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What happened to acid rain?

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posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:13 PM
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We used to hear about acid rain all the time. I remember it was a household term, when I was younger, but I, for one, haven't heard it mentioned in a very long time. Was it replaced by global warming? It seems that talk of "acid rain" just faded away. When I was a kid, I remember even seeing cartoons about it, but I'd about bet that my children have never even heard of it.

Anybody have any thoughts on this? Was acid rain "debunked" or something? It was once such a big issue. I just find it odd that talk of it just went away.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:17 PM
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Yeah I wonder that too

I also wonder what ever happened to Fireflies



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:18 PM
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You know, that is a darn true observation. I also grew up hearing alt the time about acid rain, and I remember learning about it throughout high school and in college. What did happen?

S&F for taking down me down memory lane, and waking me back up. I hope someone on here has a good answer.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:18 PM
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Yes the acid rain was a hot topic in the 80's. Then later on the hole in the ozone layer was going to kill us all.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:18 PM
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reply to post by gemineye
 


Your right I remember hearing about it all the time when I was younger, I remember seeing a comedy spoof show and the acid rain was that bad it burned through the guys umbrella, maybe we fixed

wiki



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:21 PM
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It's one of those things that just popped into my head one day while I was driving. I don't even know what caused me to think of it. I just suddenly realized that I hadn't heard it mentioned in many many years!

I remember the commercial about the rain burning through the guy's umbrella! Obviously, a lot of money was put into making us aware of it, but then it ceased to exist.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:25 PM
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reply to post by jjkenobi
 


Yeah, I remember the hole in the ozone was a big issue! All us girls were killing the earth with our massive amounts of Aqua Net, but then found out that was a myth that had been debunked a long time ago, lol. I remember the father of one of my friends absolutely biting her head off once because she bought aerosol deodorant, instead of the stick kind. That was probably the first time I had ever heard of the ozone layer.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:27 PM
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Due to some fairly aggressive controls put into place (starting: 1983 Canada, 1990 USA) the amount and severity of acid rain in North America has been greatly diminished.

That being said, acid rain is still a significant issue in Asia, and there is the potential for an emergence of acid rain issues in North America due to the BP oil spill.

Edit to add:

Here is a quick image of sulfate deposits 1989-91 vs 2007-09
Wet Sulfate Deposits
edit on 18-2-2011 by peck420 because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:27 PM
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reply to post by gemineye
 


You're right! I remember that well. I haven't heard anything about it for years either. Is it because it hasn't gotten any worse? Or was it made up in the first place.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:28 PM
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there is still acid rain, and always will be.

however, it lost it's ability to make money.

The alarmists used the news to drum up tons of business.

then Moved on to the next thing when it got stale.

(you know why your eyes burn when you cut an onion? because the sulfur in the onion mixes with the liquid in your eye and create SULFURIC ACID...similar process in the atmosphere with many chemicals.....no biggie)
edit on 18-2-2011 by BadBoYeed because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:30 PM
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I believe that, in most countries, legislation was put in place to stop the expulsion of sulphur containg gasses into the atmosphere.

I know that in Germany's black forest, where there was some die-off due to acid rain, that they put a stop to it fairly quickly.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:32 PM
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reply to post by gemineye
 





Was acid rain "debunked" or something? It was once such a big issue.


Yes it was debunked.

For one thing Rain is ALWAYS acid. H2O+CO2--->H2CO3 When carbon dioxide in the air is dissolved in water carbonic acid, H2CO3, is formed. This is why we have caves and speleothems. The acid in the rain water dissolves calcium forming caves. When the calcium laden water hits the air in a cave the CO2 is given off and the calcium deposited in the form of speleothems.

The "Acid Rain" everyone was screaming about was from SO2
SO2 + H2O---> H2SO3
H2SO3 + 1/2O2 ---> H2SO4

The So2 was believed to be from burning sulfur containing coal and gasoline and diesel fuel. The EPA put in stringent guidelines that have cleaned up the Smog in the USA. Unfortunately China does not hav an EPA and is now building coal powered two power plants every week. A friend in Alsaka was bitterly complaining about the smog blowing into Alaska from China.

DailyTech - Soot Ranks Second After CO2 in Arctic Ice Melt Warming


August 12, 2009, New Paper “Increase In Background Stratospheric Aerosol Observed With Lidar” By Hofmann Et Al 2009.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:32 PM
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Eco-fad crap.

Each of us will live through a dozen of them at least.

Those who live long and pay attention will get to see them come around again like a comet.

I've been through three "global warming" terrors, two "landfill" scares, one "ozone" catastrophe, two "UV" threats, three "deforestation" prophecies and one "acid rain" warming. Since it's been a while I see "acid rain" making a big comeback.

Funny they never bother to hype up the measurable stuff, government caused stuff, stuff that can actually be fixed stuff like fluoride in the water, the constantly increasing density of prescription drugs in the water, the poisons the CDC and FDA approved for our food and all that # that's been killing since the dawn of these alphabet agencies. That stuffs all holy and just because the government said so.

All of this nature stuff though. That's our fault. And the only way to fix it, according to government, is to give more money to the guys with all the guns and jails. Makes sense to me.



posted on Feb, 18 2011 @ 02:51 PM
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reply to post by peck420
 


I imagine it is a big issue in Asia, but our MSM does not really cover it all anymore.

Having memories of Blade Runner flash through my mind.



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 09:26 AM
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Due to some fairly aggressive controls put into place (starting: 1983 Canada, 1990 USA) the amount and severity of acid rain in North America has been greatly diminished. That being said, acid rain is still a significant issue in Asia, and there is the potential for an emergence of acid rain issues in North America due to the BP oil spill. Edit to add: Here is a quick image of sulfate deposits 1989-91 vs 2007-09 Wet Sulfate Deposits
reply to post by peck420
 


Thanks for that info! I did a bit of searching myself, but the only thing I could find was other people asking the same question, with no answers. Glad to see it isn't as much of an issue now as it was then.



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 09:34 AM
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Hmmmmmmmmm, maybe
alkaline cloud seeding???
edit on 19-2-2011 by CosmicCitizen because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 10:05 AM
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reply to post by thisguyrighthere
 



Those who live long and pay attention will get to see them come around again like a comet.


Actually, what happened was that acid rain was becoming a significant problem, therefore new legislation was passed that decreased the sulfur content in fuels, and also a mandated various forms of scrubbers to coal power stations, which significantly reduced the amount of acid rain. In other words, the problem was recognized, the problem was to a certain extent, mitigated. It's also what happened with DDT, smog, mercury, the ozone-hole, and is what may occur with global warming.

I might add that scrubbers are not 100% efficient, so the problem of acid rail still exists to a certain extent.


The electricity derived from coal is an integral part of our daily lives. However, coal carries a heavy burden. The yearly and cumulative costs stemming from the aerosolized, solid, and water pollutants associated with the mining, processing, transport, and combustion of coal affect individuals, families, communities, ecological integrity, and the global climate. The economic implications go far beyond the prices we pay for electricity.

Our comprehensive review finds that the best estimate for the total economically quantifiable costs, based on a conservative weighting of many of the study findings, amount to some $345.3 billion, adding close to 17.8¢/kWh of electricity generated from coal. The low estimate is $175 billion, or over 9¢/kWh, while the true monetizable costs could be as much as the upper bounds of $523.3 billion, adding close to 26.89¢/kWh. These and the more difficult to quantify externalities are borne by the general public.

climateprogress.org...





All of this nature stuff though. That's our fault. And the only way to fix it, according to government, is to give more money to the guys with all the guns and jails. Makes sense to me.

Legislation was passed mandating emission standards and ways to enforce them. If you have a better idea I'm sure the world would love to here it.
edit on 19/2/11 by C0bzz because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 10:11 AM
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Reply to post by C0bzz
 


Because moneys fixes everything!

Oh. I guess you did not get the memo. Global Warming is out. Climate Change is in.


 
Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com
 



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 10:14 AM
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Originally posted by Lemon.Fresh
Reply to post by C0bzz
 


Because moneys fixes everything!

Oh. I guess you did not get the memo. Global Warming is out. Climate Change is in.


 
Posted Via ATS Mobile: m.abovetopsecret.com
 



Unfortunately, it is not possible to merely wish problems away. Interestingly, while it may actually cost the power-station owner a significant sum of money to install emissions controls, it is likely that they reduce the overall cost to the public because the external cost will be reduced. What is an external cost? A cost that is not transmitted through the price of electricity itself. In other words, damages caused by pollution that are not paid for by the electricity company is an example of an external cost. External costs of burning coal in the United States amount to 350 billion dollars per year, which the power companies don't pay for, instead the public does, which is basically an effective subsidy. If we mandate that the power companies to spend money to reduce the external cost (e.g. due to damages like acid rain, by implemented better scrubbers) then the overall cost to the public will go down because then we won't have to pay for the environmental, property, and health damage, ending the (or at least the acid-rain part) effective subsidy. I hope this makes sense...

As far as global warming and climate change, according to the mainstream view the climate is changing as it is getting warmer, hence both of the terms global warming and climate change are to them the same thing. No idea why they have two different words for it though.
edit on 19/2/11 by C0bzz because: (no reason given)

edit on 19/2/11 by C0bzz because: (no reason given)



posted on Feb, 19 2011 @ 10:49 AM
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Acid rain, which is rainwater which carries sulfuric acid (H2SO4), is still a problem in some areas, although not as much as it once was. The reason we began experiencing acid rain is an interesting tale of mankind interfering with nature.

Burning any carbon-containing material will produce carbon dioxide (CO2). Burning any carbon-containing material under controlled conditions will also produce a certain amount of carbon monoxide (CO) since controlling the combustion typically results in some of the material having a lack of oxygen to completely burn. CO2 is not poisonous unless inhaled in amounts many many times what is in the atmosphere even when there is a huge amount of carbon combustion occurring; CO on the other hand is an asphyxiant. It has the ability to pass through the membranes in the lungs by mimicking oxygen (O2), can bond with the hemoglobin in the blood like O2, but does not release like O2. It essentially makes the red blood cells unable to transport oxygen.

CO will become CO2 after a certain time just by being in the presence of oxygen. It's a little slow, but it does happen.

Anyway, there was a push to reduce the amount of CO produced by automobiles. In order to try and tightly control the amount of exhaust gases, the catalytic converter was not only introduced on all models of automobiles, but was also protected by legislation from being removed, even by the owner of the car. A catalytic converter is basically a small chemical factory that uses catalysts to intensify certain chemical reactions in the exhaust... one of these is the conversion of CO to CO2. Another is to prevent the amount of sulfur dioxide (SO2) released into the air. SO2 is the cause of atmospheric H2SO4.

The problem was that the catalytic converters are not self-sustaining. They wear out after a certain period of time, and not only stop working as effectively, but also begin to emit more gases, including SO2 and HS, leading to that 'rotten gas' smell we seem to have gotten used to. Replacing a catalytic converter is expensive, and a lot of people simply couldn't afford to have it done; some just kept driving, others traded up for a newer car, effectively putting the older one in the hands of those even less able to replace the malfunctioning catalytic converter. They could not simply remove the device by law, so in effect they were forced to pollute the air.

The result was that the same catalytic converters used to try to clean the exhaust became essentially the source for acid rain components.

Present fuels in the US and most developed nations have since been legislated to contain precious little sulfur, leading to a longer life span for the catalytic converters. But this has come at a price as well: higher fuel costs due to higher filtration and processing costs. So acid rain has effectively decreased to a minor issue.

It was never popularly published that the acid rain problem was over, because a large part of the problem to begin with was found to be the very thing the government had mandated to clean the atmosphere. That just wouldn't have been good public relations.

Anyway, that's what happened. Yes, it still exists, but it has been minimalized in developed nations and we don't seem to care about the exact same atmosphere if it is over an under-developed or developing nation.


TheRedneck




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