This theme explores the impact of air pollution on ecological and human sustainability. Can integrate ecoactivism and ecojustice. Concepts: nature of air pollutants (the chemistry, biology, and physics), setting levels, decreasing emissions, industry and clean air regulations, impact on health, how air pollution is measured, Clean Air Act, pollution "credits" and how they are sold, northern vs. southern hemispheres.

Cases: 

Local:  Letters to the Editor, Southeast Missourian  

http://www.semissourian.com/story.html$rec=40197  Letter to the editor re funding for a local power plant

Regional: A good intro case, at state level on air quality and policy

http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/breathing/breathing.html  This is a fictional case set in Indiana, on new EPA standards for emissions of NOx, with teaching notes http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/projects/cases/breathing/breathing_notes.html         about EPA and standards

National

Chatanooga’s turnaround as one of nation’s most polluted cities http://www.environment.prsa.org/casechat.html 

http://miavx1.muohio.edu/~kaufmadg/acidprecip.html Acid Precipitation in the Adirondack Mountains   "The Adirondack region of upstate New York, once renowned for its unspoiled wilderness areas and hundreds of lakes teeming with fish, has achieved notice of a more dubious nature. It is one of the first regions in the United States to suffer significant and widespread damage from acid deposition, which includes acidic rainfall, snow, mist, and dry forms of precipitation."

Airpollution and arab community in Dearborn MIhttp://www.umich.edu/~snre492/berry.html#Problem 

Waste incineration plant in E. Liverpool OH http://www.umich.edu/~snre492/mcormick.html#Problem 

International and Global: Examining the Northern vs. Southern hemispheres, Developing vs. developed countries

http://www.cnn.com/2000/NATURE/11/13/forest.emissions.enn/index.html   A news article that describes the US wanting to use emissions credits, and how it the same process was an ecodisaster in Australia.

http://www.ess.co.at/GAIA/CASES/ARG2/index.html  Urban air pollution in Buenos Aires Argentina, with simple modeling program.

Air Pollution and Urbanization in Bombay India http://www.ess.co.at/GAIA/CASES/IND/BOM/BOMpollution.html  Air pollution info

http://www.ess.co.at/GAIA/CASES/IND/BOM/BOMmain.html  Background info

Union Carbide Gas release in Bhopol India http://www.umich.edu/~snre492/lopatin.html 

Australian EPA, multiple cases, including lead in Sydney Harbor tunnel with good resources http://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/soe/95/listcase.htm#ch03 

http://www.state.gov/www/global/oes/index.html  US Dept. of State Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs.  Releases of official statements and policy papers, many links

 

http://www.unfccc.de/resource/index.html   Resources from the current UN summit on climate change, including text of Kyoto Protocol, national information, info on global warming and climate change

http://www.ess.co.at/GAIA/CASES/ARG2/jdem2/demo.html  Java program for modeling movement of materials in air (e.g., from a spill) in Buenos Aires. Goes with Gaia case

http://www.strath.ac.uk/Departments/Geography/course_materials/people_and_physical_env/lecture14/ppe_lec_14.htm  Nice intro lecture on air pollution

http://www.dnr.state.mo.us/air.htm  MO Dept. Natural Resources info – links

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~engenvir/environment/air/air.pollution.html  Might be a little young, but covers many issues as a starting place

http://www.4cleanair.org/links.html  Excellent links to air pollution topics

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/airpollution.html  Medline – sorted links to web resources on air quality

http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/sei/africa/afpol1.html  Air pollution info from around the world, from the Stockholm Environmental Institute

http://www.york.ac.uk/inst/sei/rapidc/impacts/index.html  Impacts of air pollution in developing countries

http://www.stlouisco.com/doh/environ/airpolut/ord_612.html  St. Louis Co Air pollution ordinances

http://www.epa.gov/airnow/  Real-time air quality data from EPA

  http://www.igc.org/wri/wr-98-99/prc-air.htm  Air pollution in China paper

http://www.usembassy-china.org.cn/english/sandt/Airq3wb.htm  US Embassy report on severity of air pollution in China, lots of links

http://www.nap.edu/books/0309037263/html/207.html  Air pollution, the Automobile and Public Health, a 1988 book on line at the National Academy of Science

http://www.unac.org/monitor/SusDev/issues/air.html  Transboundary Air pollution, United Nations