The management of an environmental pollutanat. Management Essay

Middlesex University
PRS3702 Environment Assessment and Management
Content Page
1 Executive SummaryP.3
2 IntroductionP.4 – P.5
3 Environmental ImpactsP.5 – P.9
4 Applicable StandardsP.9 – P.11
5 Carbon Monoxide Environmental ManagementP.11 – P.14
6 Recommendation and ConclusionP.14 – P.15
7 Reference ListP.16 – P.17
1 Executive Summary
This report details the problem of carbon monoxide emissions in local breweries, with a focus on a hypothetical Brewery X located in Asheville, North Carolina. It follows that breweries, especially the local craft brewery types, are susceptible to emitting carbon monoxide because they lack adequate engineering and safety procedures to contain the gas like those of larger beer manufacturers (Shin & Searcy, 2018). In a broader perspective, carbon monoxide emissions have negative environmental impacts when the gas oxidizes to form carbon dioxide or as noted by Voiland (2015), increases the abundance of methane in the atmosphere, thus causing global warming and climate change. In this regard, activities like the combustion of coal, gas, and oil are responsible for the disturbance of the natural carbon cycle and consequently, the adverse effects of global warming and climate change like rising sea levels, desertification, flooding across the globe and destruction of biodiversity (Canadell et al., 2010). Moreover, workers at Brewery X have to deal with the high concentration of carbon monoxide in indoor settings, which leads to respiratory and central nervous system damages or even death. In the foregoing, this report discusses the applicable standards that apply to carbon monoxide emissions, notably the OSH Act in the U.S, which specifies that the Permissible Exposure Limit (PEL) for carbon monoxide in any workplace must not exceed 50 ppm for air averaged over 8 hours (U.S. Department of Labor, 2012). Additionally, an Environmental Management System (EMS) is presented, which will help reduce the carbon monoxide emissions at Brewery X. Accordingly, the EMS is based on the applicable policy and legislative standards for the Brewery Industry in America. Such will deal with the current environmental issue, majorly uncontrolled emissions of carbon monoxide.
2 Introduction
Managing Carbon Monoxide Emissions at Brewery X
Background
When carbon is burnt in the absence of oxygen, an intermediate form of carbon dioxide known as carbon monoxide (CO) is formed. The gas has adverse environmental effects as it contributes to global warming and climate change, mainly when it oxidizes into carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Moreover, the gas is very poisonous when in high concentration and can lead to unconsciousness or even death if inhaled. Carbon monoxide is evolved in local breweries through the burning of biogas or the use of hydrocarbon fuels under low oxygen concentration. It follows that the gas is likely to accumulate within a brewery if carbon fuels are combusted under low oxygen concentration. Since high levels of the gas are difficult to detect for unsuspecting workers, they are susceptible to poisoning within their workplaces. Further, the risk of carbon monoxide is high in local breweries such as the hypothetical Brewery X under focus in this report because they lack adequate engineering and safety procedures like those of large beer manufacturers (Shin & Searcy, 2018). Therefore, local breweries need to implement stringent measures to manage carbon monoxide emissions accordingly.
Scope of the Report
The current report focusses on the management of carbon monoxide emissions in a hypothetical local brewery dubbed Brewery X. In the foregoing, the environmental impacts of the gas are discussed, namely the indirect effect of the gas in causing global warming and climate change; as well as its impacts within the work environment at Brewery X. Further, the report explains that carbon monoxide pollution is as result of possible leakages at Brewery X which may occur due to poor Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) during the burning of fuels such as biogas, coal, and logs. Therefore, the report includes applicable standards in terms of policy principles and legislation regarding carbon monoxide emissions in the brewery industry; then suggests an environmental management system (EMS) to help in dealing with the situation particularly at Brewery X.
Purpose of the Report
The purpose of the current report is to address the problem of carbon monoxide emissions within a local brewery setting. It follows that when hydrocarbons like biogas, firewood, and automotive fuels are burnt at Brewery X, indoor conditions characterized by inadequate oxygen circulation are likely to lead to the evolution of carbon monoxide. When the gas escapes into the atmosphere, it combines with oxygen and forms carbon dioxide; then leads to global warming and climate change with consequences of severe destruction of the environment. It is also noteworthy that workers at Brewery X run the risk of suffering adverse effects when exposed to carbon monoxide in their work environment. The adverse effects range from dizziness, increased heart rate, and headache; to severe conditions like unconsciousness, asphyxiation, and even death. Therefore, this report presents an environmental management system to help in minimizing the carbon monoxide emissions and the resultant negative effects at Brewery X.
3 Environmental Impacts of Carbon Monoxide
The natural carbon cycle functions to achieve the right balance and exchange of carbon in several compounds to avoid any adverse environmental impacts. Accordingly, carbon flows in the atmosphere, ocean, terrestrial biosphere as well as the lithosphere. Imbalance in the natural carbon cycle results from human activities, which cause a net increase in carbon within the atmosphere as well as in the soil and oceans (Canadell et al., 2010). As already mentioned, the release of carbon monoxide into the atmosphere, such as through burning of fossil fuels at Brewery X, and its combination with oxygen, will form carbon dioxide that ultimately causes global warming and climate change. It is also important to note that although carbon monoxide does not directly cause global warming and climate change, its availability in the atmosphere catalyzes the abundance of GHGs like carbon dioxide and methane (Voiland, 2015).
As detailed by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (n.d.), carbon monoxide has relatively low Global Warming Potential (GWP) values; thus, its significance in causing adverse environmental impacts lies in precipitating the atmospheric build-up of important GHGs such as carbon dioxide and methane. Accordingly, carbon dioxide contributes to three-quarters of emissions that lead to global warming and climate change (U.S. EPA, 2019). On the other hand, methane has the second highest (GWP) values after carbon dioxide (Greenhouse Gas Protocol, n.d.). Although carbon monoxide is typically unstable, it stays in the environment long enough to have negative environmental impacts. Correspondingly, Shindell (2007) posits that carbon dioxide lasts for about a month in the lower atmosphere, allowing it to be transported long distances before it is oxidized into carbon dioxide. Therefore, the gas is not likely to be well distributed in the atmosphere but ultimately contributes to pollution as well as global warming and climate change.
Another environmental impact of carbon monoxide as a weak direct GHG is that it reacts with hydroxyl (OH) radicles found in the atmosphere, and this reduces their abundance (Greenhouse Gas Online, n.d.). In the foregoing, hydroxyl radicles are responsible for lowering the lifetimes of strong GHGs such as methane; thus the presence of carbon monoxide in the atmosphere indirectly increases the potential for such GHGs to cause global warming by reducing the atmospheric abundance of the hydroxyl radicles (Greenhouse Gas Online, n.d.). As carbon monoxide depletes the hydroxyl radicles, it also slows down the removal of trace gases introduced into the atmosphere by human activities, which diminishes the stratospheric ozone layer (Khalil & Rasmussen, 1984). Consequently, there is a reduced capacity for the stratospheric ozone layer to filter harmful ultraviolet sun rays reaching the surface of the earth, which in turn leads to harmful effects on flora and fauna. For instance, plants are scorched by the harmful ultraviolet rays thus they dry up and animals find little or no vegetation for food. Sources of water such as rivers and lakes also may dry up leading to the decline in health of animals and even people. Moreover, the harmful ultraviolet rays reaching the earth have been noted to cause most skin cancers that afflict people.
The adverse environmental impacts caused by global warming and climate change include rising sea levels, desertification, flooding across the globe, and destruction of biodiversity. The phenomenon of rising sea levels is due to increased temperatures caused by global warming and climate change that melt glaciers at the poles; thus, more water flows into the oceans. In the process, there is a net reduction in freshwater reserves as much of the water from the melted glaciers flows into saline marine ecosystems. Further, desertification results from high temperatures on landmasses leading to increased evapotranspiration. This reduces water levels in lakes and rivers as well as drying up of plant life.
Human activities such as deforestation worsen the situation as they reduce the beneficial impact of vegetation through carbon sequestration and leave the land bare and thus susceptible to erosion and additional loss of vegetation. Undesirable weather patterns such as flooding also increase due to the high temperatures as much of the water that evaporates from the land and water bodies falls back as torrential rain in some parts. It follows that all these negative impacts of global warming and climate change on the environment, such as rising sea levels, desertification, and flooding also disturb ecosystems. Modified cycles on plant and animal reproduction then lead to massive loss of biodiversity. Humans bear the brunt of the negative impacts through the destruction of their homes and property, displacements of populations, and even death.
Within the natural conditions and sustained balance of carbon flows, ecosystem services of the carbon cycle are realized. This is through ecosystem carbon sequestration as explained, through the absorption of carbon dioxide by vegetation for use in photosynthesis and release of oxygen. Carbon dioxide is then released back into the atmosphere through respiration in plants, animals, and microorganisms. A link exists between ecosystem services and biodiversity in that when there is plenty of plant and animal life, there is likely to be a better balance in the natural cycles for essential elements like carbon (Daba & Dejene, 2018). Therefore, the capacity of ecosystems to regulate the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is dependent upon the protection of biodiversity.
When the impacts of climate change intensify, ecosystem services are negatively impacted. For instance, provisioning services that are part of the ecosystem services will be affected in that there will be reduced productivity of agroecosystems and silvicultural systems (Shroder, 2015). It follows that climate change negatively impacts the ability of ecosystems to produce resources such as food, timbe...