EARTH IN BALANCE

Acid rain is a rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually acidic, meaning that it has elevated levels of hydrogen ions. It can have harmful effects on plants, and aquatic animals

Acid rain is any sort of precipitation that contains high levels of nitric and sulfuric acid. Human activities, like burning fossil fuels, are what create the bulk of acid rain. A small amount of acid rain stems from natural sources, like from the chemicals spewed out in a volcanic eruption.

Many fish are not able to survive in an acidic environment, and plants begin to die because the acid dissolves nutrients in the soil. Plants can also soak up some of the toxins in the acid rain, making them unfit for human consumption.

Acid damages stone and rock, which could be dangerous for the livability of a home or building if the foundation becomes corroded. Sculptures, statues, and paint exposed to the elements are also horribly damaged.

It is hard when reducing the amount of acid rainfall. A 2013 report from the Government Accountability Office said 88% of the Great Lakes were impaired by acid rain, and that 21,000 miles of streams were tainted in the central Appalachian Mountains.

Acid rainfall can cause serious repertory problems and greatly impact human health. It has been estimated that around 550 premature deaths each year occur due to acid rain.

In drier areas, people see acid gas or acid dust in lieu of rain, and even acid snow in colder parts of the world. The toxic acids in the atmosphere can mix with essentially any material, including hail or fog.

Ocean acidification is the ongoing decrease in the pH of the Earth's oceans, this is caused by the increase of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

About 30–40% of the carbon dioxide from human activities is released into the atmosphere dissolves into oceans, rivers and lakes.

Human activities mostly include burning of coal and other fossil fuels, also cement production, deforestation as well as other landscape changes. This emitted about 40 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide in 2015

These sensitive species are directly or indirectly of great cultural, economic or ecological importance; for example, warm-water corals that reduce coastal erosion and provide habitat for many other species.

Ocean acidification involves a shift towards pH-neutral conditions rather than a transition to acidic conditions

This is extremely bad for creatures with calcium carbonate in their shells or skeletons for example mollusks, crabs, and corals. Acidic water makes it harder to grow their shells, so many of them are going to have a hard time surviving as our seas change.

Ocean acidity has increased by 30% since the beginning of the industrial revolution, if CO2 emissions continue to grow, the rate of acidification will increase by a large amount in the coming decades. This rate of change, is many times faster than anything experienced in the last 250 million years.

AIR

A substance welcomed into the air which has harmful or poisonous effects.

It’s not only the air outside, household air is also harmful.A report came out and highlighted the dangers of burning fuels like coal or kerosene.Also, gas or kerosene space heaters can also be part of the problem. While airtight spaces only contribute to the problem, recent evidence suggests they not only affect your physical health, but also your mental state.

WATER

Having toxic chemicals and biological agents in the presence of our groundwater.
naturally found in the water and can pose a threat to human health and animal health

3 types of water pollution: biological; This type of pollution is caused by decaying organic material in water, animal
wastes, as well as improper disposal of human wastes. chemical;When various chemicals pollute our waters. Some common chemicals include: Crude oil
and many petroleum products, and radiological; Radioactive Pollution is the increase in the natural radiation levels mainly caused by
human activities.

Effects of Water pollution

Gastroenteritis
Diarrhea
Encephalitis
Stomach cramps and aches
Vomiting
Hepatitis

$44 million a year is spent just protecting aquatic species from nutrient pollution and
thats in the Canada alone. In developing countries United Nations spends about 150 Billion a
year to clean out their waters.

a slow increase in the overall temperature of the earth's atmosphere generally attributed to the greenhouse effect caused by increased levels of carbon dioxide, chlorofluorocarbons, and other pollutants.

Arctic sea ice coverage has shrunk every decade since 1979 by 3.5 to 4.1 per cent. Glaciers have also been in retreat, including in major mountain range

Precipitation (rain and snowfall) has increased across the globe, on average.

Some invasive species are thriving. For example, spruce bark beetles have boomed in Alaska thanks to 20 years of warm summers. The insects have chewed up 4 million acres of spruce trees.

Less fresh water will be available. If the Quelccaya ice cap in Peru continues to melt at its current rate, it will be gone by 2100, leaving thousands of people who rely on it for drinking water and electricity without a source of either.

Ecosystems will change: Some species will move farther north or become more successful; others won’t be able to move and could become extinct.

With less ice on which to live and fish for food, polar bears have gotten considerably skinnier, if sea ice disappears, the polar bears will as well.

Deforestation is the clearance or the removal of a forest or stand of trees. The land is then after converted to a non forest use. Examples of deforestation include conversion of forestland to farms, ranches, or urban use.

It is estimated that within 100 years there will be no rainforests.If the current rate of deforestation continues, it will take less than 100 years to destroy all the rainforests on the earth. Research has proven that almost one and a half acres of forest is cut down every second.

Loss of forests contributes between 12 percent and 17 percent of annual global greenhouse gas emissions

Up to 28,000 species are expected to become extinct by the next quarter of the century due to deforestation.

Fuel wood in sub Saharan African countries is consumed up to 200% times more than the annual growth rates of the trees. This is causing deforestation, lack of timber resources and loss of habitat for the species living in it.

Deforestation affects water cycle. Trees absorb groundwater and release the same into the atmosphere during transpiration. When deforestation happens, the climate automatically changes to a drier one and also affects the water table.

Land degradation is a process in which the well being of the environment is affected by a combination of human induced processes acting upon the land.

3.6 billion hectares, 25 percent of the Earth's land area, are being affected by land-degradation. Desertification is occur- ring to some extent on 30 percent of irrigated areas, 47 percent of rain fed agricultural lands, and 73 percent of rangelands.

1.5-2.5 million hectares of irrigated land, 3.5-4.0 million hectares of rainfed agricultural land, and about 35 million hectares of rangelands lose all or part of their productivity every year due to land-degradation processes.

Forests have almost disappeared because we needed to clear them to plant more crops, to give animals a place to graze and to supply us with wood and other raw materials.

7% of our coral reefs have been destroyed. If the rate continues, remaining 60% will be gone in 30 years.

We are using up 50% more natural resources than the Earth can provide. At our current population, we need 1.5 Earths

Every hour, 1,692 acres of productive dry land become desert.

Litter consists of waste products that have been disposed improperly, without consent, at an inappropriate location ie the streets

Large majority of litter ends up in the ocean, 9 billion tonnes of garbage finds its way into the sea every year, as of right now there are currently 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic in the ocean right now.

Canada alone spends about $43.5 million to clean up litter which is a huge amount of taxpayers money

Littering can mess with the chance for growth in the long term. This is due to the fact businesses are less likely to establish themselves in highly populated areas and will instead choose to set up in cleaner communities. Also, these areas tend to have lower property values.

Cigarette butts make up over half of our littered objects, and they take a total of ten years to decompose because of a cellulose acetate, cigarette butts are a serious threat to the environment.

Litter on the ground degrades natural areas and kills plants and animals. Many animals eat or get stuck in the garbage that we litter.

Litter spoils water quality. The hazardous waste seeps into soil and can cause ground water pollution.