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In the 1970’s and 80’s sulfur dioxide from industry was the principal cause of acid rain. The Clean Air Act largely addressed that problem but now there are concerns about nitrogen emissions from agriculture that can lead to acid rain.
In the 1970s and ’80s, sulfur dioxide pollution from industry and transportation were the principle causes of acid rain. The Clean Air Act dramatically reduced those sources. But now, as Dr. William Schlesinger, president of the Cary Institute for Ecosystem Studies, explains to host Jeff Young, acid rain has returned and it’s coming from nitrogen emissions produced by agriculture.