Acid Rain

How do we get Acid Rain?

Sulfur and nitrogen oxides, pollutants released by coal-burning electric-power plants or motor vehicles, are spewed into the atmosphere, where they are changed chemically.

While in the atmosphere, they change chemically and fall back to Earth as acidified rain or snow, which in turn, destroys plant and animal life in streams, damages forests, and even erodes buildings. 

Dropping acid...

The effects of  acid rain are staggering. Along the Appalachian Mountain chain, rain is 10 times more acidic than nearby lower elevations and about 100 times greater than unpolluted rain.

The most acidic rain measured at several eastern mountains is 2,000 times worse than unpolluted rain water. In fact, it's so acidic that it approximates lemon juice.

We must take action

Don't just sit there; we must take action soon. Otherwise, no forest--not even in the wildernesses of North America--will be safe in the future.

If we continue this pollution at the present rate, there will be scarcely any trees left to worry about in only a few decades.

What are the components of acid rain?

Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is the primary component of acid rain in most regions, and electric utilities are responsible for approximately 65% of the total SO2 emission in the U.S.

Therefore, large reductions in electric utility SO2 emissions are necessary. Electricity conservation is one way to achieve this.

References: Cleaning Up the Outdoors | Breathing Easier, The World Resources Institute | John Seymour and Herbert Giradet, Blueprinit for a Green Planet | American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy