The causes and effects of Air pollution, Lecture notes of Environmental science

Download The causes and effects of Air pollution and more Lecture notes Environmental science in PDF only on Docsity! AIR POLLUTION 101 INTRODUCTION Students will gain background knowledge of the basic sources of air pollution, along with the overview of how air pollution affects our health and our environment. They will participate in a hands-on demonstration to visually demonstrate that everyone has an impact on air pollution. Students will also write a description of each pollutant, as well develop their own ideas of the most dangerous and most significant pollutants. They will form ideas of how these pollutants can be reduced and how their air can be revitalized and the negative impacts of air pollution can be reduced. LESSON OVERVIEW Grade Level & Subject: Grades 9-12: Science Length: 1 class period Objectives: After completing this lesson, students will be able to: • Comprehend the basics of air pollution • Identify the seven main air pollutants • Describe the sources of the main air pollutants National Standards Addressed:1 This lesson addresses the following National Science Education Standards from the National Academies of Science: • Content Standard: NS.5-8.1 SCIENCE AS INQUIRY As a result of their activities in grades 9-12, all students should develop:
Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry
Understandings about scientific inquiry • Content Standard: NS.9-12.5 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY As a result of their activities in grades 9-12, all students should develop
Abilities of technological design
Understandings about science and technology • Content Standard: NS. 9-12.6 PERSONAL AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES As a result of their activities in grades 9-12, all students should develop an understanding of:
Personal and community Health
Population growth 1 http://www.education-world.com/standards/national/index.shtml
Natural resources
Environmental quality
Natural and human-induced hazards
Science and technology in local, national, and global challenges Materials Needed: • Reproducible #1 – Daily Activities • Computers with Internet access for each group or other means of researching air pollutants • 1 Clear, plastic (or small glass) jars recycled from café for each student • Liquid food coloring-set for each group or table or student, depending on teacher preference. For this lesson, we used red, green, yellow, and blue. • Ground charcoal (from pet store, or ground substance that will not dissolve in water) • Cocoa mix and lemonade drink mix (each student will need some of each mix) • Clean water • 1 Large container to hold all of students’ water once they have completed the demonstration • Newspaper articles about air quality if available (optional) Assessment: Students will be assessed through the following activities: • Participation in all activities • Group work and level of understanding of the pollutants in Activity One • Content and quality of the paper written in the extension activity LESSON BACKGROUND Relevant Vocabulary: • Carbon Monoxide: A colorless, odorless gas formed when a compound containing carbon burns incompletely because there is not enough oxygen. It is present in the exhaust gases of automobile engines and is very poisonous.2 • Lead: Heavy metal that can cause mental retardation, and increase in the rate of infections and cancer by blunting body's defense mechanisms (the immune system). Lead accumulates in blood, bones, and soft tissue and may result in damage to brain, central and peripheral nervous system, and kidneys. While its suggested threshold is 0.4 part-per-million (ppm) for adults and 0.3 ppm for children, people can exhibit lead poisoning symptoms at 0.2 ppm. Lead intake can occur through water stored in lead pipes, food contaminated by lead in soil, lead-paint flakes, or motor exhaust that contains lead compounds as ant-knocking or performance enhancing additives in gasoline.3 2 The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. Retrieved 05 May 2011 from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/carbon+monoxide. 3 "What Is Lead (Pb)? Definition and Meaning." BusinessDictionary.com - Online Business Dictionary. Retrieved 05 May 2011 from http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/lead-Pb.html. http://www.lbl.gov/Education/ELSI/pollution-main.html More information and classroom activities about air pollution. • Air Pollution National Geographic http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global- warming/pollution-overview.html Article about air pollution and it’s causes. • Air Pollution National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences http://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/exposure/air-pollution/index.cfm Extensive list of links to more information, and resources for educators and students to learn about air pollution, it’s affects on human health, and what the NIEHS is doing about it. LESSON STEPS Warm-Up: Air Pollution in Your Town 1. Write the words “Air Quality” on the board and ask students the following questions: a) Do you think the quality of the air in this area is good or bad? b) How do you know? What evidence is there of air pollution? Answers might include smog, a high occurrence of asthma or other respiratory diseases, a bad smell, or particulates settling out of the air. Or they may infer there is poor air quality without evidence because of the presence of industrial practices nearby. Alternatively, they may believe air quality is good because of the absence of all these things. c) Have you ever experienced burning eyes, itchy throat, or shortness of breath on polluted days? d) What time of the year does the air seem dirtiest? Kids may not notice, but air pollution is typically worse in the summer months because of higher temperatures and more sun which both help create certain pollutants like ozone. Also, there is less rain to wash pollutants out of the air and away. 2. Tell students that the issue of “air quality;” or how good or bad the air is, is often in the news. Show any newspaper articles you have found. 3. Ask students why there is so much talk about air quality? Guide them to identify the importance of air for living things. Explain that bad air can contribute to a variety of illnesses such as asthma and cancer. Air pollution can also decrease the efficiency with which plants photosynthesize, making them less productive. Activity One: Interviewing New Pollutant Experts 1. Divide the class into seven groups, and assign each group one of the seven pollutants defined in the “Relevant Vocabulary” section (PM, CO, O3, SO2, NOx, Pb, VOCs). 2. Give the students time to use the websites in the Resources section and any others resources they might find to research their assigned pollutants. 3. Students should take notes on their pollutant, including information about its sources, effects, NAAQS, and any other relevant information they might find. 4. Once the time for research is expired, call each group individually up in front of the class and have them write the name of their pollutant on the board. 5. Allow students time to interview the group, asking important questions about that group’s pollutant. The group should be able to answer all the questions well, and every member of the group should contribute to providing answers. Students should take notes as each group is interviewed. 6. Tell students to save this information for the Extension activity. Activity Two: What are the Consequences of Some Daily Activities? 1. Divide your class into work groups of three to six students each 2. Give each student a clear plastic cup that is ¾ full of clean water 3. Give each work group a set of supplies (food colorings, ground charcoal, cocoa mix and drink mix) 4. Now write on the board the corresponding food coloring or drink mix (below) and explain to the students that these colors/mixes will illustrate a particular pollutant that was discussed Air Pollutant Corresponding color/mix Sulfur Dioxide (SO 2 ) Pinch of lemonade mix Nitrous Ooxides (NO x ) Pinch of cocoa drink mix Carbon Monoxide (CO) One drop red food coloring Lead (Pb) One drop green food coloring Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) One drop blue food coloring Particulate Matter (PM) Pinch of ground charcoal Ozone (O3) One drop yellow food coloring 5. Now tell the students that a series of daily activities will be read. If the student has participated in the activity within the past week, they are to add the appropriate amount of the corresponding pollutant into their cup of water. All activities will not apply to every student. Read the activities off of Reproducible #1—Daily Activities. Feel free to add or delete activities as they might relate specifically to the school or community. Wrap-Up: Discussing Your Impact Ask your students the following questions: 1. Look inside your cups. If the air pollution around you were this apparent, would you want to breathe the air? No 2. What other sources of air pollution, beyond those mentioned in this demonstration, could you think of as being produced in a single day? Answers will vary but could include using other electricity or gas powered appliances. 3. Pour each students “polluted water” into the larger container and explain how this represents some of what people breathe every day. Of course, much is diluted in the huge volume of the atmosphere, but it is getting more concentrated daily with more people increasing their activities which contribute to air pollution. 4. Help students come up with a list of things they can do to reduce their impact. Such as:
Drive less
Drive smart
Buy smart (energy efficient appliances, items with less packaging, items produced
with green energy, etc.)
Choose air friendly products (soy candles, items like those mentioned above, no
CFCs, etc.)
Save energy
Practice the 3 R’s (Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle)
Don’t smoke
Speak up for clean air Extension: What Has the Most Significant Impact? 1. Tell the students to think about which pollutant they think is the most dangerous and why. 2. Tell the students to consider how much of this pollutant is released, what the risks associated with it are, and how we can reduce our emissions of this pollutant. 3. Have each student write a 500 word response detailing the “worst” pollutant, its effects, and his or her ideas of how we can reduce its atmospheric concentration. This can be written in class, or assigned as homework.Note: Students may not all write their papers on the same pollutant, and that’s okay. The key is that each student supports his or her argument with facts and a conceptual understanding of the impact his or her pollutant is having on the environment. CONCLUSION After completing this lesson, students have a more comprehensive knowledge of seven of the most significant air pollutants and where they come from. They understand how people’s different daily activities contribute to air pollution and have discussed ways to reduce their impact. Students developed their communication and analytical skills by taking a position on which pollutant is most harmful, and defending that position with supporting facts. LESSON CREDITS Clean Air Campaign, Inc. – Author Nicole Holstein – Contributor Education Intern, Earth Day Network Maggie Ollove – Editor Education Associate, Earth Day Network