Environmental Chemistry
ENV32201
Patricia Namate
Environmental Chemistry
Environmental Chemistry
How do natural processes change chemistry of the
environment?
How do human made chemicals get into the environment?
How do such chemicals affect living organisms?
Natural processes
Natural fires
Plants produce phytochemicals
Volcanoes
Man-made processes
Mining Burning Fuels
Environmental Chemistry
Defined as the study of the sources,
reactions, transport, effects, and fates of
chemical species in water, soil, air, and living
environments and as well as the effects of
human activities on these environments.
Environmental Segments
Atmosphere
Layer of gases that
surrounds the earth
Major components
are N2, O2
Minor Components
include Ar, CO2, H2O
Atmosphere
Protects life by absorbing harmful solar radiation
(ultra-violet rays)
Warming the surface through heat retention
(green house effect)
Reducing temperature extremes between day
and night
Sources of CO2, N2, O2
Hydrosphere
Oceans, lakes, rivers, streams, polar ice caps and
glaciers, etc
Lithosphere
Outer mantel of solid
earth
Mineral occurring in
earth crust and soil
Soil-most important
component
Biosphere
Realm of living
organism and
their interaction
with environment
Directly linked
with energy flow
water chemistry
Environmental Pollution
An undesirable change
in the physical,
chemical or biological
characteristics of air,
water, soil, or food that
can adversely affect the
health, survival, or
activities of humans or
other living organisms.
Some Definitions
Pollution - introduction of chemicals, particulate
matter or biological materials that can cause harm
or discomfort to humans or other living things
Pollutant – a substance which is present in a
concentration greater than its natural
concentration as a result of human activity or
unnatural activity and has a detrimental effect on
the environment
Contaminant – a substance which is present at a
concentration greater than its natural
concentration and is not at a concentration to
cause detrimental effect on the environment
Global, regional and local pollutants
Global, regional and local pollutants
The damage caused by a local pollutant is experienced near
the source- e.g non-biodegrable plastics
The damage caused by a regional pollutant is experienced at
a greater distance from the source e.g SO2 from coal
emissions is believed to cause acid rain
When pollution affects within a country its local, when it
affects two or more countries, its regional, when it affects
continents, its global
Pollutants
Non-persistent Persistent
• A substance that can cause • Compounds that are resistant
damage to organisms when to environmental
added in excessive amounts degradations through various
to the environment but is processes
decomposed /degraded by
natural communities and
removed from the
environment quickly e.g
malathion
Pollutants
Non-persistent Persistent
Domestic sewage • Remain in the environment for
years unchanged
Discarded vegetables
• Takes decades or more to
decompose
Feacal matter, blood, urine • May be toxic
etc • E.g DDT (dichloro-diphenyl-
trichloroethane), Pb, Hg
Non persistent pollutants
may be biodegradable • Damages are often irreversible
persistent pollutant
Some are classified as persistent
organic pollutants (POPs)
Resistant to photolytic ,
biological and chemical
degradation
POPs are often haloginated
and characterized by low
water solubility, leading to
their bioaccumulation in fatty
tissues
They are semi-volatile
Receptor
An element affected by pollutant
Human being-receptor for smog
Wild birds and animals-receptor for plastics
Sink
Longer term reservoir in which a substance is
essentially immobilized.
Such a repository may be natural or human-
made.
The oceans and ocean sediments are a sink
for many of the dissolved species present in
freshwater
Categories of Pollution
Air pollution
Water pollution Population
Soil pollution
Production
Pollution
Risk and Hazard
• Hazard – something that can cause injury, disease, economic
loss, or environmental damage e.g chemical exposure
Risk – the probability that something undesirable will result
from deliberate or accidental exposure to a hazard
Major types of hazards
Biological
Chemical
Physical
Cultural
Lifestyle
Risk Assessment
Process of gathering data and making assumptions to estimate
short- and long-term harmful effects on human health or the
environment from exposure to hazards associated with the
use of a particular product or technology (occurence)
Biological Hazards
In terms of death rates, the most serious infectious diseases
are:
flu
AIDS
diarrhea, and
malaria.
with most of these deaths occurring in
developing countries
Pathways for Infectious Disease in
Humans
Chemical Hazards
growing concern about chemicals that can cause cancer and
disrupt the human immune, nervous, and endocrine
systems…..
Any synthetic or natural chemical can be harmful if ingested
in a large enough quantity.
Many health scientists call for much greater emphasis on
pollution prevention to reduce our exposure to potentially
harmful chemicals.
Determining Chemical Safety
Toxicology
Dose
Relevance of genetic makeup
Multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS
How Do We Perceive Risks and How
Can We Avoid the Worst of Them?
we can reduce the major risks we face by becoming
informed, thinking critically about risks, and making careful
choices.
Fact!!!!!
Preventing pollution is
more effective and
less costly than
cleaning up pollution.
Complimentary approach to contain
pollution
Environmental Regulations Authorities
in Malawi
Environmental Affairs Department
Water Affairs Department
Forestry Department
Various Ministry Departments
Malawi Bureau of Standards
Non-governmental organisations
Politicians
International Regulations,
Conventions and Programmes
World Health Organisation (Health)
Stockholm Convention (Persistent Organic Pollutants)
Basel Convention (Transboundary movement ofhazardous
waste and their disposal)
SADC Protocol 2010 (Regional initiative to phase out use of
PCBs by 2010)
Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons
(Chemical weapons)
National regulations formulation
Mandates
Stakeholder consultation
Identifying benchmarks (International, regional, local)
Setting the priorities (Environment, Safety and Interests)
Adaptation – basis
Drafting
Regulation
Monitoring
Enforcing the regulations
During formulation of regulations
Setting regulations is not
the end of the story,
enforcing is continuous,
participatory approach is
the way to go
Importance of Environmental
Security
As important as military and economic security
Depletion of the natural capital leads to instability
Poverty, injustice, and inequality can result from
environmental insecurity leading to terrorism and
violence
