Scholarly Activity

Chemical substances are all around us. Being aware of what is around you in the environment, your workplace, your home, and so on is essential if adverse effects are to be mitigated. Read the scenarios provided below, and choose one to write about for your essay.

Option 1:
Drinking water contains small levels of contaminants called micro-contaminants. These come from residues of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc. and may require drinking water plants to install tertiary treatment link activated carbon and ozonation.
• Describe the types of water sources that municipalities use for drinking water.
• Describe the multiple sources of contamination for river water and in a table. Specify for each source two or more chemical ingredients that cause the river to be contaminated, and identify who is responsible for these contaminants being in the river.
• Make your case for determining who should pay for this treatment. Should it be the municipalities treating the water, the manufacturers of the consumer products, the farmers that allowed agricultural runoff to get into water bodies, the federal government that establishes drinking water standards, or others?

Option 2:
Study the Exxon Valdez disaster using your textbook and other scholarly sources. Complete the following four items regarding this disaster:
• Describe the background to the disaster and the factors leading up to the event.
• Identify parts of the environment were impacted and what were the adverse impacts and damage done to each area?
• What steps were taken to clean up the oil and the damage done to wildlife and the environment?
• From your review of how the government responded, assess what key regulatory changes the EPA made.

Your response should be a minimum of one page in length. Any outside sources you choose to use should be scholarly sources. All sources used, including textbooks, must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying APA citations.