Environmental Pollution: E-Pollution Mr. Rohan Dashupta , Asst. Professor

1. Environmental Pollution: E-Pollution Mr. RohanDashupta, Asst. Professor Department: B.E. Civil Engineering Subject: Environmental Studies Semester: I eCourseware@AIKTC

2. What is E-Waste/E-Pollution? Jun ’12, ‘13 • Electronic waste or e-waste describes discarded electrical or electronic devices. • Used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling or disposal are also considered as e-waste. • Informal processing of electronic waste in developing countries may cause serious health and pollution problems; which is popularly termed as e-pollution. • Electronic scrap components, such as CRTs may contain lead, cadmium, beryllium or brominated flame retardants. • Even in developed countries recycling and disposal of e-waste may involve significant risk to workers and communities and great care must be taken to avoid unsafe exposure in recycling operations and leaking of materials such as heavy metals from landfills and incinerator ashes.

3. What is E-Waste/E-Pollution? Jun ’12, ‘13 • "Electronic waste" may be defined as discarded computers, office electronic equipment, entertainment devices, mobile phones, television sets, refrigerators etc. • This includes used electronics which are destined for reuse, resale, salvage, recycling, or disposal. Others are re-usables (working and repairable electronics) and secondary scrap (copper, steel, plastic etc.) to be "commodities", and reserve the term "waste" for residue or material which is dumped by the buyer rather than recycled, including residue from reuse and recycling operations.

4. What is E-Waste/E-Pollution? Jun ’12, ‘13 • Because loads of surplus electronics are frequently commingled (good, recyclable, and non-recyclable), several public policy advocates apply the term "e-waste" broadly to all surplus electronics.  • Cathode ray tubes (CRTs) are considered one of the hardest types to recycle. • CRTs have relatively high concentration of lead and phosphors (not to be confused with phosphorus), both of which are necessary for the display. • The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) includes discarded CRT monitors in its category of "hazardous household waste" but considers CRTs that have been set aside for testing to be commodities if they are not discarded, speculatively accumulated, or left unprotected from weather and other damage.

5. Sources of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • Rapid changes in technology, changes in media (tapes, software, MP3), falling prices and planned obsolescence have resulted in a fast-growing surplus of electronic waste around the globe. • Technical solutions are available, but in most cases a legal framework, a collection, logistics and other services need to be implemented before a technical solution can be applied. • Display units (CRT, LCD, LED monitors), processors (CPU, GPU, or APU chips), memory (DRAM or SRAM), and audio components have different useful lives.

6. Sources of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • An estimated 50 million tons of E-waste are produced each year.  • The USA discards 30 million computers each year. • 100 million phones are disposed of in Europe each year. • Only 15-20% of e-waste is recycled, the rest of these electronics go directly into landfills and incinerators. • The amount of e-waste being produced - including mobile phones and computers - could rise by as much as 500 % over the next decade in some countries, such as India. • The United States is the world leader in producing electronic waste, tossing away about 3 million tons each year. • China already produces about 2.3 million tons (2010 estimate) domestically, second only to the United States. And, despite having banned e-waste imports, China remains a major e-waste dumping ground for developed countries.

7. Sources of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • Electrical waste contains hazardous but also valuable and scarce materials. • Up to 60 elements can be found in complex electronics. • While there is agreement that the number of discarded electronic devices is increasing, there is considerable disagreement about the relative risk (compared to automobile scrap, for example), and strong disagreement whether curtailing trade in used electronics will improve conditions, or make them worse

8. Effects of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • The processes of dismantling and disposing of electronic waste in the third world lead to a number of environmental impacts. • Liquid and atmospheric releases end up in bodies of water, groundwater, soil and air and therefore in land and sea animals – both domesticated and wild, in crops eaten by both animals and human and in drinking water. • Airborne dioxines are found in levels 100 times more than previous due to e-pollution. • High levels of carcinogens in duck ponds and rice paddies have been blamed on e-waste. • Contamination of cadmium, copper, nickel and lead in rice paddies were is also a harmful effect of e-pollution. • Heavy metals such as copper is found in road dust due to e-pollution.

9. Printed Circuit Boards Cathode Ray Tubes Plastic from Keyboards and Printers Chips and other gold plated components Computer Wires

10. Effects of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • Environmental impact of the processing of different electronic waste components:

11. Effects of E-Waste/E-Pollution: Dec ’12, ’13, Jun ‘13 • Environmental impact of the processing of different electronic waste components (continued...):

12. ENVIRONMENTALPOLLUTION MODULE 03 - Prof. RohanDasgupta

13. AIR POLLUTION • Air pollution is the introduction of chemicals, particulates or biological molecules into Earth's atmosphere thereby causing diseases, death to humans, damage to other living organisms such as food crops, or the natural or built environment.

14. AIR POLLUTANT • An air pollutant is a substance in the air that can have adverse effects on humans and the ecosystem. • The substance can be solid particles, liquid droplets, or gases. • A pollutant can be of natural origin or man-made. • Pollutants are classified as primary and secondary. • Primary pollutants are usually produced from a process, such as ash from a volcanic eruption or carbon monoxide gas from motor vehicle exhaust. • Secondary pollutants are not emitted directly. Rather, they form in the air when primary pollutants react or interact. Ground level ozone is a prominent example of a secondary pollutant. • Some pollutants may be both primary and secondary: they are both emitted directly and formed from other primary pollutants.

15. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Sulphur oxides (SOx) - particularly sulphur dioxide, a chemical compound with the formula SO2. SO2 is produced by volcanoes and in various industrial processes. Coal and petroleum often contain sulphur compounds, and their combustion generates sulphur dioxide. Further oxidation of SO2, usually in the presence of a catalyst such as NO2, forms H2SO4, and thus acid rain.[ This is one of the causes for concern over the environmental impact of the use of these fuels as power sources.

16. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Nitrogen oxides (NOx) - Nitrogen oxides, particularly nitrogen dioxide, are expelled from high temperature combustion, and are also produced during thunderstorms by electric discharge. They can be seen as a brown haze dome above or a plume downwind of cities. Nitrogen dioxide is a chemical compound with the formula NO2. It is one of several nitrogen oxides. One of the most prominent air pollutants, this reddish-brown toxic gas has a characteristic sharp, biting odour.

17. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Carbon monoxide (CO) - CO is a colourless, odourless, toxic yet non-irritating gas. It is a product by incomplete combustion of fuel such as natural gas, coal or wood. Vehicular exhaust is a major source of carbon monoxide.

18. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Volatile organic compounds - VOCs are a well-known outdoor air pollutant. They are categorized as either methane (CH4) or non-methane (NMVOCs). Methane is an extremely efficient greenhouse gas which contributes to enhanced global warming. Other hydrocarbon VOCs are also significant greenhouse gases because of their role in creating ozone and prolonging the life of methane in the atmosphere. This effect varies depending on local air quality. The aromatic NMVOCs benzene, toluene and xylene are suspected carcinogens and may lead to leukemia with prolonged exposure. 1,3-butadiene is another dangerous compound often associated with industrial use.

19. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Particulates, alternatively referred to as particulate matter (PM), atmospheric particulate matter, or fine particles, are tiny particles of solid or liquid suspended in a gas. In contrast, aerosol refers to combined particles and gas. Some particulates occur naturally, originating from volcanoes, dust storms, forest and grassland fires, living vegetation, and sea spray. Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels in vehicles, power plants and various industrial processes also generate significant amounts of aerosols. Averaged worldwide, anthropogenic aerosols—those made by human activities—currently account for approximately 10 percent of our atmosphere. Increased levels of fine particles in the air are linked to health hazards such as heart disease, altered lung function and lung cancer.

20. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) - harmful to the ozone layer; emitted from products are currently banned from use. These are gases which are released from air conditioners, refrigerators, aerosol sprays, etc. CFC's on being released into the air rises to stratosphere. Here they come in contact with other gases and damage the ozone layer. This allows harmful ultraviolet rays to reach the earth's surface. This can lead to skin cancer, disease to eye and can even cause damage to plants.

21. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Ammonia (NH3) - emitted from agricultural processes. Ammonia is a compound with the formula NH3. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odour. Ammonia contributes significantly to the nutritional needs of terrestrial organisms by serving as a precursor to foodstuffs and fertilizers. Ammonia, either directly or indirectly, is also a building block for the synthesis of many pharmaceuticals. Although in wide use, ammonia is both caustic and hazardous. In the atmosphere, ammonia reacts with oxides of nitrogen and sulphur to form secondary particles

22. PRIMARY AIR POLLUTANTS Persistent free radicals connected to airborne fine particles are linked to cardiopulmonary disease. Toxic metals, such as lead and mercury, especially their compounds. Odours, such as from garbage, sewage, and industrial processes. Radioactive pollutants - produced by nuclear explosions, nuclear events, war explosives, and natural processes such as the radioactive decay of radon.

23. Thank you!