Applying the Pollution Management Model - Suggested Answers
Here are the suggested answers to the review exercise on the pollution management model Applying the Pollution Management Model.
Teachers may choose when to release the answers to students (for information about this see Student Access).
Here are some suggested answers for managing pollution. If you chose to write an essay question which used these responses, you would need to expand on your points and explain any examples and case studies that you use. You probably will also have to evaluate the strategies or look at them through an EVS lens.
General Pollution Management Strategies | LEVEL OF POLLUTION MANAGEMENT MODEL – APPLIED TO EACH ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE | ||||
Water Pollution | Photochemical Smog | Acid Deposition | Solid Domestic Waste | ||
Human Activity Producing Pollutant | Altering human activity Change the human activity that leads to the production of the pollutant in the first place, by promoting alternative technologies, lifestyles and values through:
| Altering human activity campaigns / education to change to detergents without phosphates campaigns / education to reduce use and control timing of artificial fertilisers by farmers / golf courses / gardeners | Altering human activity Using public transport / car pooling / cycling / walking more Changing to electric vehicles Campaigns to reduce use of fossil fuels. | Altering human activity Switching to renewable energy sources Using electric vehicles Campaigns about danger of acid rain on ecosystems Government subsidising electric vehicles and installing charging stations / infrastructure | Altering human activity Choosing to avoid packaged goods Reusing and recycling reducing food waste through planning of meals and shopping legislation on recyclability of packaging campaigns on bringing reusable shopping bags government goals to achieve zero waste |
Release Pollutant into Environment | Controlling release of pollutant Where the activity/production is not completely stopped, strategies can be applied at the level of regulating or preventing the release of pollutants by:
| Controlling release of pollutant Legislation for standards from water treatment plants Legislation about need for levels of phosphates and nitrates and toxins allowed to be deposited in public water ways. Reverse osmosis to extract toxins from water Active carbon to remove micropollutants Sieves/Nets on storm drains to prevent plastic pollution entering waterways. | Controlling release of pollutant Legislation on release of pollutants, e.g. NOx or SOx, from chimney stacks and car exhausts Legislation on compulsory fitting of catalytic converters to cars Regulating fuel quality by goverments Taxes on pollution e.g. trading of sulfur emissions in US | Controlling release of pollutant Regulation of emissions through scrubbers and catalytic converters on chimney stacks Legislation on sulfur content of fuel trading system for pollution in NOx or SOx Regulations on total SOx and NOx emissions | Controlling release of pollutant tax on plastic bags tax on waste disposal compulsory recycling / sorting of waste legislation on how waste must be treated, e.g. no landfill technological development to extract all valuable materials from waste stream e.g. magnets, water treatment, electrostatic precipitators |
Impact of Pollutant on Ecosystems | Clean-up and restoration of damaged systems Where both the above levels of management have failed, strategies may be introduced to recover damaged ecosystems by:
| Clean-up and restoration of damaged systems Removing mud and silt from water bodies through dredging Water fountains to oxygenate water. Restocking with plants and fish. | Clean-up and restoration of damaged systems Planting of green areas in cities Reforestation projects Fitting spinkler systems at busy road junctions to "wash" pollution out of air | Clean-up and restoration of damaged systems Spreading limestone on land or in acidified lakes Restocking of lakes Restoration of damaged buildings | Clean-up and restoration of damaged systems Mining / reclaiming landfills SDW waste to energy programmes Systems to remove plastics from Great Pacific Garbage patch (see Boyan Slat) |