Energy and Environment

Dr. Farrukh Arsalan Siddiqui

B.Sc. Mechanical Engg. (UET LHR.)
M.Sc. Thermal Power Engg. (UET LHR.)
Ph.D. (Oxford, U.K.)

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Environment and Energy related Environmental issues
Topics to be Covered

 Environment and Environmental issues  Introduction

Global, Regional and Local Environmental issues
 Energy Related Environmental Pollutions and their sources
Air, Thermal, Water, Land, Noise and Radiation Pollution
 Atmospheric Emissions (Energy Related)
 Criteria Pollutants
CO, NOx, SOx, Pb, PM, Ozone
 Air Toxic  VOC
 Air Quality Index
 Acid Deposition
 Stratospheric Ozone Depletion
 Green house Gases
 Radio Active wastes (Energy Related)
 Depletion of Conventional Energy Resources
 Environment and Environmental issues
 Environment refers to the physical environment that surrounds us. This includes
 Air we breath
 Water we drink and
 Land, oceans, rivers and forests that cover the earth
 It also includes the buildings , highways and modern infrastructure of the urban settings
in which a growing proportion of the world’s population reside.
 The state of this physical environment directly and indirectly affects the viability of all
living things on the planet. The welfare of these livings things motivates most
environmental concerns.

 Environmental issues are harmful aspects of human activity on the environment. Major
current environmental issues may include climate change, pollution, environmental
degradation, and resource depletion etc.

 Some of the largest problems now affecting the world are Acid Rain, Air Pollution,
Global Warming, Hazardous Waste, Ozone Depletion, Smog, Water Pollution and Rain
Forest Destruction.
 Environment and Environmental issues  Introduction

Energy related environmental concerns have expanded from :

Primarily local or regional issues  international and global nature of major

energy related environmental problems.

Particularly in developing or newly industrialized countries

 where energy consumption growth rates are typically extremely high and
environmental management has not yet been fully incorporated into the infrastructure,
environmental problems are becoming apparent or already exist (ISO 14000, ISO
50001)

Industrialized countries are at present mainly responsible for air pollution, ozone depletion,
and carbon emissions because of the small contribution of the developing countries.
 Environment and Environmental issues  Introduction

 In the 1970s, concerns about energy use mainly focused on the relationship
between energy and economics. At that time, the linkage between energy
and the environment did not receive much attention.

 An institutional structure to deal with environmental problems emerged

after the 1970s in most countries.

 As environmental concerns, such as pollution, ozone depletion, and global

climate change, became major issues in the 1980s, interest in the link
between energy utilization and the environment became more pronounced
(especially in the late 1980s and early 1990s).

 The environmental impact of energy use is reduced by increasing the

efficiency of energy-resource utilization and by substituting more
environmentally benign energy resources for damaging ones.
Environment and Environmental issues  Introduction
Energy-environmental issues may be categorized by relative geographic scale
of their impact: global, regional, and local.
Global Impacts
 Impacts with a global scale may originate from local activities, which,
due to the longevity and transport of emissions, or to the nature of the
impact, affect global environmental conditions.
 These issues include global climate change from greenhouse gas
emissions, stratospheric ozone depletion, and habitat destruction
with the associated reduction of global biodiversity.
Regional Impacts
 Some energy activities result in emissions (e.g. acid decomposition,
SOx and NOx, or the mobilization of long-lived toxic contaminants) that
lead to damage tens or hundreds of kilometers away referred as
regional issues.
Local Impacts
 Finally, local issues refer to situations where impacts generally occur at or near
the site of energy use or production, such as indoor and urban air pollution,
groundwater contamination, and solid waste production.
 Major Energy Related Environment Issues
GLOBAL ISSUES
 Global Climate Change
 Stratospheric Ozone Depletion
 Reduction of Biodiversity

REGIONAL ISSUES
 Water and Land Use and Degradation
 Ocean Contamination (Oil spills, etc.)
 Mobilization of Toxic Contaminants
 Acid deposition
 Radioactivity and Radioactive Wastes
LOCAL ISSUES
 Urban Air Pollution and Indoor Air Pollution
 Localized Surface and Groundwater Pollution
 Solid and Hazardous Wastes
 Electromagnetic Fields
 Occupational Health and Safety
 Large Scale Accidents
 Aesthetic and Other Concerns (e.g. Audible Noise, Visual Impairment)
 Environmental Pollution
Pollution
 Pollution can be defined as the accumulation and adverse affects of
contaminants or pollutants on human health and welfare, and/or the
environment.

 Pollution in general is the activity of disturbing the natural system and

balance of an environment.

 Contaminants/Pollutants can result from waste materials produced from the

activity of living organisms especially humans.

 Contamination/Pollutants can also occur from natural processes such as

arsenic dissolution from bedrock into groundwater, or air pollution from
smoke that results from natural fires.

 Contaminants/Pollutants can be in the solid, liquid, or gaseous state.

 Environmental Pollution

Land Pollution Thermal Pollution Water Pollution

Air Pollution Noise Pollution Radiation Pollution

 Water Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
Water pollution is the introduction into fresh or ocean waters of chemical, physical, or
biological material that degrades the quality of the water and affects the organisms
living in it.
This process ranges from simple addition of dissolved or suspended solids to discharge
of the most insidious and persistent toxic pollutants (such as pesticides, heavy metals,
and non-degradable, bio accumulative, chemical compounds)

 Some forms of electricity generation involve the discharge of water. These water
discharges can contain pollutants. In addition, drilling and mining operations can
affect water quality.
 During the transportation of oil, spills can occur, damaging water quality and
harming marine life and birds in oceans and coastal waterways.
 Water Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
 Refineries release treated wastewater, which can contain pollutants, into streams
and other bodies of water

 Drilling can also cause underground water supplies to become contaminated with
oil, and runoff from the extraction process can affect surface waters.

 Mining affects fresh water through heavy use of water in processing ore, and
through water pollution from discharged mine effluent and seepage from tailings
and waste rock impoundments

 Although the nuclear reactor is radioactive, the water discharged from the power
plant is not considered radioactive because it never comes in contact with
radioactive materials. However, waste generated from uranium mining operations
and rainwater runoff can contaminate groundwater and surface water resources
with heavy metals and traces of radioactive uranium.

http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-and-you/affect/water-discharge.html
Thermal Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
Thermal pollution is the discharge of waste heat via energy dissipation into cooling
water and subsequently into nearby waterways. Thermal pollution is when water
temperature rises to harmful degrees in lakes, rivers, ponds, and even coastal bodies of
water in the ocean.

The major sources of thermal pollution are:

 Fossil-fuel and nuclear electric-power generating facilities and, to a lesser degree,
cooling operations associated with industrial manufacturing, such as steel
foundries, other primary-metal manufacturers, and chemical and petrochemical
producers.

 Thermal pollution also happens when trees that shade streams die or are removed
(deforestation).
 Sunlight naturally heats up the water causing it's temperature to increase,
and allowing thermal pollution to take place.
 Deforestation also cause soil erosion which makes water more muddy which
increases the light absorbed and thus heating the water.

http://allaboutthermalpollution.weebly.com/thermal-pollution.html
Thermal Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
Thermal pollution affects animals and plants that take shelter underwater greatly. It
causes thermal shock, oxygen depletion, and forced migration among these creatures. It
takes a temperature increase of only 1oCor 2 oC to make this impact

 Cold water generally has more oxygen than

warmer water. When thermal pollution
takes place, water temperature increases
causing dissolved oxygen levels to decrease
as well.

 This is also known as oxygen depletion.

Heated water speeds up the metabolism for
fish causing their need for oxygen to
increase even more. As a result, many fish
die since they are not able to receive the
sufficient amount of oxygen

Since electricity takes an abundant amount of cooling water, reducing the amount of
electricity one uses, can help put a stop to thermal pollution
 Land Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
 Land pollution, in other words, means degradation or destruction of earth’s surface
and soil, directly or indirectly as a result of human activities.

 May occur when humans throw chemicals unto the soil in the form of pesticides,
insecticides and fertilizers during agricultural practices. Exploitation of minerals
mining activities) has also contributed to the degradation of the earth’s surface.

 Increase in urbanization is one of the major causes of land pollution. Construction

uses up forestland. This leads to the exploitation and destruction of forests

http://library.thinkquest.org/C001611/pollution.html
 Land Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities
There are different types of land pollution. Many publications group them differently.

Solid Waste
Chemicals

Pesticides and Fertilizers Deforestation

Land Pollution Due to Energy Related Activities

Coal Mining: The mining process requires the displacement of soil and
introduces chemicals and other pollutants into the environment.
The process of mining leads to the formation of piles of coal and slag.
When these wastes are not disposed through proper channel, they are
accumulated and contaminate the land.

Natural Gas: Extracting natural gas creates erosion and disrupts the natural plant
and animal life.

Nuclear plants can produce huge amount of energy through nuclear fission and
fusion. The left over radioactive material contains harmful and toxic chemicals
that can affect human health. They are dumped beneath the earth to avoid any
casualty.
 
Burning of solid fuels (coal and bio mass) leads to the formation of ashes, which is
yet another cause of land pollution
 Radiation Pollution
Radiation pollution is any form radiations that results from human activities.
The most well-known radiation results from the detonation of nuclear devices
and the controlled release of energy by nuclear-power generating plants

Radioactive nuclear wastes cannot be treated by conventional chemical

methods and must be stored in heavily shielded containers in areas remote from
biological habitats.
 The safest of storage sites currently used are impervious deep caves or
abandoned salt mines.

 Most radioactive wastes, however, have half-lives of hundreds to

thousands of years, and to date no storage method has been found that
is absolutely infallible.
Radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear disaster (~2100 MWe) has
been found in tiny sea creatures and ocean water some 186 miles (300
kilometers) off the coast of Japan
 Radiation Pollution

Chernobyl Nuclear Power Station

(Ukraine) of 4000 MW is widely considered
to have been the worst nuclear power plant
accident in history (1986).

 Four hundred times more radioactive

material was released than had been by the
atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

 Slighter levels of contamination were

detected over all of Europe

 The Chernobyl reactor is now enclosed in a

large concrete sarcophagus, which was
built quickly to allow continuing operation
of the other reactors at the plant
 Noise Pollution
Noise pollution refers to a type of energy pollution in which distracting, irritating or
damaging sounds are freely audible. With this type of pollution, contaminants are not
physical particles, but rather waves that interfere with naturally-occurring waves of a
similar type in the same environment.
Normal Conversations Sound Intensity : 40-60 db
Sound that is less than 80 db is considered safe for the ear

Industries, automobiles and some entertainment joints are some of the sources of noise
pollution

 The main source of noise pollution comes from transportation such as airplanes,
cars, and buses, as well as recreational vehicles such as jet skis.
 With sound intensities ranging from 90db – 200db, these vehicles cause
annoyance, stress, and even hearing loss in humans.

 Load shedding and the Noise pollution and indoor Air pollution

 Transport Sector and the Noise pollution

 Energy Related Air Pollution
Air pollution is the accumulation in the atmosphere of substances that, in sufficient
concentrations, endanger human health or produce other measured effects on living
matter and other materials.
Air pollution is contamination of the indoor or outdoor environment by any
chemical, physical or biological agent that modifies the natural characteristics of
the atmosphere.
Among the major sources of pollution are power and heat generation, the burning of
solid wastes, industrial processes, and, especially, transportation including Household
combustion devices and forest fires are common sources of air pollution.

Pollutants of major public

health concern include
particulate matter, carbon
monoxide, ozone, nitrogen
dioxide and sulfur dioxide.
Outdoor and indoor air
pollution cause respiratory
and other diseases, which can
be fatal.
 Energy Related Air Pollution

Primary pollutants are emitted directly

e.g. from naturally occurring events such
as volcanic ash, dust storms, forest fires, or
man-made activities such as sulphur
dioxide from industries; CO2 from vehicle
exhausts.
Secondary pollutants are not emitted
directly. They form when primary pollutants
interact with each other in the atmosphere
e.g. acidic gases combining with water, CFCs
reaching strong sunlight.
Energy Related Air Pollution (Causes)

Man-made Causes

Natural Causes /
Thank You

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