Why is rainwater so acidic?

Question

I just noticed this phenomenon in my own garden this fall. It has become a real problem. Have other people experienced acidic or sour rainwater in their garden as well? What do you do to counter the effects of acidic rainwater? Any advice would be helpful.

Answer 1

here is some info on acid rain. rain has a naturally low pH because of the purity, pure water is acidic!

Answer 2

There are two issues here.

Rainwater is naturally acidic because carbon dioxide in the air dissolves into airborne moisture to form a dilute carbonic acid.

'Acid rain' was a phenomenon caused by sulpur emissions being taken up atmospheric moisture, to form dilute sulfuric acid. This was a preoccupation in the 1980s but has largely been ameliorated by the substantial reduction in industrial sulfur emissions in Europe.

Answer 3

I think the acid rain problem around here is easing somewhat... but it has done some awful damage in our mountains....not just the rain, either, but reading here, the rime ice.....

http://www.grandfather.com/conservation_interpretation/acid_rain.php

so much of our mountain hillsides are affected like that picture....this is something that all of us are concerned about...it hurts to see all those skeleton trees... I saw the same thing while out west this spring, but there it was a pine borer and drought doing the main damage....

I'd like to know... how did it show up in your garden?... what was affected that you attribute to acid rain?.... email me if you'd like....

Answer 4

Because We use catalytic converters on our autos and that produces so2 Suffer Dioxide. Also high sulfur coal. And Hi sulfur Cruse oil ( primarily from Venezuela ) It is my understanding that our country will buy a tanker of heavy crude and ship a tanker of light crude. which is produced in the Southwestern states.

Answer 5

Probably because of all the pollution we're putting into the air. Hence the term "acid rain".

Answer 6

It has Mountain Dew in it