Asia Pollution/Environmental/Populati

on Concerns

OverpopulationDeforestationDesertificationAir PollutionGlobal WarmingFresh WaterAsian Brown CloudNatural Resources

Terms to Know

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Every two years, Indonesia loses about 15,500 square miles of forest, an area roughly the size of Switzerland, to logging.

Skies in northern China glow orange in sandstorms that cross the Pacific and lay dust on the western United States. In Hong Kong, raw sewage is in its pearl-blue harbor. From inner Mongolia to the Indian subcontinent and tropical Southeast Asia, says one senior United Nations environmental official, the region's ecology and environment is deteriorating as its factories and economies boom.

Although governments are rolling out unprecedented initiatives to tackle Asian pollution - the policies are often badly enforced.

"Things could get worse before they get better," Ravi Sawhney, director of the environment and sustainable development division of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for the Asia-Pacific, or UNESCAP, told Reuters in an interview.

Landslides and mudslides in corners of Indonesia and the Philippines caused by illegal logging swept away or buried alive whole families.

Six of the world's 15 most polluted cities are in Asia, and the region generates a third of the world's carbon dioxide emissions. In Asia's developing regions, around 785 million people lack regular access to safe water, UN statistics show.

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0WTefeANudKUU8AjG6jzbkF/SIG=1247us8m5/EXP=1256753152/**http:/www.asianews.it/files/img/CHINA_Hubei.jpg

The air quality in notoriously polluted Bangkok, Dhaka, New Delhi and several Chinese cities is healthier after most of Asia, except for Indonesia, phased out lead from gasoline.

Bangladesh, which is spending $30 million over two years to bring natural gas to 100 gas stations, is replacing high-polluting two-stroke engines in its rickshaw taxis in the capital Dhaka with cleaner-burning natural gas power.

Thailand's "tuk tuk" taxis now run on liquefied petroleum gas, while buses and taxis in New Delhi and Bombay are phasing out diesel and running instead on compressed natural gas.

But there are pockets of improvement

Think-Pair-Share

What do you think are the causes of pollution? List as many as you can…

Interactive Notebook Question

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Pollution

Increasing water drainage and pollution are putting many lakes around the world in serious danger. It is estimated that more than one-half of the world's five million lakes are at risk, threatening the economic and health benefits they bring local communities. Asia is no exception.

The amount of water taken from rivers and lakes for irrigation, household, and industrial use has doubled in the last 40 years.

Large parts of China's longest river, the Yangtze, have been irreversibly polluted. Around one-tenth of the 6,200km-long river is in a "critical condition" and nearly 30% of major tributaries are seriously polluted. Even a huge reservoir created by the Three Gorges Dam has become heavily polluted. China's environment has suffered as a result of the country's economic boom.

The government has pledged to clean up the Yangtze, which supplies water to almost 200 cities along its banks and accounts for 35% of the country's total fresh water resources.

Around 14bn tons of waste are believed to be dumped into the river each year.

The river's aquatic life had been seriously affected, with the annual harvest of aquatic products falling from 427,000 tons in the 1950s to 100,000 tons in the 1990s.

Yangtze pollution 'irreversible'

Almost every single lake has some sort of problem. A number of these lakes are shrinking in size and some are even disappearing. In China, thousands of lakes have disappeared throughout the country as rivers have been diverted and water taken out for water irrigation projects.

In China, the disappearance of lakes has deprived the Yangtze River Basin of much-needed water-storage capacity and flood protection. This led to the devastating 1998 flooding, which killed some 3,600 people and caused more than 30 billion dollars in damages. Following the floods, the Chinese government pledged it would take action to restore the lakes.

In Central Asia, irrigation of vast cotton fields has reduced the annual inflow of water from the Aral Sea’s two tributaries -- Amu Darya and Syr Darya -- by 40 times in four decades.

As a result, the Aral Sea has lost most of its volume and split into two sections, leaving behind a deadly desert. Pollution has left a legacy of diseases such as cancer, cholera, and typhus, while the Aral’s once-large fish population has vanished:

"The area where the water is no longer covered has turned to desert. And winds blow the sands that contain salts and toxic chemicals from agricultural contaminants. And that has a dramatic effect on people's health in the area," Larsen says.

In Kazakhstan, the second-largest lake in Central Asia, Lake Balkhash, is in danger of drying up.

Think-Pair-Share

What happens to the soil left behind when a water source dries up?

Would the soil left behind be a good place for planting crops? Give example why it would or would not.

Interactive Notebook Question

Flooding

1. EconomyEconomic loss

The flooding in Jiangxi of China in 1998 caused great damage. The economic loss was $156 billion, 400 buildings surrounding the lake were inundated, leaving more than 1 million people homeless.

Resources used in reconstruction After flooding, government has to input many

resources for reconstruction, e.g., police force, fire control, aid worker, resources used for resisting flood, etc

2. EnvironmentTraffic

Flooding will lead to the damages of roads, collapse of bridges or traffic congestion, which may affect the daily operation.

Flooding Effects

Damage to farmland Flooding brings too much water which will cause

damage to farmland. 3. Human BeingsPeople die and lose their homes

Flooding will cause death and injuries. In 1998, 3 thousands people died, 1 million of people lost their homes. In 1996, the monsoon flood in India affected more than five million people in the northern and eastern part of the country.

4. DiseaseFlooding usually brings infectious diseases, e.g.

military fever, pneumonic plague, dermatopathia, dysentery, common cold (type A), breakbone fever, etc. And for those areas which have no electric supply due to flooding, food poisoning may occur as food may not be properly frozen.

Flooding Effects

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A dense blanket of pollution, dubbed the "Asian Brown Cloud," is hovering over South Asia, with scientists warning it could kill millions of people in the region, and pose a global threat.

In the biggest-ever study of the phenomenon, 200 scientists warned that the cloud, estimated to be two miles (three kilometers) thick, is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths a year from respiratory disease.

By slashing the sunlight that reaches the ground by 10 to 15 percent, the choking smog has also altered the region's climate, cooling the ground while heating the atmosphere, scientists said on Monday.

Brown Cloud

Think-Pair-Share

Why should we care about the Asian Brown Cloud?

Interactive Notebook Question

  The potent haze lying over the entire Indian subcontinent has led to some erratic weather, sparking flooding in Bangladesh, Nepal and northeastern India, but drought in Pakistan and northwestern India.

Asia's brown haze is also creating acid rain

Using data from ships, planes and satellites to study Asia's haze during the northern winter months of 1995 to 2000, scientists were able to track its journey to pristine parts of the world, such as the Maldives, to see how it affected climate.

They discovered not only that the smog cut sunlight, heating the atmosphere, but also that it created acid rain, a serious threat to crops and trees, as well as contaminating oceans and hurting agriculture.

Pollution could be cutting India's winter rice harvest by as much as 10 percent.

Biomass energy (fuel wood, agri-residue and animal dung) is used for cooking and heating purposes. Use of traditional stoves consumes more fuel wood increasing the burden on women, as women are mainly responsible for cooking and collection of biomass. Use of biomass energy and low-grade biomass fuels lead to excessive levels of indoor smoke/air pollution. Women and

children in particular are exposed to the smoke emission. This is one of the reasons for higher rates of infant mortality and morbidity and other unhealthy living conditions. Release of carbon dioxide and other harmful gasses in the atmosphere due to poor combustion of biomass fuels in rudimentary stoves resulting into the emission of green house gases (GHGs). More than 80% of the energy needs are met by fuel wood thus exerting immense pressure on the forest resources with negative impacts on environment.

Indoor Air Pollution

Think-Pair-Share

List the ways Acid Rain can affect people other than killing plants and animals.

Interactive Notebook Question

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Air

Factories

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Pollution

Asian Brown Cloud

Asia Overpopulati

on

By the year 2050, China will no longer be the most populous country in the world.

India will see its population grow by 700 million people by 2050.

Overpopulation occurs when a population's density exceeds the capacity of the environment to supply the health requirements of an individual.

Environmentalists have long been concerned about the resources threatened by rapidly growing human populations, focusing on phenomenon such as

deforestation, desertification, air pollution and global warming. But the worst-case scenario is a lack of fresh, clean water.

Nine billion is an exceptional amount of people, considering the world's population only reached 1 billion in 1830.

By 1999, world population reached 6 billion, and in the relatively short time between 2007 and 2050, there could be roughly 2.4 billion more people on Earth needing clean water, space and other natural resources from their environment in order to survive.

Governments facing overpopulation will also struggle to manage waste. When London, England, faced a population boom in the 1850s, for example, its infrastructure was not prepared for the excess waste, which resulted in Cholera outbreaks.

Birthrates make a differenceThe massive growth in developing nations is due in large part to fertility rates, where women during their reproductive years will have an average of five children.

China's government has instituted population control methods in order to curb growth. Their controversial "one child" policies have garnered an uneasy reception, especially in rural populations, where people complain of stiff fines or forced sterilizations and abortions as a result of breaking population laws.

With the growth of population and the decline of fresh water, what could we expect for economic growth?

As deforestation removes trees, desertification increases the size of deserts, and soil degradation removes nutrients; what could we expect in terms of food production?

Impact on daily life

3-2-1

3. List 3 causes of pollution world wide.

2. Provide 2 possible solutions for pollution.

1. Give one reason why governments are not acting fast enough to solve pollution concerns.

Interactive Notebook Question

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Vehicles

Air

Factories

Water

SoilPeople

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Asian Brown Cloud

Overpopulation

Asia Environmental Learning Log(Left Side)

Essay (1st-5th periods)Chose one of the following to write a 5

paragraph essay:Pick a country in Asia (that we have studied)

and describe why you would want to travel there.

Your family has decided to move to a country in Asia (one that we have studied). Explain why you agree or disagree with the decision.

Chose one of the countries we have studied and explain the most important issues you think they are facing now and how to fix those problems.

Asia Environmental Learning Log (6th

period)On your own paper; chose only one!

Write a 5 paragraph essay from one of the following choices using the Asian countries we have studied:1. You own a large business and want to expand to

Asia. Which country will you set up shop and why.2. Working as a pollution control specialist you are

assigned the Asian countries we have studied to help them with their pollution issues. Which country will you begin with and why? (Don’t forget to include the government-some may not be that eager to listen to you).

3. As a newly elected Senator, you want to expand U.S. influence in Asia. Choose a country in which the U.S. should have better relations. Explain why and how you would approach that country.

In Asia Pollution spreads as economies boom. Planet Ark. http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/23266/story.htm. December 4, 2007

Asia: Irrigation, Pollution Threaten Lakes. Payvand News. http://www.payvand.com/news/05/apr/1081.html. December 4, 2007

Asian Brown Cloud Poses Global Threat. CNN. http://archives.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/south/08/12/asia.haze/index.html. December 4, 2007

Nasa. ttp://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0S020yIlFxH544ASAOjzbkF/SIG=12iaogrmc/EXP=1197336072/**http%3A//nasadaacs.eos.nasa.gov/articles/2006/2006_hotspots.html. December 9, 2007

Acid Rain. http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0S020kZllxHBvMA1WOjzbkF/SIG=12240pvhb/EXP=1197336473/**http%3A//uregina.ca/~briere1l/acidrain/rain.html. December 8, 2007

Overpopulation Could Be People, Planet Problem. CNN. http://edition.cnn.com/2007/TECH/science/09/25/overpopulation.overview/index.html. December 4, 2007

BBC News. Yangtze Pollution. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6559407.stm September 20, 2008

Flooding Effects. http://library.thinkquest.org/03oct/02054/effects.htm October 9, 2008

Bibliography

http://www.inforse.org/asia/M_III_stoves.htm October 26, 2010