Sources of Pollutants Point Source –Specific location of concentrated pollutants Factory Waste,...
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Transcript of Sources of Pollutants Point Source –Specific location of concentrated pollutants Factory Waste,...
Sources of Pollutants
• Point Source– Specific location of concentrated
pollutants• Factory Waste, Sewage
• Nonpoint Source– Scattered or diffuse sources of
pollutants • Golf courses, Air-borne, Agriculture
Major Types of Ocean Pollution
• Oil Pollution
• Toxic Materials
• Sewage and Eutrophication
• Garbage
• Radioactive Waste
Oil Pollution
(Courtesy of NOAA)
Global Oil Pollution
Oil Pollution Sources
• Runoff: 363 million gallons/year
• Maintenance: 137 million gallons/year
• Air Pollution: 92 million gallons/year
• Natural Seeps: 62 million gallons/year
• Big Spills: 37 million gallons/year
• Offshore Drilling: 15 million gallons/year
Effects of Oil Pollution
• Kills marine animals– Destroys insulation– Death through ingestion
• Damages ecosystems– Destroys coastal flora and fauna– Devastates local economies
Toxic Materials
(Courtesy of Student Environmental Action Coalition)
Toxic Materials
• Heavy Metals – Lead, Mercury, Cadmium– Dioxin, PCBs, PAHs
• Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)– Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)– Dioxin– Polynuclear Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs)
Toxic Materials• Sources
– Factory Waste– Agriculture– Air Pollution
• Effects– Destroy immune function
• Leads to cancer and other diseases
– Biomagnification and Bioaccumulation• Top predators, such as orcas and tuna can have extremely high
levels of toxics
Sewage and Eutrophication
(photo: Gordon Dalzell)
Sewage and Eutrophication
• Sources– Cities dump sewage, treated or untreated into
ocean– Large vessels, such as cruise ships
• Can dump in pristine areas such as Southeast Alaska
• Effects– Eutrophication: nutrients in sewage cause algae
blooms• Decomposition of dying bloom uses up oxygen
• Lack of oxygen kills animals such as fish
– Introduces pathogens• Pathogens in human waste enter food web
• Can infect people who eat the seafood
Sewage and Eutrophication
Garbage
Garbage
• Sources– Unregulated dumping
• Ships
• Coastal Communities
– 14 Billion pounds of garbage are dumped in the ocean each year
• Effects– Marine animals
• Become ensnared and die
• Ingest garbage and die
– Fouls ship motors and marine machinery
Garbage
Radioactive Waste
Radioactive Waste
• Sources– Dumping at sea is banned
• Discharge from coastal facilities
• Effects– At sea: not well known– On land: causes birth defects and cancer such as
leukemia
Global Treaties on Ocean Pollution
• 1972: The London Convention
• 1973: MARPOL
• 1982: UNCLOS
• 1995: GPA
• Purpose: control all sources of marine pollution and prevent pollution of the sea through regulation of dumping into the sea of waste materials.
• www.londonconvention.org
1972: The London Convention
• Black and Grey List Approach– Blacklist items were prohibited
• Mercury, Cadmium, Persistent Plastics, Oil, Radioactive Waste, Organohalogens
– Grey list items required a permit• Arsenic, Copper, Lead, Cyanide, Fluorides, Pesticides
and Scrap Metal
• Banned most ocean dumping of waste produced on land
1972: The London Convention
1973: MARPOL
• International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from only from ships
• Regulated pollutants that come from ships– Oil, Noxious Liquids, Sewage, Garbage, Ship
Air Pollution
1982: UNCOLS
• United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea
• www.un.org/Depts/los/index.htm
• Globally recognized regime dealing with all matters relating to the Law of the Sea
• Key Points– 12-mile territorial sea around all coastal states– Allows for “Transit Passage” of foreign ships
through territorial seas – Creates Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ)
• Coastal states have 200 mile jurisdiction
1982: UNCOLS
1995: GPA
• Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities
• www.gpa.unep.org
• Aims to prevent the degradation of the marine environment from land-based activities
• Recommendations– Identify and assess problems related to
• Food Security and Poverty
• Public Health
• Coastal Ecosystem Health and Biodiversity
• Economic and Social Benefits
• Physical Alteration
1995: GPA
• Recommendations– Identify Sources of Degradation
• Coastal and Upstream Point Sources
• Coastal and Upstream Non-Point Sources
• Atmospheric Deposition
– Establish Priorities for Action– Set Objectives for Priority Problems– Determine Strategies to Achieve Objectives
1995: GPA