique known as selective catalytic purification. Using it reduces the excretion of nitric oxide by 80-90%.Intensive research carried out in the technology of so-called clean coal. Thanks to them, coal combustion and reduced emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides, and provides more efficient combustion . Though the technologies mentioned above , provide an immediate reduction in air pollution, so necessary today, they do not provide a final solution. First, the technology most

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polluting ash that formed at work. Secondly , these technologies do not reduce carbon dioxide emissions. For these reasons, these technologies are considered as pallyatyv matched will be used until such time as all countries will become the norm and energy efficiency when its renewable sources such as solar, wind and water will make up the overwhelming share of the global energy balance.

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