On-line data and reports on acid rain, atmospheric deposition and precipitation chemistry.

A central starting point to get the official view on Acid Rain in the UK:
(Contains a good summary): http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/airquality/acidrain/index.htm

If you really want to be up to date, follow the links to the UK Report on TransBoundary Air Pollution : This contains a lot of seriously detailed evidence - good for seeing real data, analysis and explanation (A Tip: DON'T attempt to download the whole report unless you are on a very fast internet link! - its over 12 MB in size)

UK Report on TransBoundary Air Pollution : http://www.nbu.ac.uk/negtap/finalreport.htm
(now in the Harold Cohen Library in HardCopy at TD883.7.G7.U55)

The Acid Waters Monitoring Network in the UK: http://www.geog.ucl.ac.uk/ukawmn/

A good overview of the American Approach to controlling Acid Deposition - Official Homepage for the USEPA Acid Rain Programme
http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/arp/overview.html

The Atmospheric Deposition Programme in the USA : http://nadp.sws.uiuc.edu/default.html
This is a consortium of organisations involved in doing acid rain research and includes links to the isopleth maps of Hydrogen ion deposition, SO4, NOx etc
Hint - use the .gif format for viewing any of the maps online - they print out on an inkjet ok as well

The USGS is the lead federal agency for the monitoring of wet atmospheric deposition (chemical constituents deposited from the atmosphere via rain, sleet and snow) in the United States.
http://btdqs.usgs.gov/acidrain/ (also contains links to the NADP isopleth maps referred to above)

Try this slide show which illustrates the trends in Atmospheric chemistry as the atmosphere in the USA is cleaned-up. http://btdqs.usgs.gov/acidrain/slides/trends_files/frame.htm

Acid Rain has had significant impacts on Scandinavia, particularly Norway.
Explore the Norwegian 'State of the Environment Report' - follow 'acidification' : http://www.grida.no/soeno98/index.htm

Summary of effects of pH on Aquatic Life

http://www.chem.wm.edu/chemWWW/courses/chem105/projects/group4/page8.html

Emission Trading: Trading of Pollution Allowances

A favoured approach in America (and to some extent in Europe) is to set up a system where 'Allowances to Pollute' can be traded between interested parties. Only a restricted number of allowances are available (related to the capacity of the environment to absorb damage and Targets for improvement'. Interestingly, this shows strong signs of working and successfully puts some of the previously unattributed costs onto polluters.

http://www.epa.gov/airmarkets/ - follow the link under Environmental Issues to Acid Rain

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This page is maintained by an 'amateur webmaster': Dr Rick Leah, Jones Building, School of Biological Sciences
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Original material is Copyright University of Liverpool, 2003