GE15 Week 8-9 Module PDF

College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 TH...

College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 THE UNIVERSITY OF MINDANAO College of Arts and Sciences Education Physically Distanced but Academically Engaged Self-Instructional Manual (SIM) for Self-Directed Learning (SDL) Course/Subject: GE 15: Environmental Science Name of Teacher: THIS SIM/SDL MANUAL IS A DRAFT VERSION ONLY, NOT FOR REPRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE OF ITS INTENDED USE. THIS IS INTENDED ONLY FOR THE USE OF THE STUDENTS WHO ARE OFFICIALLY ENROLLED IN THE COURSE/SUBJECT. EXPECT REVISIONS OF THE MANUAL. Prepared by: Hazel G. Carreon, PhD Christian Dell A. Gentallan Jason Ben R. Paragamac Ronnel P. Senining 1|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 BIG PICTURE WEEK 8-9 Unit Learning Outcome f (ULOf) Explain how weather and climate patterns take place; discuss air pollution sources, water pollution, use, and management; and discuss the implementation of environmental laws. METALANGUAGE In this section, the essential terms relevant to the study of geology and Earth's resources, air pollution, water pollution, and the introduction of environmental are presented. Please refer to the definition in case you will encounter difficulty in the understanding of environmental science concepts. 1. Atmosphere. A layer or a set of layers of gases surrounding a planet or other material body that is held in place by the gravity of that body. 1.1. An atmosphere is more likely to be retained if the gravity it is subject to is high, and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. 2. Temperature. A physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses hot and cold. 2.1. It is the manifestation of thermal energy present in all matter, which is the source of heat, a flow of energy when a body is in contact with another that is colder. 2.2. Temperature is measured with a thermometer. 3. Pressure. The force applied perpendicular to the surface of an object per unit area over which that force is distributed. 3.1. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the ambient pressure. 3.2. Various units are used to express pressure. 4. Greenhouse effect. The process by which radiation from a planet's atmosphere warms the planet's surface to a temperature above what it would be without this atmosphere. 4.1. Radiatively active gases in a planet's atmosphere radiate energy in all directions. 5. Greenhouse gases. A gas that absorbs and emits radiant energy within the thermal infrared range. 5.1. Greenhouse gases cause the greenhouse effect on planets. 5.2. The primary greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. 6. Climate Change. a long-term shift in global or regional climate patterns. Often climate change refers specifically to the rise in global temperatures from the mid- 20th century to present. 2|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 7. Weather. The state of the atmosphere describes the degree to which it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. 6.1. Most weather phenomena occur in the lowest level of the atmosphere, the troposphere, just below the stratosphere. 8. Climate. The long-term average of weather typically averaged over 30 years. 7.1 Some of the meteorological variables that are commonly measured are temperature, humidity, atmospheric pressure, wind, and precipitation. 9. Wastewater. Any water that has been contaminated by human use. Wastewater is "used water from any combination of domestic, industrial, commercial or agricultural activities, surface runoff or stormwater, and any sewer inflow or sewer infiltration. 10. Scarcity. The limited availability of a commodity may be in demand in the market or by the commons. Poverty also includes an individual's lack of resources to buy products. 11. Eutrophication. When a body of water becomes overly enriched with minerals and nutrients, which induce excessive growth of algae. 10.1. This process may result in oxygen depletion of the water body. 12. Urban runoff. The surface runoff of precipitation created by urbanization. 11.1. This runoff is a significant source of flooding and water pollution in urban communities worldwide. 11.2. Impervious surfaces, such as roads, parking lots, rooftops, and sidewalks, are constructed during land development. 13. Sewage. A type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. 12.1. It is characterized by volume or rate of flow, physical condition, chemical and toxic constituents, and bacteriologic status. 14. Environmental Law. A collective term encompassing aspects of the law that protect the environment. 13.1. A related but distinct set of regulatory regimes, now strongly influenced by environmental legal principles, focuses on the management of specific natural resources, such as forests, minerals, or fisheries. 3|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE AIR, WEATHER, AND CLIMATE Atmosphere We live at the bottom of a layered ocean of air that extends upward about 500 km. All the weather we see is in the lowest 10–12 km, a continually moving layer known as the troposphere. Ceaseless flowing and swirling in the troposphere redistribute heat and moisture from one part of the globe to another. Short-lived and local patterns of temperature and moisture we call weather. In contrast, the climate is long-term patterns of temperature and precipitation. The Earth's earliest atmosphere probably consisted mainly of lightweight hydrogen and helium. Over billions of years, most of that hydrogen and helium diffused into space. Volcanic emissions added carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and other elements to the atmosphere. Clean, dry air is mostly nitrogen and oxygen. Water vapor concentrations vary from near zero to 4 percent, depending on air temperature and available moisture. Minute particles and liquid droplets—collectively called aerosols—also are suspended in the air. Atmospheric aerosols play important roles in the Earth's energy budget and in producing rain. The atmosphere has four distinct zones of contrasting temperatures due to differences in the absorption of solar energy. Troposphere. The layer of air immediately adjacent to the Earth's surface is called the troposphere (tropein means to turn or change, in Greek). Within the troposphere, air circulates in great vertical and horizontal convection currents, constantly redistributing heat and moisture around the globe. The troposphere's depth ranges from about 18 km (11 mi) over the equator to about 8 km (5 mi) over the poles, where the air is cold and dense. Because gravity holds most air molecules close to the Earth's surface, the troposphere is much denser than the other layers: It contains about 75 percent of the total mass of the atmosphere. Air temperature drops rapidly with increasing altitude in this layer, reaching about _60°C (_76°F) at the top of the troposphere. Stratosphere. The stratosphere extends from the tropopause up to about 50 km (31 mi). It is vastly more dilute than the troposphere, but it has a similar composition—except that it has almost no water vapor and nearly 1,000 times more ozone (O3). Near the Earth's surface, ozone is a pollutant, but it serves an essential function in the stratosphere. Stratospheric ozone absorbs specific wavelengths of ultraviolet solar radiation, known as UV-B (290–330 nm, see fig. 3.10). This absorbed energy makes the atmosphere warmer toward the top of the stratosphere. Mesosphere. The third layer of the atmosphere directly above the stratosphere and directly below the thermosphere. In the mesosphere temperature decreases as altitude increases. These characteristics are used to define its limits; it begins 4|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 at the top of the stratosphere (sometimes called stratopause) and ends at the mesopause, which is the coldest part of the Earth's atmosphere with temperatures below -143 degrees Celsius. Thermosphere. The thermosphere (heated layer) begins at about 80 km. It is a region of highly ionized (electrically charged) gases, heated by a steady flow of high-energy solar and cosmic radiation. In the lower part of the thermosphere, intense pulses of high-energy radiation cause electrically charged particles (ions) to glow. We know this phenomenon as the aurora borealis and aurora australis, or northern and southern lights. https://www.worldatlas.com/r/w1200/upload/e4/22/16/shutterstock-1697221522.jpg Atmospheric Processes 5|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Two essential qualities of the atmosphere are pressure and temperature. The pressure is force per unit area. Atmospheric pressure is caused by the weight of overlying atmospheric gases on those below and therefore decreases with altitude. We are familiar with this as barometric pressure, which the weatherman gives to us in units that are the height to which that pressure raises a column of mercury. When air pressure is high, it moves downward, which warms the air, changing the condensed water drops in clouds to vapor; therefore, high-pressure systems are clear and sunny. Temperature, familiar to us as the relative warmth or coldness of materials, is a measure of thermal energy, which is the kinetic energy—the motion of atoms and molecules in a substance. Water vapor content is another important characteristic of the lower atmosphere. It varies from less than 1% to about 4% by volume, depending on air temperature, air pressure, and availability of water vapor from the surface. Generalized Circulation of the Atmosphere https://grade8science.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/6.2.2-4-v6.jpg 6|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Greenhouse Effect The greenhouse effect is naturally a good thing. It warms the planet to its comfortable average of 15 degrees Celsius and keeps life on earth livable. Without it the world would be a frozen, uninhabitable place, more like Mars. The problem is, mankind’s voracious burning of fossil fuels for energy is artificially amping up the natural greenhouse effect. https://miro.medium.com/max/1024/1*58aKfoSmb_hj4zFz0Egt6g.jpeg This phenomenon is called the greenhouse effect because the atmosphere, loosely comparable to the glass of a greenhouse, transmits sunlight while trapping heat inside. Sunlight makes the earth habitable. While 30 percent of the solar energy that reaches our world is reflected back to space, approximately 70 percent passes through the atmosphere to the earth’s surface, where it is absorbed by the land, oceans, and atmosphere, and heats the https://daisylinden.com/wp-content/uploads/big-size- planet. This heat is then radiated back up in the greenhouse-photo.jpg form of invisible infrared light. While some of this infrared light continues on into space, the vast majority—indeed, some 90 percent—gets absorbed by atmospheric gases, known as greenhouse gases, and redirected back toward the earth, causing further warming. The greenhouse effect is a natural atmospheric process that is necessary for life as we know it. However, too strong a greenhouse effect caused by the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation may create adverse environmental change. Greenhouse gases are a general term for gases that are especially effective at capturing the long-wavelength energy from the Earth's surface. Water vapor (H2O) is the most abundant greenhouse gas, and it is always present in the atmosphere. Carbon dioxide (CO 2) is the most abundant human-caused greenhouse gas, followed by methane (CH 4), nitrous oxide (N2O), and dozens of other gases like ozone (O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2), Weather and Climate Patterns Weather is a description of the physical conditions in the atmosphere (humidity, temperature, air pressure, wind, and precipitation) over short time scales. Weather is what's happening now or over some short time—this hour, today, this week—in the 7|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 atmosphere near the ground: its temperature, pressure, cloudiness, precipitation, and winds. Climate is the average weather and usually refers to average weather conditions over long periods, at least seasons, but more often years or decades. Since climates are characteristic of certain latitudes (and other factors that we will discuss later), they are classified mainly by latitude—tropical, subtropical, mid-latitudinal (continental), sub-Arctic (continental), and Arctic—but also by wetness/dryness, such as humid continental, Mediterranean, monsoon, desert, and tropical wet-dry. Climate changes have continued in more recent —“recent” geologically speaking, that is. The mean annual temperature of Earth has swung up and down by several degrees Celsius over the past million years. Over the last 18,000 years, climate change has greatly affected people during the previous major time of continental glaciations— changes in Earth's temperature over varying periods during the past million years. Significant changes correspond to glacial (cool) and interglacial (warm) periods over the past 800,000 years. Data to document and understand climate change come from three main periods: the Instrumental Record, the Historical Record, and the Paleo-Proxy Record. The use of instruments to make climate measurements began around 1860. Since then, temperatures have been measured at various places on land and in the oceans. The average of these observations produces the graph. Several groups have tried to reconstruct the average surface temperature of the Earth using available comments. Temperature measurement has improved dramatically in recent years thanks to such devices as ocean platforms with automatic weather-monitoring equipment, coordinated by the World Meteorological Organization. Thus, we have more accurate records since about 1960. Historical Records Paleo-proxy. Proxy data refers to scientific data that are not strictly climatic but can be correlated with climate data, such as the temperature of the land or sea. Proxy data provides important insights into climate change. Information gathered as proxy data includes natural records of climate variability, as indicated by tree rings, sediments, ice cores, fossil pollen, corals, and carbon-14. Proxy Climate Records. Ice Cores- Polar ice caps and mountain glaciers have an accumulation record of snow that has been transformed into glacial ice over hundreds to thousands of years. Ice cores often contain small bubbles of air deposited at the time of the storm, and we can measure the atmospheric gases in these. Two important gases being measured in ice cores are carbon-dioxide (CO2) and methane (CH4). Of the two, it appears methane most closely follows climate change determined from the geologic record over the past 1,000,000 years. As a result, CO2 and CH4 are the most relevant proxy for climate change. The ice cores also contain a variety of chemicals and materials, such as volcanic ash and dust, which may provide additional insights into possible causes of climate change. Ice cores are obtained by drilling into the ice. 8|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Tree Rings. The growth of trees is influenced by climate, both temperature, and precipitation. Many trees put on one growth ring per year, and patterns in the tree rings—their width, density, and isotopic composition—tell us something about the climate variability. When conditions are good for growth, a ring is wide; when conditions are poor, the ring is narrow. Tree-ring chronology, known as dendrochronology, has produced a proxy record of climate that extends back over 10,000 years Sediments. Biological material, including pollen from plants, is deposited on the land and stored for very long periods in the lake, bog, and pond sediments and, once transported downstream to the coast, in the oceans. Samples may be taken of tiny fossils and chemicals in the deposits, and these may be interpreted to study past climates and extend our knowledge back hundreds of thousand years. Pollen is useful because: 1. the quantity of pollen is an indicator of the relative abundance of each plant species 2. the pollen can be dated, and since the grains are preserved in sedimentary layers that might be dated, we can develop a chronology 3. based on the types of plants found at different times, we can construct a climatic history. Corals. Corals have hard skeletons composed of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), a mineral extracted by seawater corals. The carbonate contains isotopes of oxygen, as well as a variety of trace metals, which have been used to determine the temperature of the water in which the coral grew. The growth of corals has been dated directly with a variety of dating techniques over short periods of coral growth, thereby revealing the chronology of climate change over variable periods. Carbon-14. Radioactive carbon-14 (14C) is produced in the upper atmosphere by the collision of cosmic rays and nitrogen-14 (14N). Cosmic rays come from outer space; those the Earth receives are predominantly from the sun. The abundance of cosmic rays varies with the number of sunspots, so-called because they appear as dark areas on the sun. The frequency of sunspots has been accurately measured for decades and observed by people for nearly 1,000 years. As sunspot activity increases, more energy from the sun reaches Earth. There is an associated solar wind, which produces ionized particles consisting mostly of protons and electrons, emanating from the sun. Adjustments People can adjust to the threat of global warming in two ways: Adapt: Learn to live with future global climate change over the next 20 years because there is warming in the pipeline from greenhouse gases already emitted. 9|P age  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Mitigate: Work to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases and take action to reduce the undesirable effects of global warming. Climate Change Climate change is the long-term alteration of temperature and typical weather patterns in a place. Climate change could refer to a particular location or the planet as a whole. Climate change may cause weather patterns to be less predictable. These unexpected weather patterns can make it difficult to maintain and grow crops in regions that rely on farming because expected temperature and rainfall levels can no longer be relied on. Climate change has also been connected with other damaging weather events such as more frequent and more intense hurricanes, floods, downpours, and winter storms. In polar regions, the warming global temperatures associated with climate change have meant ice sheets and glaciers are melting at an accelerated rate from season to season. This contributes to sea levels rising in different regions of the planet. Together with expanding ocean waters due to rising temperatures, the resulting rise in sea level has begun to damage coastlines as a result of increased flooding and erosion. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Stephena- Ighedosa/publication/343521391/figure/fig2/AS:922081722134529@1596852822667/Social-and- economic-impact-of-Climate-change-Source-Iberdrola-2019-October-9-How-is.jpg The cause of current climate change is largely human activity, like burning fossil fuels such as natural gas, oil, and coal. Burning these materials releases greenhouse gases into Earth’s atmosphere. There, these gases trap heat from the sun’s rays inside the atmosphere causing Earth’s average temperature to rise. This rise in the planet's temperature is called global warming. The warming of the planet impacts local and 10 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 regional climates. Throughout Earth's history, climate has continually changed. When occurring naturally, this is a slow process that has taken place over hundreds and thousands of years. The human influenced climate change that is happening now is occurring at a much faster rate. Global climate varies naturally over time scales from decades to thousands of years and longer. These natural variations can originate in two ways: a) from internal fluctuations that exchange energy, water and carbon between the atmosphere, oceans, land and ice; and b) from external influences on the climate system, including variations in the energy received from the sun and the effects of volcanic eruptions. Human activities can also influence climate by changing concentrations of CO2 and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, altering the concentrations of aerosols and altering the reflectivity of Earth’s surface by changing land cover. Key Elements to Combat Climate Change 1. Emissions trading to promote cost-effective emissions reductions 2. Technology sharing that would double research investment in clean energy technology and accelerate the spread of that technology to developing countries 3. Reduce deforestation, which is a quick and highly cost-effective way to reduce emissions 4. Help poorer countries by honoring pledges for development assistance to adapt to climate change. AIR POLLUTION The atmosphere has always been a sink—a deposition and storage place—for gaseous and particulate wastes. When the amount of waste entering an area of the atmosphere exceeds the atmosphere's ability to disperse or break down the pollutants, problems result. Air pollution is generally the most widespread and obvious kind of environmental damage. While developed countries have been making progress, air quality in the developing world has been getting much worse. Sources There are, however, many natural sources of air quality degradation. Volcanoes spew out ash, acid mists, hydrogen sulfide, and other toxic gases. In many cases, the chemical compositions of pollutants from natural and human-related sources are identical, and their effects are inseparable can occur. While the natural sources of suspended particulate material in the air outweigh human sources at least tenfold worldwide, in many cities, more than 90 percent of the airborne particulate matter is anthropogenic 11 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 (human-caused). Two major categories of pollution sources are stationary and mobile sources. Stationary sources have relatively fixed locations and include point sources, fugitive sources, and area sources. Mobile sources include trucks and buses. Point Sources. Emit pollutants from one or more controllable sites such as power plant smokestacks. Fugitive Sources. Generate air pollutants from an open area exposed to wind. It includes burning for agricultural purposes and dirt roads, construction sites, farmlands, storage piles, surface mines, and other exposed areas. Area Source. A well-defined area within which several sources of air pollutants. It includes small urban communities, areas of intense industrialization within urban complexes, and agricultural areas sprayed with herbicides and pesticides. Categories of Pollutants Primary. Are those released directly from the source into the air in a harmful form? These pollutants are emitted directly into the air. They include particulates, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, and hydrocarbons. Secondary. They are modified to a hazardous form after they enter the air or are formed by chemical reactions as components of the air mix and interact. Solar radiation often provides the energy for these reactions. Photochemical oxidants and atmospheric acids created by these mechanisms are probably the most important secondary pollutants in human health and ecosystem damage. Secondary pollutants are produced reactions between primary pollutants and standard atmospheric compounds. https://assets.website-files.com/5f6bb9b58b09db262f667813/61bfd077e8971c2a000ac53f_diffaphero.jpeg 12 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Criteria Pollutants The six most common pollutants are called criteria pollutants because the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has set specific limits on the levels of these six, and they are responsible for most of our air pollution problems. The six criteria pollutants are; sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, ozone, particulates, and lead. Sulfur Dioxide. A colorless and odorless gas usually present at Earth's surface in low concentrations. A significant feature of sulfur dioxide is that once it is emitted into the atmosphere, it can be converted into fine particulate sulfate and removed from the atmosphere by wet or dry deposition. The primary anthropogenic source of sulfur dioxide is the burning of fossil fuels. Nitrogen Oxides. Highly reactive gases formed when nitrogen in fuel or combustion air is heated to temperatures above 650°C (1,200°F) in the presence of oxygen, or when bacteria in soil or water oxidize nitrogen-containing compounds. The initial product, nitric oxide (NO), oxidizes further in the atmosphere to nitrogen dioxide (NO2), a reddish-brown gas that gives photochemical smog its distinctive color. Because of their interconvertibility, the general term NOx is used to describe these gases. Nitrogen oxides combine with water to make nitric acid (HNO3). Carbon Monoxide. Is a colorless, odorless gas that even at very low concentrations is extremely toxic to humans and other animals. The high toxicity results from a physiological effect. CO inhibits respiration in animals by binding irreversibly to hemoglobin. Carbon monoxide and hemoglobin have a strong natural attraction for one another; if there is carbon monoxide in any vicinity, the hemoglobin in our blood will take up nearly 250 times faster than oxygen and carry mostly carbon monoxide rather than oxygen, from the atmosphere to the internal organs. Effects range from dizziness and headaches to death. Ozone and Other Photochemical Oxidants. A form of oxygen in which three atoms of oxygen occur together rather than the usual two. Photochemical oxidants are secondary pollution arising from atmospheric interactions of nitrogen dioxide and sunlight. This atomic oxygen then reacts with other molecules of O2 to make ozone (O3). Ozone formed in the stratosphere provides a valuable shield for the biosphere by absorbing incoming ultraviolet radiation. Particulate Matter. It is made of tiny particles. The term particulate matter is used for varying mixtures of suspended in the air we breathe, but in regulations, these are divided into three categories. 1. PM 10- particles up to 10 micrometers in diameter. 2. PM 2.5- particles between 2.5 and 0.18 microns 3. Ultra-fine particles- smaller than 0.18 micrometers in diameter 13 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Lead. Is an important constituent of automobile batteries and many industrial products. Leaded gasoline helps protect engines and promotes more effective fuel consumption. However, the lead emitted into the air with exhaust and has thereby been spread widely around the world, reaching high levels in soils and waters along the roadways. Once released, lead can be transported through the air as particulates to be taken up by plants through the soil or deposited directly on their leaves. Air Toxics Toxic air pollutants or air toxics are among those pollutants known or suspected to cause cancer and other serious health problems, either long-term or short-term exposure. Although most air contaminants are regulated because of their potential adverse effects on human health or environmental quality, a particular category of toxins is monitored by the U.S. EPA because they are particularly dangerous. Called hazardous air pollutants (HAPs), these chemicals include carcinogens, neurotoxins, mutagens, teratogens, endocrine system disrupters, and other highly toxic compounds. Air toxics includes gases, metals, and organic chemicals that are emitted in relatively small volumes. WATER USE, POLLUTION, AND TREATMENT Water Resource Water is a marvelous substance—flowing, rippling, swirling around obstacles in its path, seeping, dripping, trickling, continually moving from sea to land and back again—the water we use cycles endlessly through the environment. The total amount of water on our planet is immense—more than 1,404 million km3 (370 billion gals). The hydrologic cycle constantly redistributes water. Solar energy drives the hydrologic cycle by evaporating surface water, which becomes rain and snow. Because water and sunlight are unevenly distributed around the globe, water resources are very uneven. Water Supply Rain falls unevenly over the planet. Some places get almost no precipitation, while others receive heavy rain almost daily. Three principal factors control these global water deficits and surpluses. 1. First, global atmospheric circulation creates regions of persistent high air pressure and low rainfall about 20° to 40° north and south of the equator. These same circulation patterns produce frequent rainfall near the equator and between about 40° and 60° north and south latitude. 2. Second, proximity to water sources influences precipitation. Where prevailing winds come over oceans, they bring moisture to land. Areas far from oceans—in a windward direction—are usually relatively dry. 14 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 3. The third factor in water distribution is topography. Mountains act as both cloud formers and rain catchers. As air sweeps up the windward side of a mountain, air pressure decreases, and the air cools. As the air cools, it reaches the saturation point, and moisture condenses as either rain or snow. Water Compartments The distribution of water often is described in terms of interacting compartments in which water resides, sometimes briefly and sometimes for eons. The length of time water typically stays in a compartment is its residence time. A water molecule stays in the ocean for about 3,000 years, for example, before it evaporates and starts through the hydrologic cycle again. https://static.sciencelearn.org.nz/images/images/000/000/802/full/H2O_SCI_ART_04_waterorigins_waterdistribution_v1.png?165 5084843 Oceans. Oceans hold 97 percent of all water on Earth. Together, the oceans contain more than 97 percent of all the liquid water in the world. (The water of crystallization in rocks is far larger than the amount of liquid water.) Oceans are too salty for most human uses, but they contain 90 percent of the world’s living biomass. While the ocean basins really form a continuous reservoir, shallows and narrows between them reduce water exchange, so they have different compositions, climatic effects, and even different surface elevations. Oceans play a crucial role in moderating the Earth's temperature. In tropical seas, surface waters are warmed by the sun, diluted by rainwater and runoff from the land, and aerated by wave action. In higher latitudes, surface waters are cold and much denser. 15 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Glaciers, Ice, and Snow. Of the 3 percent of all freshwater, nearly 70 percent is tied up in glaciers, ice caps, and snowfields. Glaciers are rivers of ice flowing downhill very slowly. Now occur only at high altitudes or high latitudes, but as recently as 18,000 years ago, about one-third of the continental landmass was covered by glacial ice sheets. Groundwater. After glaciers, the next largest reservoir of freshwater is held in the ground as groundwater. Precipitation that does not evaporate back into the air or runoff over the surface percolates through the soil and into fractures and spaces of permeable rocks in a process called infiltration. Upper soil layers that hold both air and water make up the zone of aeration. Moisture for plant growth comes from these layers. Depending on the rainfall amount, soil type, and surface topography, the zone of aeration may be very shallow or quite deep. Lower soil layers where all spaces are filled with water make up the zone of saturation. The top of this zone is the water table. Water tables also rise and fall seasonally, depending on precipitation and infiltration rates. Porous layers of sand, gravel, or rock lying below the water table are called aquifers. Aquifers are always underlain by relatively impermeable layers of stone or clay that keep water from seeping out at the bottom. Areas in which infiltration of water into an aquifer occurs are called recharge zones. The rate at which most aquifers are refilled is very slow, however, and groundwater presently is being removed faster than it can be replenished in many areas. Urbanization, road building, and other development often block recharge zones and prevent replenishment of essential aquifers. Groundwater stores large resources. Rivers, Lakes, and Wetlands. Precipitation that does not evaporate or infiltrate into the ground runs off over the surface, drawn by the force of gravity back toward the sea. Rivulets accumulate to form streams, and streams join to form rivers. Although the total amount of water contained at any one time in rivers and streams is small compared to the other water reservoirs of the world, these surface waters are vitally important to humans and most other organisms. Most rivers, if not constantly replenished by precipitation, meltwater from snow and ice, or seepage from groundwater, would begin to diminish in a few weeks. We measure the size of a river in terms of its discharge, the amount of water that passes a fixed point in a given amount of time. Atmosphere. The atmosphere is among the smallest of the major water reservoirs of the Earth in terms of water volume, containing less than 0.001 percent of the total water supply. It also has the most rapid turnover rate. An individual water molecule resides in the atmosphere for about ten days, on average. While water vapor makes up only a small amount (4 percent maximum at normal temperatures) of the air's total volume, movement of water through the atmosphere provides the mechanism for distributing freshwater over the landmasses and replenishing terrestrial reservoirs. 16 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Availability and Use Clean, freshwater is essential for nearly every human endeavor. Perhaps more than any other environmental factor, water availability determines the location and activities of humans on Earth. Renewable water supplies are made up, in general, of surface runoff plus the infiltration into accessible freshwater aquifers. About two-thirds of the water carried in rivers and streams every year occurs in seasonal floods that are too large or violent to be stored or trapped effectively for human uses. Stable runoff is the dependable, renewable, year-round supply of surface water. Scarcity Water scarcity occurs when the demand for water exceeds the available amount, or poor quality restricts its use. Water stress occurs when renewable water supplies are inadequate to satisfy essential human or ecosystem needs, bringing about increased competition among potential demands. Water stress is most likely to occur in developing countries where the per capita renewable water supply is low. Periodic droughts create severe regional water shortages. Droughts are most common and often most severe in semiarid zones, where moisture availability is the critical factor in determining plant and animal distribution. Undisturbed ecosystems often survive extended droughts with little damage, but the introduction of domestic animals and agriculture disrupt native vegetation and undermines natural adaptations to low moisture levels. Withdrawal Most water we use eventually returns to rivers and streams. Therefore, it is important to distinguish between withdrawal and consumption. Withdrawal is the total amount of water taken from a lake, river, or aquifer. Much of this water is in India for Agricultural. in Kuwait, where water is especially precious, only 4 percent is used for crops. In the United States, which has a large industrial sector and a highly urbanized population, about half of all water withdrawal, and about 80 percent of consumption, is agricultural. A tragic case of water overconsumption is the Aral Sea, which lies in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Once the fourth-largest inland water body in the world, this giant saline lake lost 75 percent of its surface area and 80 percent of its volume between 1975 and 2004 when, under the former Soviet Union, 90 percent of the natural flow of the Amu Dar'ya and Syr Dar'ya Rivers was diverted to irrigate rice and cotton. Towns that once were prosperous fish processing and shipping ports now lie 100 km from the lakeshore. Vozrojdenie Island, used for biological weapons productions in the Soviet era, has become connected to the mainland, causing concern about the security of materials stored there. The salt concentration in the remaining water doubled, and fishing, which once produced 20,000 tons per year, ceased altogether. Today, more than 200,000 tons of salt, sand, and toxic chemicals are blown from the dried lake bottom every day. This polluted cloud destroys pastures, poisoning farm fields, and damages the health of residents who remain in the area. As water levels dropped, the lake split into two lobes. The "Small Aral" in Kazakhstan is now being reclaimed. 17 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Water Pollution Water pollution refers to the degradation of water quality. From public health or ecological view, a pollutant is any biological, physical, or chemical substance that, in an identifiable excess, is harmful to desirable living organisms. Water pollutants include heavy metals, sediment, certain radioactive isotopes, heat, fecal coliform bacteria, phosphorus, nitrogen, sodium, and other useful (even necessary) elements, as well as certain pathogenic bacteria and viruses. The increasing population often results in the introduction of more pollutants into the environment as well as greater demands on finite water resources. Biochemical Oxygen Demand Dead organic matter in streams decays. Bacteria are carrying out this decay use oxygen. A stream with low oxygen content is a poor environment for fish and most other organisms. A stream with an inadequate oxygen level is considered polluted for organisms that require dissolved oxygen above the existing level. The amount of oxygen required for biochemical decomposition processes is called the biological or biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). BOD is commonly used in water-quality management. It measures the amount of oxygen consumed by microorganisms as they break down organic matter within small water samples, which are analyzed in a laboratory. BOD is routinely measured at discharge points into surface water, such as at wastewater treatment plants. At treatment plants, the BOD of the incoming sewage water from sewer lines is measured, as is water from locations both upstream and downstream of the plant. It allows comparison of upstream, background, BOD, and the BOD of the water being discharged by the plant. When BOD is high, as suggested earlier, the water's dissolved oxygen content may become too low to support life in the water. Three zones are identified: 1. A pollution zone, where a high BOD exists. As waste decomposes, microorganisms use the oxygen, decreasing the dissolved oxygen content of the water. 2. An active decomposition zone, where the dissolved oxygen reaches a minimum owing to rapid biochemical decomposition by microorganisms as the organic waste is transported downstream. 3. A recovery zone, where dissolved oxygen increases, and BOD is reduced because most of the oxygen demanding organic waste from the input of sewage has decomposed, and natural stream processes are replenishing the water’s dissolved oxygen. For example, in quickly moving water, the water at the surface mixes with air, and oxygen enters the water. 18 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Waterborne Diseases The primary water-pollution problem in the world today is the lack of clean drinking water. Each year, particularly in less-developed countries, several billion people are exposed to waterborne diseases whose effects vary in severity from an upset stomach to death. Fecal Coliform. Because it is challenging to monitor disease-carrying organisms directly, we use the count of fecal coliform bacteria as a standard measure and indicator of disease potential. The presence of fecal coliform bacteria in water indicates that fecal material from mammals or birds is present, so organisms that cause waterborne diseases may be present. Fecal coliform bacteria are usually (but not always) harmless bacteria that normally inhabit the intestines of all animals, including humans, and are present in all their wastes. Water with any fecal coliform bacteria is unsuitable for drinking. One type of fecal coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli, or E. coli 0157, has caused human illness and death. Nutrients Two important nutrients that cause water-pollution problems are phosphorus and nitrogen, and both are released from sources related to land use. Stream waters on forested land have the lowest concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen because forest vegetation efficiently removes phosphorus and nitrogen. In urban streams, concentrations of these nutrients are greater because of fertilizers, detergents, and products of sewage treatment plants. The highest concentrations of phosphorus and nitrogen are often found in agricultural areas, where the sources are fertilized farm fields and feedlots. Over 90% of all nitrogen added to the environment by human activity comes from agriculture. Eutrophication. is the process by which a body of water develops a high concentration of nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus (in the forms of nitrates and phosphates). The nutrients increase the growth of aquatic plants in general, as well as the production of photosynthetic blue-green bacteria and algae. Algae may form surface mats that shade the water and block light to algae below the surface, greatly reducing photosynthesis. The bacteria and algae die, and as they decompose, BOD increases, reducing the water’s oxygen content, sometimes to the point where other organisms, such as fish, will die. Surface Water Pollution Pollution of surface water occurs when too much of an undesirable or harmful substance flows into a body of water, exceeding that body of water's natural ability to remove it, dilute it to a harmless concentration, or convert it to a harmless form. Water pollutants, like other pollutants, are categorized as being emitted from the point or nonpoint sources. Point sources are distinct and confined, such as pipes from industrial and municipal sites that empty into streams or rivers. In general, point source 19 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 pollutants from industries are controlled through on-site treatment or disposal and are regulated by permit. Nonpoint sources, such as runoff, are diffused and intermittent and are influenced by factors such as land use, climate, hydrology, topography, native vegetation, and geology. Common urban nonpoint sources include runoff from streets or fields; such runoff contains all sorts of pollutants, from heavy metals to chemicals and sediment. Rural sources of nonpoint pollution are generally associated with agriculture, mining, or forestry. Nonpoint sources are difficult to monitor and control. http://shssenvironmentalscience.weebly.com/uploads/3/7/9/5/37951777/1492615.jpg?856 Surface Water Pollution Reduction From an environmental view, two approaches to dealing with surface-water pollution are: 1. to reduce the sources 2. to treat the water to remove pollutants or convert them to forms that can be disposed of safely. Two of the newer techniques are: 1. nanotechnology 2. urban-runoff naturalization. 20 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Nanotechnology uses extremely small material particles (10−9m size, about 100,000 times thinner than a human hair) designed for a number of purposes. Some nanoparticles can capture heavy metals such as lead, mercury, and arsenic from water. The nanoparticles have a tremendous surface area to volume. One cubic centimeter of particles has a surface area exceeding a football field and can take up over 50% of its weight in heavy metals. Urban-runoff naturalization is an emerging bioengineering technology to treat urban runoff before it reaches streams, lakes, or the ocean. One method is to create a "closed-loop" local landscape that does not allow runoff to leave a property. Plants may be located as "rain gardens" below downspouts, and parking-lot drainage is directed to plants instead of the street. Wastewater Treatment Water used for industrial and municipal purposes is often degraded during use by the addition of suspended solids, salts, nutrients, bacteria, and oxygen-demanding material. Wastewater treatment—sewage treatment—costs about $20 billion per year in the United States, and the cost keeps rising, but it will continue to be big business. Conventional wastewater treatment includes septic-tank disposal systems in rural areas and centralized wastewater treatment plants in cities. Septic Tank Disposal Systems. In many rural areas, no central sewage systems or wastewater treatment facilities are available. As a result, individual septic-tank disposal systems, not connected to sewer systems, continue to be an important method of sewage disposal in rural areas as well as outlying areas of cities. The tank is designed to separate solids from liquid, digest (biochemically change), store organic matter through a period of detention, and allow the clarified liquid to discharge into the drain field (absorption field) from a piping system the treated sewage seeps into the surrounding soil. As the wastewater moves through the soil, it is further treated by the natural processes of oxidation and filtering. By the time the water reaches any freshwater supply, it should be safe for other uses. Wastewater Treatment Plants. In urban areas, wastewater is treated at specially designed plants that accept municipal sewage from homes, businesses, and industrial sites. The raw sewage is delivered to the plant through a network of sewer pipes. Following treatment, the wastewater is discharged into the surface- water environment (river, lake, or ocean) or, in some limited cases, used for another purpose, such as crop irrigation. The main purpose of standard treatment plants is to break down and reduce the BOD and kill bacteria with chlorine. Wastewater treatment methods are usually divided into three categories: primary treatment, secondary treatment, and advanced wastewater treatment. Primary and secondary treatments are required. 21 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 https://cdn.britannica.com/55/23955-050-FF21F69E/treatment-sewage-sludge-process.jpg Primary Treatment. Incoming raw sewage enters the plant from the municipal sewer line and passes through a series of screens to remove large floating organic material. The sewage next enters the "grit chamber," where sand, small stones, and grit are removed and disposed of. It goes to the primary sedimentation tank, where particulate matter settles out to form sludge. Sometimes, chemicals are used to help the settling process. The sludge is removed and transported to the "digester" for further processing. Primary treatment removes approximately 30 to 40% of BOD by volume from the wastewater, mainly in the form of suspended solids and organic matter. Secondary Treatment. There are several methods of secondary treatment. The most common treatment is known as activated sludge because it uses living organisms—mostly bacteria. In this procedure, the wastewater from the primary sedimentation tank enters the aeration tank where it is mixed with air (pumped in) and with some of the sludge from the final sedimentation tank. The sludge contains aerobic bacteria that consume organic material (BOD) in the waste. The wastewater then enters the final sedimentation tank, where sludge settles out. Some of this “activated sludge,” rich in bacteria, is recycled and mixed again in the aeration tank with air and new, incoming wastewater acting as a starter. The bacteria are used again and again. Most of the sludge from the final sedimentation tank, however, is transported to the sludge digester. 22 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Advanced Wastewater Treatment. Advanced wastewater treatment is used when it is particularly important to maintain good water quality. For example, if a treatment plant discharges treated wastewater into a river and there is concern that nutrients remaining after secondary treatment may damage the river ecosystem (eutrophication), advanced treatment may be used to reduce the nutrients. Chlorine Treatment. Chlorine is very effective in killing the pathogens responsible for outbreaks of serious waterborne diseases that have killed many thousands of people. However, a recently discovered potential is that chlorine treatment also produces minute quantities of chemical by-products, some of which are potentially hazardous to people and other animals. Land Application of Wastewater Applying wastewater to the land arose from the fundamental belief that waste is simply a resource out of place. Land application of untreated human waste was practiced for hundreds if not thousands of years before the development of wastewater treatment plants, which have sanitized the process by reducing BOD and using chlorination. Wastewater and Wetland. Wastewater is being applied successfully to natural and constructed wetlands at a variety of locations.33–35 Natural or human-made wetlands can be effective in treating the following water-quality problems: 1. municipal wastewater from primary or secondary treatment plants (BOD, pathogens, phosphorus, nitrate, suspended solids, metals) 2. stormwater runoff (metals, nitrate, BOD, pesticides, oils) 3. industrial wastewater (metals, acids, oils, solvents) 4. agricultural wastewater and runoff (BOD, nitrate, pesticides, suspended solids) 5. mining waters (metals, acidic water, sulfates) 6. groundwater seeping from landfills (BOD, metals, oils, pesticides) Water Reuse Water reuse can be inadvertent, indirect, or direct. Inadvertent water reuse results when water is withdrawn, treated, used, treated, and returned to the environment, followed by further withdrawals and use. Inadvertent water reuse is common and a fact of life for millions of people living along large rivers. Many sewage treatment plants are located along rivers and discharge treated water into the rivers. Downstream, other communities withdraw, treat, and consume the water. Several risks are associated with inadvertent reuse: 1. Inadequate treatment facilities may deliver contaminated or poor-quality water to downstream users. 23 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 2. Because the fate of all disease-causing viruses during and after treatment is not completely known, the health hazards of treated water remain uncertain. 3. Every year, new and potentially hazardous chemicals are introduced into the environment. Harmful chemicals are often difficult to detect in the water, and if they are ingested in low concentrations over many years, their effects on people may be difficult to evaluate. Indirect water reuse is a planned endeavor. For example, in the United States, several thousand cubic meters of treated wastewater per day have been applied to numerous sites to recharge groundwater and reuse them for agricultural and municipal purposes. Direct water reuse refers to the use of treated wastewater piped directly from a treatment plant to the next user. In most cases, the water is used in industry, in agri-cultural activity, or for watering golf courses, institutional grounds (such as university campuses), and parks. Direct water reuse is growing rapidly and is the norm for industrial processes in factories. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION LAWS AND POLICIES Environmental law, the branch of law dealing with conservation and use of natural resources and control of pollution, is very important as we debate environmental issues and make decisions about how best to protect our environment. At its core, then, a policy is a plan or statement of intentions— either written or stated— about a course of action or inaction https://www.tutorialspoint.com/environmental_studies/images/envir intended to accomplish some end. onmental_policy.jpg Power in Politics. According to some observers, politics is really the struggle for power among competing interest groups that strive to shape public policy to suit their own agendas. The political system, in this view, manages group conflict by: 1. establishing rules to ensure civil competition 2. encouraging compromises and balancing interests to the extent possible, 3. codifying compromises as public policy 4. enforcing laws and rules based on that policy. 24 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Creation of Policies Laws are rules set by authority, society, or custom. Church laws, social morés, administrative regulations, and various other codes of behavior can be considered laws if some enforcement power backs them. Government laws are established by federal, state, or local legislative bodies or administrative agencies. Environmental law constitutes a unique body of official rules, decisions, and actions concerning environmental quality, natural resources, and ecological sustainability. Each branch of government plays a role in establishing the rules of law. Statute law consists of formal documents or decrees enacted by the government's legislative branch declaring, commanding, or prohibiting something. It represents the formal will of the legislature. Case law is derived from court decisions in both civil and criminal cases. Administrative law rises from executive orders, administrative rules and regulations, and enforcement decisions in which statutes passed by the legislature are interpreted in specific applications and individual cases because every country has different legislative and legal processes. International Environmental Principles The United Nations first convened countries to address the global environment at the 1972 UN Conference on the Human Environment in Stockholm. The Stockholm conference highlighted the international aspects of emerging environmental challenges and legitimized the environment as an area for international cooperation. Since the 1972 Stockholm Conference, the world has met regularly in a series of major summits aimed at shifting the world generally toward a path of sustainability. The most important by far has been the 1992 UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Rio "Earth Summit”. Virtually every world leader attended the Earth Summit, where they agreed to three major treaties – addressing climate change, biological diversity and desertification. At both Stockholm in 1972 and at Rio in 1992, the countries adopted a set of basic principles. Some of these principles are emerging as customary law, helping to resolve environmental disputes and guide negotiations of the various environmental treaties. Global Environmental Agreements Since the 1972 Stockholm Conference, countries have embarked on an ambitious schedule of international environmental treaty negotiations. Today, these treaties form the core of international environmental law. 25 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 They can be grouped into treaties aimed at: (1) protecting the global atmosphere, including preventing climate change and ozone depletion; (2) conserving wildlife and biological diversity; (3) managing the oceans and marine environment; and (4) regulating global movement of chemicals, wastes and other hazardous substances. Representative Global Number of Opened for Entered Environmental Agreements State Signature into Force Parties Global Atmosphere Montreal Protocol 197 1985 1988 UN Framework Convention on Climate 195 1992 1994 Change Kyoto Protocol 192 1997 2005 Paris Agreement 166 2015 2016 Wildlife and Biodiversity Convention on Biological Diversity 193 1992 1993 Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety 166 2000 2003 Convention on International Trade in 178 1973 1987 Endangered Species (CITES) Convention on Migratory Species 120 1979 1983 Convention to Combat Desertification 195 1994 1996 Ramsar Wetlands Convention 168 1971 1975 UNESCO World Heritage Convention 190 1972 1975 Oceans Law of the Sea Convention 166 1982 1994 Straddling Fish Stocks Agreement 88 1995 2001 Chemicals Basel Convention on Hazardous Wastes 181 1989 1992 Stockholm Convention on POPs 179 2001 2004 Rotterdam Convention on PIC 154 1998 2004 Minimata Convention on Mercury 128 2013 26 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 Addressing Climate Change At least since the 1980s, scientists have warned that increasing concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases would warm the earth's atmosphere and change our climate. Today, climate change is the most serious environmental https://www.unmultimedia.org/tv/unifeed/asset/2685/2685977/ challenge of our time, and we are already seeing its impacts: increased global temperatures; melting glaciers; reduced Arctic sea ice; increased tidal and storm surges; and increased heat waves and droughts. Avoiding the most dangerous impacts from climate change has been a major focus of international environment law since the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), which recognized climate change as "a common concern of humankind" and set out a framework for global action to avoid harmful impacts. The Convention set an informal goal to reduce emission levels of greenhouse gases to 1990 levels by the year 2000, but it did not impose any binding targets or timetables on any country. Thirty- eight industrialized countries subsequently agreed in the 1997 Kyoto Protocol to reduce their overall emissions to approximately 5 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2012. Another agreement in the form of the Paris Agreement, which sits within the framework established by the 1992 UNFCCC, significantly advanced the world’s effort to address climate change. For the first time, all countries, including the two largest emitters (China and the United States), pledged to take serious—if not binding— commitments. Reversing Ozone Depletion Beginning in the late 1970s scientists warned that certain widely used chemicals could be depleting the earth’s protective stratospheric ozone layer. In response, countries first negotiated the 1985 Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer and two years later the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer. The Montreal Protocol has subsequently been revised or amended every two or three 27 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 years, resulting in a comprehensive phase out of most chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), and other ozone depleting substances. Nearly every country in the world has joined the Montreal Protocol and the use of ozone- depleting substances has plummeted, And the ozone layer is slowly recovering. Recently, the Parties to the Montreal Protocol have extended it to phase out certain related chemicals that contribute to climate change. Conserving Nature The planet is facing a sixth great wave of extinctions and a general decline in wildlife and natural habitats. The leading global treaties for conserving nature are the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered species (CITES) and the Convention on Migratory Species. The 1992 Biodiversity Convention has the general goal of conserving the planet's biological diversity. The Convention sets an international framework to support domestic conservation efforts and includes binding protocols on managing genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and ensuring that local communities share the benefits from biodiversity conservation. CITES establishes binding controls on international trade in parts of rare species of animals and plants. For example, CITES prohibits all commercial trade in elephant ivory, tiger pelts, rhinoceros horns, and thousands of other plants and animals. The Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) provides a framework for countries to protect the entire life cycle of threatened migratory species. The CMS includes separate annexes tailored to the needs of specific animals or groups of animals (for example migratory bats). Other nature conservation treaties protect internationally important wetlands, natural heritage sites, and certain species such as whales, sea turtles or migratory birds. Protecting The Marine Environment The UN Convention on the Law of the Sea sets forth rules for managing the oceans, including marine conservation. Under the regime, coastal states are responsible for protecting the marine environment within 200 miles of their coasts, and flag states (i.e., the countries that license a particular vessel) are responsible for controlling their ship’s activities in the high seas beyond 200 miles. More specific treaties limit marine pollution from ships and regulate fishing for highly mobile fish species that straddle territorial waters and the high seas. Regulating Chemicals and Wastes The global management of chemicals is organized around a non-binding Strategic Agreement for Integrated Chemicals Management and four global treaties that regulate hazardous chemicals and wastes. The Rotterdam Prior Informed Consent Convention requires that chemical exporters ensure that receiving countries have given their prior, informed consent. Importing governments can then manage the 28 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 environmental and public health risks inherent to hazardous chemicals. The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal imposes similar consent requirements for shipments of hazardous wastes and requires the environmentally sound management of such wastes. The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants prohibits or significantly restricts the production and use of some of the world's most environmentally harmful chemicals, including dioxins, PCBs, and DDT. More recently, the Minimata Mercury Convention has curbed the multiple pathways of global mercury pollution. International environmental laws have successfully addressed many serious issues. Many harmful chemicals are now controlled, the ozone layer is recovering, and populations of important wildlife species, including whales and sea turtles, are increasing because of international environmental agreements. Philippine Environmental Laws and Regulation Philippine Environmental Laws are simply the collection of laws, regulations, principles, policies, directives, and agreements enforced by the Philippines’ government and the environmentally related bodies to govern and regulate the human treatment of the environment. Philippine environmental laws concern not only man’s physical environment but his social and economic wellbeing as well. Below are some of the Philippine Environmental Laws: A. PD 1586 - Environmental Impact Statement System of 1978 a process involving predicting and evaluating the likely impacts of a project on the environment during construction, commissioning, operation and abandonment. Section 4 of PD 1586 provides that no person, partnership or corporation shall undertake or operate any such declared environmentally critical project (ECP) or environmentally critical environmentally critical (ECA) without first securing an Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC). The process assures implementation of environment- friendly projects. B. Republic Act 6969 - Toxic Substances, Hazardous And Nuclear Waste Control Act of 1990 The law aims to regulate restrict or prohibit the importation, manufacture, processing, sale, distribution, use and disposal of chemical substances and mixtures the present unreasonable risk to human health. It likewise prohibits the entry, even in transit, of hazardous and nuclear wastes and their disposal into the Philippine territorial limits for whatever purpose; and to provide advancement and facilitate research and studies on toxic chemicals. C. Republic Act 8749 - Philippine Clean Air Act of 1999 The law aims to achieve and maintain clean air that meets the National Air Quality guideline values for criteria pollutants, throughout the Philippines, while minimizing the possible associated impacts to the economy. 29 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 The provisions of this Act extend to the Ozone Depleting Substances (ODS), that significantly deplete or otherwise modify the ozone layer, and to Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), substances persisting in the environment, bioaccumulating, and resisting photolytic, chemical and biological degradation and other toxic or poisonous substances potentially damaging human and animal health and the ecosystem. D. Republic Act 9003 - Ecological Solid Waste Management Act of 2000 In partnership with stakeholders, the law aims to adopt a systematic, comprehensive and ecological solid waste management program that shall ensure the protection of public health and environment. The law ensures proper segregation, collection, storage, treatment and disposal of solid waste through the formulation and adaptation of best eco-waste products. E. Republic Act 9275 - Philippine Clean Water Act of 2004 The law aims to protect the country's water bodies from pollution from land-based sources (industries and commercial establishments, agriculture and community/household activities). It provides for comprehensive and integrated strategy to prevent and minimize pollution through a multi-sectoral and participatory approach involving all the stakeholders. F. Republic Act 9729 - The Philippine Climate Change Act of 2009 Anchored on the constitutional provision which states that “it is the policy of the State to afford full protection and the advancement of the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony of nature.” It aims to mainstream climate change into government policy formulations, establishes the framework strategy and program on climate change and creates the Climate Change Commission. The law places the cities at the forefront of sustainable urban development and climate change initiatives. SELF-HELP You can refer to the sources below to help you further understand the lesson. Marten. G.G. 2008. Human Ecology: Basic Concepts for Sustainable Development. Earthscan, USA Cunningham, W. P. and Cunningham, M. 2010. Environmental Science: A Global Concern. 11th Edition. McGraw Hill, New York. Botkin, D. and Keller, E. 2011. Environmental Science: Earth as a Living Planet. 8 th Edition. John Wiley and Sons, USA 30 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 LET’S CHECK Activity No. 6. Now that you have the most essential terms and concepts in the study of geology and earth resource, water pollution and treatment, and environmental policy. Let us try to check your understanding of these terms and concepts. In space provided, write your answers to each of the following questions. ______________________1. The collective term encompassing aspects of the law that provide protection to the environment. ______________________2. Refers to the process that controls the structure and properties of the Earth’s crust and its evolution through time. ______________________3. An agent that cause harm or damage to humans, property, or the environment. ______________________4. It refers to the probability that exposure to a hazard will lead to a negative consequence. ______________________5. The process of breaking down of rocks, soil, and minerals as well wood and artificial materials through contact with the Earth’s atmosphere, water, and biological organisms. ______________________6. A naturally occurring, inorganic, solid element or compound with a definite chemical composition and a regular internal crystal structure. ______________________7. Refers to a solid, cohesive, aggregate of one or more minerals. ______________________8. The long-term patterns of temperature and precipitation. ______________________9. Refers to a minute particles and liquid droplets. ______________________10. The general term for gases that are especially effective at capturing the long-wavelength energy from the earth’s surface. LET’S ANALYZE Activity No. 6. Getting acquainted with the essential terms essential terms and concepts of geology and earth resources, water pollution and environmental policy. Now, I will require you to explain thoroughly your answers. 1. Identify and differentiate the different layers of the atmosphere and its unique features. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 2. What is the difference between climate and weather? ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 31 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 3. How does greenhouse effect become harmful to the earth? ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 4. How is climate change affecting the planet right now? ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 5. What is air pollution? Discuss comprehensively the sources of pollution and its corresponding categories. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 6. What is water pollution? How does water resource become polluted? ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 7. What are the challenges of implementing environmental laws? ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ IN A NUTSHELL Activity No. 6. Based from the definition of the most essential terms and concepts of the atmosphere, air and water pollution and environmental laws and the learning exercises that you have done, please feel free to write your arguments or lessons learned below. 1. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 2. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 3. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 4. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 32 | P a g e  College of Arts and Sciences Education 2nd Floor, DPT Building Matina Campus, Davao City Phone No.: (082)300-5456/305-0647 Local 118 ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 5. ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ Q&A LIST Do you have any questions for clarification? Questions/ Issues Answers 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. KEYWORDS INDEX Climate Change Point Sources Estuary Environmental Law Non-Point Sources Weather Wastewater Treatment Residence Time Climate Sewage Criteria Pollutant Atmosphere 33 | P a g e