Francesca Mancuso Mr. Jones AP Environmental Science Chapter 20 Review Questions 1.

The atmosphere blocks Earths surface from UV radiation coming from the sun and redistributes water in the hydrologic cycle. 2. Particulate matter consists of thousands of different solid and liquid particles suspended in the atmosphere. Examples of particulate matter include soil particles, soot, and lead. 3. Stratospheric ozone prevents much of the solar UV radiation from penetrating to Earth's surface. Human-made pollutants react with stratospheric ozone, breaking it down into molecular oxygen. 4. Sunlight initiates several chemical reactions that collectively form the ingredients in photochemical smog. 5. Air pollutants suppress the immune system, increasing susceptibility to infection. 6. Ozone and the volatile compounds in smog are irritants that cause a variety of health problems, including burning eyes, coughing, and chest discomfort. Ozone brings on asthma attacks and suppresses the immune system. Pregnant women exposed to high levels of ozone are three times more likely to give birth to infants with serious heart defects. 7. The lungs continue to develop throughout childhood, and air pollution can restrict lung development, making children more vulnerable to health problems later in life. In addition, a child has a higher metabolic rate than an adult and needs more oxygen. To obtain this oxygen, a child breathes more airabout two times as much air per pound of body weight as an adult. This means that a child breathes more air pollutants into the lungs. 8. Smokestacks fitted with electrostatic precipitators or scrubbers remove particulate matter. 9. The Clean Air Act of 1970 set the standard for modern air quality regulation. This law authorizes the EPA to set limits on the amount of specific air pollutants permitted everywhere in the United States. 10. Ozone is a form of oxygen that is a human-made pollutant in the troposphere but a naturally produced, essential component in the stratosphere, which encircles our planet some 10 to 45 km above the surface. The relatively high concentrations of ozone in the stratosphere form a layer that shields the surface from much of the ultraviolet radiation coming from the sun. 11. Stratospheric ozone thinning is the accelerated destruction of ozone in the stratosphere by human-produced chlorine- and bromine-containing chemicals. Both chlorine- and bromine-containing substances catalyze ozone destruction. 12. The Montreal Protocol is an agreement that originally stipulated a 50% reduction of CFC production by 1998. 13. Acid deposition occurs when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide emissions react with water vapor in the atmosphere to form acids that return to the surface as either dry or wet deposition.

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Acid deposition occurs when sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides are released into the atmosphere, combine with moisture to form acids, and then are deposited on land through rain, snow, or condensate. No single factor accounts for the recent instances of forest decline. Although acid deposition correlates well with areas experiencing tree damage, it is only partly responsible. Several other human-induced air pollutants are implicated. Power plants, ore smelters, refineries, and motor vehicles produce these pollutants in addition to the sulfur and nitrogen oxides that interact to form acid deposition. As developing nations become more industrialized, they produce more air pollution. The leaders of most developing countries believe they must become industrialized rapidly to compete economically with highly developed countries. Environmental quality is usually a low priority in the race to develop. Outdated technologies are often adopted, and air pollution laws, where they exist, are not enforced. Thus, air quality is deteriorating rapidly in many developing nations. The global distillation effect is the process whereby volatile chemicals evaporate from land as far away as the tropics and are carried by air currents to higher latitudes, where they condense and fall to the ground. The air toxics involved in the global distillation effect are persistent compounds, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs, industrial compounds) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT, a pesticide), that do not readily break down and so accumulate in the environment. Sick building sydrome is the exposure to health risks from indoor pollution. The air in enclosed places may have significantly higher levels of air pollutants than the air outdoors. Radon is a serious indoor air pollutant in many places in highly developed countries. Radon seeps through the ground and enters buildings, where it sometimes accumulates to dangerous levels.