Acid rain occurs when of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are emitted into the atmosphere. They then go through chemical transformations and are absorbed by water droplets in clouds. Acid rain is a term referring to a mixture of wet and dry deposition from the atmosphere containing abnormal amounts of nitric and sulfuric acids. Acid rain is cause by volcanoes and decaying vegetation, but emissions of sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) resulting from fossil fuel combustion is the main contributor.
Even though fuel combustion emitting sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) are higher in some areas, acid rain does not always occur near the source of the pollution. Due to high winds, these compounds can be blown hundreds of miles away. In 1990, The Clean Air Act Amendments was passed to address the issue of acid rain. This allowed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to issue permits to electric plants and coal-burning power plants. These......
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