Period 4 Group 2: Jimmy, Albert, Yuru Final Draft

Written as a senator imploring the passage of a bill which will continue to reduce emissions.

Having grown up farming in the fields, I know too well the importance of nature. We now find ourselves facing a great dilemma, a dilemma which has been occurring for the past 50 years. This dilemma is acid rain. At this point, many of you might argue, erroneously, that the environment is fine because measures have already been taken to reduce the amount of acid rain. However, I urge you to pass this new bill, for once you have seen a forest or a lake devastated by the effects of acid rain, your outlook on the problem will change. Trust me.

I will now take you back on a historical journey. After World War II, our nation became involved in a great industrial growth. Consequently, with this industrial boom, came an increase in emissions like never before. The government realized this problem, and in 1970, the Clean Air Act was passed to help curb the effects of this growing concern. Unfortunately, the original Act did little to help, and in 1990, we were forced to amend the original, which resulted in a much greater decrease in emissions. Even though the 1990 amendments were effective, they were still not enough. Even though acid rain is not as devastating as before, it is still by no means harmless. The preponderance of streams and forests which have been affected by acid rain will never return to their pre-industrial states, but with the passage of this new bill, we can prevent other lakes and ecosystems from suffering the same fate. "What is this fate?", you may ask. I am no expert on chemistry, but I will attempt to elucidate my point.

Acid rain is mainly caused by anhydrides, such as sulfur dioxide, which naturally originate in coal and are released when the coal is burned. When a factory is burning coal for energy, these anhydride pollutants are released to the atmosphere. There, they dissolve in water droplets and react with the water, forming acids. What goes up must come down, so these pollutants are released when it rains, hence the name, "acid rain". Now, when these anhydrides are sitting in the lake or soaking into the soil, they decrease the pH of their medium. The environment then reacts by combining calcium salts with these anhydrides in order to reestablish a neutral pH. The calcium salts are consumed in the process, and the ecosystem will then lack a critical component of survival. In some places there are not enough calcium salts to neutralize the incoming acid, and as a result, these regions have become increasingly acidic over the years.

To see acid rain turn a once beautiful and pristine forest into a desolate wasteland is such a painful sight. People have tried to fertilize the soils with the depleted ions, but it is not enough. It is time to take a stand. Let our era be defined as the one which helped save our world, not as the one which helped bring it to its destruction. Let our children and grandchildren live to see the incredible sights of forests and lakes, unassailed by acid rain. Once we pass the new bill as a nation, I am confident that other nations will follow in our footsteps. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. So now, my fellow senators, let us take that first step.

Period 5 Group E Draft 4

Tracy's Final Draft... A little late due to technological issues.

There once was a planet named Earth,

quite beautiful, always, since birth.

Then came acid rain,

now it’s viewed with disdain;

These toxins have ruined its worth.

This phenomenon’s not very basic;

when anions, often sulfuric,

wash away calcium,

also magnesium,

buffer’s gone—soil’s acidic!

SO₂ formed by the burning of coal,

and nitrogen oxides—they both play a role.

To form acid rain

which brought on such pain,

ecologically they take their toll.

Human lungs breathe in SO₂,

and also absorb NO₂.

Bronchitis appears,

and asthma, we fear,

is caused by the acid rain too.

Fixing means buffers are replaced;

but continuing at this pace,

we will never be done,

the solution will be none,

because the money is being erased.

Acids kill all biodiversity,

as it was proven in the university.

Animals lose sons and

fishes are poisoned,

by smog and exhaust from the city.

Lower PH than fish could take,

it left us with an empty lake.

Less crustaceans and fish,

fewer plants than we wish,

acid rain, oh our hearts you did break.

Humans put sulfur in the air;

Much more than ought to be there.

Moisture + SO₃

yields acidity,

causing statues to need repair.

Acidified statues stand broken.

Their future will now go unspoken.

Is our world cursed?

Can this be reversed?

Oh what horrible monsters we’ve woken!

Tracy’s Comments:

All of you did a wonderful job of crafting the draft so I could add the finishing touches. I noticed a great creativity and originality to the limericks. The information was accurate with the readings we looked at during class. There was a fun sense of humor throughout the piece. The negative effects of acid rain were demonstrated effectively. The damage of the man-made statues and natural wildlife was represented in a clever way. Also, you guys covered the effects the pollution has on people’s ability to breathe clearly. The limericks had a defined beginning and end to the story telling. The main points I improved were some punctuation and time issues within the limericks. I changed some words to make the rhymes more smooth and made sure the right letters were capitalized. I believe we covered the information well and in a interesting way. Nice job everyone!

Period 5, Group B, Final Draft

Hey, I just thought you should know
That your rain is hurting me.
I'm the soil of this Earth.
From down here there’s lots to see.
You have constructed power plants that spew out pollution.
Your cars just make me sick.
Driving more is no solution.
And your fertilizers and manure?
Are you positively sure
You want to put Nitrogen dioxide into the air?
This is just a thought… I don’t really think it’s fair.

What are you imbeciles thinking?
I'm an old red spruce tree
And I don't appreciate
what you've been doing to me!
Did you know this acid rain
Takes away my nutrients, every grain
From the soil which allows me to be living?
Acid rain, the neutralizer
Depletes what makes me wiser.
Calcium and magnesium to me are essential.
They disappear! You know it’s detrimental!
Surely your doings are unforgiving.
So when these buffers are almost gone
Aluminum ions begin to spawn
From the minerals into the soil
Which is cause for great turmoil
Because for plants like me, that is a poisoning.
The chemicals flow into the streams
Killing fish and causing scenes
Around the world, it’s called a dead zone.
And degradation of the limestone
Cement and marble of architecture… understand it?
Have you noticed? You’re ruining our planet.

Why, why, why, why are you doing this to me?
If I weren't in the water you could see my tears
Flowing like a river to the sea.
The acid rain falls into my home
Killing my friends and family.
But the casualties range farther
Than a simple brook trout like me.
It affects the whole food chain
From a plant, to a bird, to everything as far as the eye can see.
The continued assault of acid rain
Is unbalancing everything into catastrophe.
Can you please, please help me for I fear that I am next?
Please can you do this for a sad and scared brook trout like me?

I'm so angry by what everyone is doing.
The pollution we've made is making a mess of everything.
You fools! That's right, I'm yelling!
My name is Lisa Jackson and I'm the administrator for the EPA
It's my job to protect the environment from wasting away.
Fine, if you don't care about the trees, soil, and animals
But maybe you'll care if you or your children are dying.
Yes, that's right, acid rain affects us too, there’s no denying.
Do you understand what I'm saying?
Acid rain when inhaled, yes, it will smite us.
It will kill us early through asthma and bronchitis.
Economically, acid rain is devastating.
The fishermen have finished debating
Over why their fish are withering away
It’s time to stop, so let’s stop today.
Let’s save the fish, both star and cray
Both animals and humans, the vast array.
Acid rain won’t prevail long
But we all need to wake up and smell the roses
That is… before they're gone.

A Call to be Made (Period 4 Group A Fourth Draft)

[The setting is Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia; Germany, 1966. Alexandre and Gisela Sinclair await a phone message from an old friend in the United States. A career diplomat, Alexandre has been stationed in Germany since the end of the Second World War. He has encountered miraculous success in his endeavors, culminating in a politically and economically beneficial marriage to the daughter of the current chancellor. As the couple wander into their opulent sitting room, a mish-mash of ivory and silver charms, the dim silence succeeding last night’s soiree resounds through the walls of the lofty estate, barely masked by the slight drone of rain.]


Alexandre: [sourly] Where is Mitzi? I sent for schnitzel and the news ages ago!

Gisela: [scornfully] But you sent her out not even ten minutes ago. Really, Alexandre, [raising her eyebrows] you have been quite tactless lately.

Alexandre: [tensely] Oh, have I? [catching himself] I suppose I have. [sighing] I don’t mean to go on like this, Gisela, but this weather irritates me. [glancing outside]

[Gisela strides over and gently places a delicate hand on her husband’s shoulder]

Gisela: You’re just exhausted from the party last night—it was wonderful, wasn’t it?—I’m sure Oberlin’s call will cheer you up.

Alexandre: [giving Gisela a slight smile] We’ll see.

[Outside, a cab door closes; the maid steps through the door and fastened her umbrella, striding quickly towards the kitchen door.]

Gisela: Oh! That’s Mitzi. She was quick.

Mitzi: Guten Morgen, Frau Sinclair. Good morning Mr. Sinclair. [She hands the paper to Gisela and prances off to the maids’ quarters]

Gisela: Danke, Mitzi! [laughing]

Alexandre: [stepping in] Say, where are the—

[the phone rings and both sets of eyes in the room dart toward the jangling console sitting on the marble counter]

Alexandre: I’ve got it, Dear. Will you go inquire about the schnitzel? [hinting at the girl dashing down the hall] Hello?

Voice on the other end: You’re under arrest!

Alexandre: [shocked] W-what?

Voice on the other end: For not contacting your best friend in 20 years.

Alexandre: [relieved, but slightly irked] Oberlin! You truly had me, you crazy fool; you wouldn’t believe what a relief this is. I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time.

Oberlin: As have I, although it bothers me that this conversation hasn’t happened until now…Necessity has brought me here. [pauses] Have you heard about the rain?

Alexandre: [confused] The rain? Oberlin McNally, did you call me just to talk about the weather? It hasn’t let up all month over here. Sometimes it comes down as snow, and then rain. You should really see the flooding.

Oberlin: The rain, Alex, the rain! [hauntingly, barely a whisper] Acid rain.

[His face stricken with horror, Alexandre takes a moment to comprehend the situation; he wanders through the French doors and falls onto the newly upholstered overstuffed polar bear loveseat.]

Alexandre: [quietly] How bad?

Oberlin: The animals, their very existence has been altered by changes in the environment! The base of the food chain –phytoplankton and other microorganisms that grow in lakes, rivers, and streams – has been decimated by acidification. The poor critters are emaciated… and angry.

Alexandre: [concerned] Not the animals!

Oberlin: Oh, yes, the animals! And the ecosystems as well.

Alexandre: [pacing back and forth] How did this happen?!

Oberlin: [flatly] Following the war, our country focused on industrialization and turned a blind eye on the environment. The economic benefits were enormous, but came at a high cost to ecosystems everywhere - increased SO2, SO3, NO2, and CO2 emissions caused highly acidic precipitation all over Europe.

Alexandre: [questioningly] These compounds are acid anhydrides. How does a compound without hydrogen produce acid rain?

Oberlin: Nitrogen oxides such as NO2 reacts with H2O in the air to form HNO3, sulfur oxides such as SO2 and SO3 react with H2O to form H2SO3 , and CO2 reacts with H2O to form H2CO3. When the sky opens up, it unleashes these compounds as acid rain. The acid rain falls upon the earth where bases such as calcium and magnesium lay. Now, these are usually insoluble, but they are susceptible to reacting with acid rain. When they do react—

Alexandre: [completing the puzzle] –They are washed away, never to be utilized again by the plants and ecosystems that so desperately depend on them!

Oberlin: This is only the beginning; these unnaturally occurring gases are toxic. Lives are at stake.

[Alexandre gazes across the courtyard at the ancient stone artifacts that litter the gardens. He is disgusted to see each drop of rain splash across their milky surface, for he knows that in several decades, acid rain will have erased their intricate beauty.]

Oberlin: [determined] The reason I call is to delineate the future. Germany’s rapid industrialization has, unbeknownst to you, slowed its own long-term growth. You must exert your influence towards greater emissions regulation it’s too late, for the future of Germany, for the future of the world as we know it!

[The phone call ends. On the other end of the line, a man sits weeping silently in his chair, having reached an epiphany and feeling good about protecting the ecosystems of Europe. At this moment, Gisele walks in.]

Alexandre: [frozen, standing on the veranda, soaked in the acidic solution] We have to…

Gisela: [perplexed] What, mein Liebling? Why are you standing in the rain, come inside! You’ll catch cold.

[He saunters through the doors and grips the shoulders of his noble wife with his icy fingers.]

Alexandre: [still gripping] Gisela, a day may come when the courage of men fails, when we forsake our friends and break all bonds of fellowship. But it is not this day. This task is imperative.

Gisela: [not grasping the predicament] Is this about the schnitzel? I can run and get them myself. [worried] Don’t punish Mitzi: she’s young, she just forgot.

Alexandre: [his face set like stone] No, it’s not about that. That is as insignificant as a grain of sand in the great Sahara Desert. We are talking about the condition of Mother Nature’s jewel: the good of greater mankind.

[Fixing his eyes on his wife’s defined visage, she had never looked so striking.] Gisela, is your father in his office?

Gisela: [slightly dazed] … Yes.

Alexandre: [unwavering] I think we have a phone call to make.

Acid Rain is Devastating, Period 5, Group D, 4th and Final Draft

Hello, and welcome to this informative speech on the negative effects of acid rain. As I'm sure you all are aware, I am Tony Hawk, and I'm here to tell you that life isn't all about popping a kick flip or doing a casual mctwist. There are dark sides to this planet, and one of the darkest things is the deviating menace known as acid rain. I used to think that acid rain was no big deal. I assumed that the only harm that it did to plants was fall on them and corrode their leaves and what not. Recently I realized that the effects of acid rain can last on an environment for hundreds to thousands of years. It isn't that acid rain simply burns plant life.

Acid rain's most dangerous effects is that it strips the land of all Calcium ions and Magnesium ions, both of those ions are staples of life as we know it, and it pollutes the water and air which can harm many organisms. This can harm an ecosystem along with its species, and can be a catastrophic phenomenon for forests around the world. The process through which the land is stripped of its Calcium and Magnesium ions is quite interesting. The Calcium is stored in the soil in insoluble compounds usually like Calcium carbonate or Calcium hydroxide. Originally scientists thought that acid rain didn’t affect the Calcium and Magnesium ions, but they were false. These compounds are bases that are insoluble in soil, and will stay insoluble until they react with acids found in acid rains to form soluble products and water. Once the soluble products and water are formed then the Calcium, or Magnesium, is stripped from the land and is taken very far away through streams and underground water. This can have a devastating effect on the environment. All of the plant life needs the Calcium to grow and survive but once the Calcium is stripped from the land, it takes a really long time to get it back. This isn't just a one year problem I'm talking about, and reducing the emissions of sulfur isn’t enough. This is a problem that will last for your lives and it is important that we fight acid rain to help our forests and lakes survive.

The way acid rain affects the water is just as bad as the depletion of Calcium and Magnesium. If you go to a lake and see that it is really clean and can see all the way to the bottom, you might think it is really healthy and good for it’s organisms. But, in a lot of cases the water only looks clean because the algae and the plankton are all dead. This happens when acid rain falls into the lake. When acid rain falls upon lakes, rivers, streams, etc., it can cause the water to become more acidic than normal. The Calcium level at Hubbard Brook has shrunk by more than 50% in the last forty-five years. The life forms can no longer live in the water because they cannot adapt to the sudden change in pH. What eventually happens is only a few species that can handle the acidity survive and the rest die, which greatly affects the biodiversity in the ecosystem and the food chain. When the biodiversity and food chain get affected in a negative way, this will overall change the ecosystem’s species composition and could possibly kill off more organisms due to the lack of food.

So how does acid rain directly affect humans? Acid rain itself is no more dangerous than normal rain. It will not hurt you if you walk on it or burn you if you swim in it, but the gases that are in acid rain such as Nitrogen oxides and Sulfur dioxide are harmful to humans. These gases react with water to form acid rain, and it isn't that acid rain is dangerous to us, but those gases are poisonous. Most of those gases aren't formed naturally on Earth, but mankind has found ways to create it’s own poisons. Scientists have found that these gases have been known to cause premature death and illness. There fortunately is a way for humans to help stop the formation of gases. We can support the Clean Air Act and cut back on fossil fuel use and gas emissions. It is important to understand acid rain. It is important to fight it because even though it will take a long time to make it better, it doesn't take that much time to make it a lot worse. It is devastating to the environment and harmful to human health, and it is important for us all to try and stop acid rain in it's tracks.

Lastly, acid rain affects not only humans and the environment, but it also affects the economy. As you can now see, acid rain isn’t just a simple droplet of water, when acid rain hits a lake or river, some of the fish will die. On a small scale this is devastating. A fisherman would no longer be able to catch the amount of fish needed to support himself and this would make his life a disaster. Now on a larger scale, when looking at buildings and statues, the once fine brick or stone has now become eroded and less attractive. The price of the statues and buildings depreciates with each shower of acid rain, making your once expensive possession cheaper and cheaper. The owner of something that is getting destroyed by acid rain could probably take out insurance on what they own, but this will only keep them from losing money. The real issue is the fact that acid rain has and always will erode things that are made of brick and stone, and unless we as humans do something about it, and this problem could become even more devastating.

Period 5, Group A, Post 4 (Final)

Dear Editor of The Forest Acorn,

Subject: Raising Mass Awareness about the Damaging Effects of Acid Rain

Through your esteemed newspaper, I am honored to speak on behalf of the inhabitants of The Forest about the growing threat of acid rain.

Following frequent rainstorms, residents of The Forest have noticed a decrease in the food supply. Alarmed by my dwindling amount of berries, I quickly brought together a group of intellectuals to determine the cause. Those that joined me in this assembly of scientific minds included Orville the Owl, Socrates the Squirrel, and Tina the Trout.

We have attributed this dramatic change in our ecosystem to acid rain. Acid rain is becoming a major issue in our forest, and something needs to be done about it.

The activities of our human "superiors" are the major causes of acid rain. They pollute the air with car and power plant emissions, causing large amounts of sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, and carbon dioxide to accumulate in the atmosphere. Another major contributor of pollution is farms. Their use of fertilizer and their disposal of our friends'—the pigs’—fecal matter cause an excess of nitrogen dioxide to gather in the atmosphere. These gases combine with water droplets in clouds to form acid rain.

Once acid rain falls, it chemically reacts with nutrients and minerals in the ground, like calcium and magnesium. The compounds containing these elements neutralize the acid rain, but are consequently leached from the soil. As a result, we lose that natural buffer against the rain’s acidity, leaving plants and microbes vulnerable. Furthermore, these nutrients are essential for the growth of organisms; without them, life dependent upon the soil for sustenance withers and dies. This is why many inhabitants of The Forest have noticed a dramatic decrease in foliage to feed upon.

Acid rain also runs off into lakes, rivers, and streams. It poses a direct threat to organisms within those bodies of water; low pH levels, for instance, can even directly kill fish, insects, and plants. In areas with already low biodiversity, this can be devastating. Tina the Trout has been telling us of the problems it has been giving her fellow water breathers; acidity in the water has been making it so that their eggs do not hatch, preventing their children from ever being born. Because of all the fish being gone, most of the land roamers that feed on fish are now dying of hunger and can no longer feed their young.

Whatever happens to us will also affect our human "overlords." If acid rain kills off a large number of us forest folk, human populations could tumble into even greater food crises. Moreover, while acid rain is not concentrated enough to directly harm humans, the gas particles that cause it can lead to lung problems. Acid rain can also hurt human economies. The loss of fish could be the death knell of fishing industries; the impairment of tree growth could cripple logging industries; and acid rain could slowly break down buildings, statues, and other structures. All of these things, combined with the destructive effect acid rain has on crops, will dissolve the world in an acidic solution. Governments will crumble into anarchy. Economies will crash, making food the sole currency. Mafias will emerge. What remains of the animal kingdom will be hunted to extinction.

To prevent this dark future, I suggest a series of campaigns aimed at raising both human and animal awareness. The outspoken local activist, Peggy the Pigeon, has suggested a massive movement: "Defecation Day." On D-Day the pigeons of the world will unite against a common enemy: the automobile. Why defecate on statues that will be dissolved by acid rain anyway? Preserve your ammo. Peggy has taken the first leadership role in this campaign against acid rain, and I implore you, the animal kingdom, to make similar efforts. We must act NOW to prevent this bleak future!

Sincerely,

Bernard the Bear

Period 4; Fourth Draft; Kenzie, Nick, Alyssa, Praneeth

Dear Mr. President,

I am writing this letter to you today on behalf of my forest, my fellow Sasquatches, and most importantly, myself.Acid rain is becoming a major issue in my neck of the woods. It's killing the trees, it's killing the fish - it's killing almost everything! In my opinion, the killing of trees is the worst part. How am I supposed to hide from all these tourists that come here every single day if there aren't any trees? I can't just keep scaring people off all the time. It's bad enough that some people already know I exist; we don't need the whole world knowing it, too.

I think you know what the main cause of acid rain is, because I know you are a very smart man. But just in case you don't know, I will tell you. Acid rain is caused by emissions of acid anhydrides such as nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides given off by the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and oil. These substances pollute our atmosphere. Then, when it rains, these anhydrides react with the rain water to produce an acidic solution.

When acid rain is created, it does some serious damage. It raises the acidity of lakes, causing many types of plankton and other small organisms to die. These tiny organisms aren't the only ones affected by acid rain - all aquatic life, including the fish, can die out! Acid rain leaches aluminum from the soil which seeps into bodies of water and can poison the aquatic life. If the fish die what are my friends, the eagles and bears, going to eat? The answer is nothing. Sure, bears can eat other things like berries, but guess what? Acid rain kills plants and trees too! This is caused by the depletion of calcium in the soil that the plants and trees really need to survive. If these plants and trees are gone, the food chains will be corrupted and cause my whole ecosystem to be destroyed. So, what am I supposed to eat when the largest organisms begin to die out? I'll tell you what! I could start eating people! And I know, Mr. President, that you do not want me to start eating people.

It isn’t only the forest that is damaged by acid rain but the human world is as well. Acid rain can erode buildings and cause permanent damage to monuments. Repairing these damages would cost money that could be spent more efficiently. Acid rain can also have an effect on human health. When sulfur and nitrogen oxides are released into the air, they react with the atmospheric gases which people inhale. These new compounds can damage people’s lungs, especially humans suffering from asthma.

There are many simple precautions your race can take to prevent acid rain from damaging my wonderful forests. For starters, I think you can pass more laws to restrict the emissions of gases such as NO2 and SO3. I know your government passed the Clean Air Act a while ago, and it has helped. However, over the past few years the damages of acid rain have really increased. I think it is time for you to step in and say, "Hey! I believe that we need to extend our efforts to minimize acid rain as much as possible!" And then follow through with it! Because let me tell you something right now, Mr. President. If you don’t take any action to put an end to acid rain, then you will probably be the first to be eaten. And trust me; I know how to get past all of your fancy security.

Sincerely,
King Sasquatch