Reclamation Of Grey Water Refinery Oily Wastewater Using Bioprocesses Treatment

Reclamation Of Grey Water Refinery Oily Wastewater Using Bioprocesses Treatment Background of Grey Water Treatment Pidou et al. (123) note that literature on the treatment of grey water has been there since 1970s. Membrane filtration accompanied with disinfection was among the primary technologies investigated for physical treatment. Biological treatment technologies like the aerated bioreactors rotating biological contactor and biological aerated filters were investigated in the 1980s and 1990s (Pidou et al. 123).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Reclamation Of Grey Water Refinery Oily Wastewater Using Bioprocesses Treatment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More During the decade, the simple physical separation procedure fitted in residential places. At the turn of the millennia, MBRs as well as reed beds were introduced as alternatively sophisticated and cheaper technologies. Chemical treatment has also featured in literature, thereafter. Figure 1: A diagrammatic representation of chemical technol ogies that applies filtration or flotation. Source: Pidou et al. (30) Figure 2: A diagrammatic scheme of a biological wastewater treatment system Advertising Looking for report on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Source: Chipasa (137) Description of Bio-Processes for Grey Water Treatment Bio-processes in grey water treatment include fixed film reactors, rotating biological contactor, anaerobic filters, sequencing batch reactor, membrane bioreactors, and biological aerated filters (BAF) (Pidou et al. 18). Much of the literature reveals that in most settings bioprocesses hardly operated as standalone unless intended for pilot investigations. Often, sedimentation, disinfection or screenings were installed as physical pre-treatment preceding the bioprocess systems (Pidou et al. 13). In other arrangements bioprocesses with membranes as in the case of activated carbon, MBRs, sand filters or extensive treatment technologies such as constructed wetland (Hastuti, Medawaty and Pamekas 368). The Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) technology was a direct improvement of the Fixed Film Activated Sludge Process. At the onset of 1990s, Norway improvised the first MBBR. Thereafter, the corporate behind the invention began setting up small treatment units with design that integrated MBBR as well as the Norwegian State Pollution Control Authority recommendation. In the recent past, there has been proliferations of large plants that apply the MBBR technology thus give the treatment method a big publicity in the wastewater industry. MBBR procedures are undertaken on bio-film systems within heavy carriers, which mix wastewater as well as suspend on the reactor with turbulence. The system occurs between an activated sludge and an immovable bed bio-film system. MBBR boasts most of its strength from activated sludge coupled with bio-film carrier elements that are produced from polyethylene whose d ensity falls below that of water. The elements are modelled to allow a lot of surface area for the bio-film. MBBR treat incoming wastewater through microorganisms that are cultured on bio-carriers that suspend in the fluid within the MBBR reactor. The microorganism contained in the bio-film is heterotrophic in nature; thus, utilize organic carbon to accumulate new biomass (Abdul-Majeed et al. 1551).Advertising We will write a custom report sample on Reclamation Of Grey Water Refinery Oily Wastewater Using Bioprocesses Treatment specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Facultative bacteria are some of the highly preferred heterotrophs as well as serve to dissolve oxygen in the fluid composite. The viscosity of the biomasses rises with the increase of microorganism numbers within the bio-carriers. The viscosity of the biomass impacts the strength of dissolved oxygen and substrate penetrating the bio-film. Those microorganisms on the frontiers of the bio-film have accelerated ability to mix oxygen and substrate through every layer in the array within the bio-film strata. MBBR have an aeration component that lowers present dissolved oxygen where the bio-film has aerobic, anoxic and anaerobic strata. Nitrification in MBBRs has received rigorous research attention particularly with synthetic wastewater. Considering every bio-film reactors, nitrification rates are affected by the concentration of dissolved oxygen in the reactor, the concentration of cumulative ammonium nitrogen, organic load, the pH as well as alkalinity. It was demonstrated that at the temperature of 15⠁ ° C and surplus cumulated ammonium nitrogen within an organic load of 1gBOD5/m2 biofilm surface area/d and a concentration of DO of close to 5 mg/L; this had a capacity to achieve a cumulative ammonium nitrogen rate of elimination of 1 g NH4–N/ (m2.d). The quality of the water treated Building complexes have resulted to use biological schemes in c ollege hostels, stadiums and multi storey houses. This is tied to the bioprocesses efficiency on the Hydraulic retention times (HRTs) that falls between 0.8 hours and 2.8 days. High strength grey water requires treatment systems that have higher HRTs such as mixed grey water and laundry wastewater whose BOD concentration ranges between 645 and 300-1200 mg.L-1. Compared to others biological systems perform fairly better at a mean time of 19 hours. Such systems have organic loading rates for Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) on the range of 0.10 and 7.49 kg.m-3.day-1; while for BOD varies from 0.08 to 2.38 kg.m-3.day-1 (Pidou et al. 14). In the case of the MBRs, organic loading rate values are lower at 0.88 kgCOD.m-3.day-1 compared to the standard wastewater treatment range of 1.2-3.2 kgCOD.m-3.day-1.Advertising Looking for report on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Stand alone systems applying the BAF, bio-films or rotating biological contactor (RBC) have their organic loading rate 1.32 kgBOD.m-3.day-1 thus their range falls within 0.3-1.4 kgBOD.m-3.day-1 (Pidou et al. 14). Regardless of the range and type of the bioprocess, systems that integrate a biological component have efficacy in eliminating organic and other solids. Actually, there efficacy has been proved to be well above top range standards for reuse with residual results whose concentrations fall below 10 mg.L-1 (Pidou et al. 14). An investigation into the turbidity concentrations achieved by biological systems, effluents residual have been positively below 8 NTU. Additionally, close to all schemes with bioprocesses achieved suspended solid residual under 15 mg.L-1. Bioprocesses performed better in the elimination of microorganisms by means for faecal coliforms and total coliforms at 5.2 log and 4.8 log, respectively (Pidou et al. 14). At the remedial concentrations of 20 cfu.100mL 1 through biological treatment, faecal and total coliforms remained below the stringent targets. An advantage of MBR as a bioprocess for treatment is its efficiency for the eliminating microbial without having a disinfection stage. To demonstrate this, Pidou et al. (15) achieved a 5 log and a residual concentration that is less than 30 cfu.100mL-1. Other schemes employing MBR bioprocesses have given the robust elimination of the organic and solid residues at mean for BOD, turbidity and suspended solids at 3 mg.L-1, 3 NTU and 6 mg.L-1, respectively. However, the capability of bioprocesses treatment schemes are mildly impacted by changes in the strength and flow of grey water and potential shock loading (Pidou et al. 15). Studies on the domestic product spiking on biomass resulting from an MBR showed that at EC50 the relative toxicity for perfume (at 2.5 mL.L-1), bleach (at 7 mL.L-1), washing powder (at 20 mL.L-1), caustic soda (at 23 mL.L-1) and vegetable oil (at 29 mL.L-1). In other studies, the ability of MBR to revert to its initial performance capacity within a shorter period was indicative that MBR are minimally interrupted by feed, air or both; hence highly reliable. In the case when the feed was grounded for 25 days, no interruption was reported. However, there were different results when BAF was subjected to the same conditions. With BAF, short interval stoppages had no performance implications, but longer led to rise in effluent concentrations and periods for recovery across factors. According to Pidou et al. (15), return to original-standards period as a result of feed stoppages lasting a third of a day were a sixth of a day for turbidity and TSS and close to two for coliforms. Moreover, air stoppages lasting same period had a return to normalcy period were for BOD was 4 hours; for turbidity was 4 hours; for suspended solids was 24 hours; for faecal coliforms was 28 hours and for total coliforms was 24 hours. When air and feed stoppages were both comb ined, the return to normalcy period lasted the longest were BOD was 40 hours; turbidity was 40 hours; suspended solids were 4 hours; faecal coliforms was 24 hours and total coliforms was 48 hours. None of the factors had regained the initial normalcy in less than two days when feeds were interrupted for 25 days. Pidou et al. (16) observes there lacks adequate information on the cost for installation of bioprocess treatment systems. Previous studies on installation estimated a capital spending of  £3,345 for systems that served 40 students boarding and comprised of a deep bed filter, a buffering tank, Granular Activated Charcoal (GAC) and an aerated bio-filter. Spending on operation and maintenance on the consumables, energy and labor were annually estimated at  £128. The return on investment was measured in terms of water savings with an annual estimation of  £516 lasting over a period of 8-9 years (Pidou et al. 16). It was projected that installing the system on a newly const ructed house would cut the capital spending by  £1,720 and readjust the period on return on investment by 4-5 years. In a different bioprocess installation system that included a UV disinfection chamber, screening filter, a solids filter as well as a treatment tank on a bio-film generated by collection balls fitted to serve a household had a cost range between  £2,514 and  £3,325. Nevertheless, it was not immediately clear on the O M cost as well as the return on investment details for the installation (Pidou et al. 16). There are cheaper treatment installations done at a capital cost of about  £197 that serve the housing of six persons that comprise of four plastic barrels. A treatment installation that had a sand filter, a UV disinfection chamber as well as a septic tank had a capital spending in  £2,230 as well as an annual operating cost of  £87. The return on investment that recovered cost was annual water saving of  £34 (Pidou et al. 16). About  £30,000 will b e capital budget for installing a bioreactor with a disinfector, sand filter and aerated for student resident wastewater treatment. The estimated annual spending for operations and maintenance was  £611, while the return on investment through water savings was  £166 (Pidou et al. 16). Aqua-EMBR (Aquatech’s Enhanced Membrane Bioreactor) is a recent biological treatment technology applied at refineries and petrochemical settings. The treatment system has been effectively tried in the Middle East oil plants. The treatment system has further been enhanced via High Efficiency Reverse Osmosis capabilities to recover 90 percent high quality permeate. The quality of the treatment meets the standards for recycling which is fed into the system for demineralising. Compared to the original MBR technologies, the Aqua-EMBR has some additional strength. Aqua-EMBR works without a membrane tank hence faster build up with reduced risks to the operators. This technology has limited civil wo rk requirements during installations, for instance can be mounted as skid on a level concrete slab. Operators and proponent face fewer risks in the event of delays posed by weather elements, environmental threats as well as other local eventualities during structural setting up (Al-Hamaiedeh and Bino 115). Compared to submerged systems, Aqua-EMBR technologies are user friendly as well as convenient. The systems manager hardly senses the obnoxious smell or view or directly touches the bio-sludge (Xia et al. 7391). There are no exposed (from top) membrane tanks from where ambient air interacts with harmful aerosols. In the event of need for operational checks and repairs, membrane modules can be replaced without direct contact with bio-sludge. This is not the case with submerged membrane modules mucked by sludge, hence creating chances for operators to get direct contact with when lifting out of the tank. The system has flux that is higher by 50 percent which reduces the need for surf ace area visvis volumes permeate production by half. This lowers the capital spending and operational cost from the costing aggregation of membrane cost per unit volume filtrate. The Aqua-EMBR technologies provide footprint of lower than a fifth, which is the least known. The technology promises cost savings by eliminating unnecessary man-hour attentions and chemical input costs. While contrasting with submerged systems, Aqua-EMBR technologies have reduced electricity needs by about 12.5 percent through the application of airlift pump effect. The Aqua-EMBR technologies boast of the finest membrane pore type, which at the lower side are 30 nm and higher at 50 nm. The technology has a treatment efficacy of less than 0.2 NTU for turbidity and less than 0.5 mg/l for total suspended solid. Advantages of Biological Grey water Treatment Compared to other treatment technologies, bioprocesses are capable of eliminating organics. These technologies apply for only short retention times (Pidou et al. 18). While, other technology have a necessity for the disinfection stage to meet the standard for the elimination of microbial; MBR (a biological grey water treatment technology) does not need (Pidou et al. 18). Pidou et al. (18) explains that the higher efficacy of technologies was observed when combinations of technologies were applied in a scheme. While, an aerated biological reactor alongside sand filter had a low strength treatment of grey water. The scheme had GAC and disinfection retention concentration for BOD of 2 mg.L-1; a turbidity level of 1 NTU and total coliforms count of 1 cfu.100mL-1. Elsewhere, the combination of a disinfector, RBC as well as sendimentation filter has attended waster water from bathing with residual results of 0.6 NTU for turbidity; 5 mg.L-1 for suspended solids; 2 mg.L-1 for BOD and 1 cfu.100mL-1 for faecal coliforms (Pidou et al. 18). At an individual level, only the MBR that had activated sludge and membrane had the capacity to proximate s uch results. A side-stream membrane bioreactor demonstrated residual results for treating grey water indicate a BOD of 1 mg.L-1; turbidity of 1 NTU; suspended solids of 4 mg.L-1 as well as total coliforms count of 1 cfu.100mL-1. A submerged membrane bioreactor gave residual results with undetectable levels of suspended solids and coliforms; BOD of less than 5 mg.L-1 as well as turbidity levels below 1 NTU. Thus, it can be concluded that the MBR scheme is able to demonstrate residual results that meet the thresholds for reuse. Notably, the level of treatment relies on the reuse application. According to Pidou et al. (20), biological treatment systems were found to have efficient hydraulic retention time of 19 hours over others. MBBR allow choice of the filling of bio-film carriers in the reactor that allows the carrier to be suspended freely (Colic, Acha and Lechter 4150). The filling allowance extends up to 70 percent. The carriers are simply small plastic tubes with diameter and le ngth of up to 5cm. The production material is polyethylene with a density nearing g/cm3. The carrier is provided with several chambers that increase the total surface area of the bio-film. Thus, the features allow the treatment system to attend high strength industrial wastewater. MBBR surface area provides room for modification thus different shapes and size have been applied, while remaining effective. It is imperative to assess the contribution of a water treatment to sustainable water management based on local settings as well as regional suitability. Though biological treatment technologies such as MBBR require substantively more energy investment to achieve a desirable carbon footprint, they are preferable to serve a wider area for quality grey water and economized energy visvis schemes developed from other technologies. The advantages associated with MBBR include existing basins allow for increasing capacity, easily managed and operational; hardly do bio-film clog, no need fo r sludge return and enhanced nitrification for existing activated sludge facilities. According to BP North America (35), benefits associated with MBBR include: no need for more acreage, has the capacity to eliminate phenol to an influent concentration of 200 mg/L, maintenance cost is manageable and has acceptable lifespan. In addition, has robust tolerance ability to toxic shocks and insignificant sludge bulking issues as well as desirable eliminating capacity compared to other attached growth bioprocesses. Nevertheless, these bioprocesses have used a lot of energy. Disadvantages of Biological Grey water Treatment Extensive grey water treatment is the only technologies have more footprint than the rest. Biological treatment technologies provide limited footprint considering smaller spaces available in the urban environments. There are schemes incorporating a rotating biological contactor, sedimentation tank as well a disinfection occupying a 15m3 volume that serves 70 occupants in a storey resident, hence servicing at a meagre 0.2 m2 per person connected. Direct disadvantages associated with MBBR are elevated flows create potential loss of the element and the need for more stages to eliminate biological phosphorus. Moreover, there is a need for drive process to achieve more influent BOD loadings. MBBR achieve higher performance with extensive screening and removal or grit. Analysis of Domestic Grey Water Mix Grey water is a by-product the living habits of water consumers and hence the installations used in the due course result in variations in the ultimate characteristics of the water. The degree of variation depends on the intensity and diverse domestic uses resulting in grey and wastewater (Pidou, 9). Analysis of the characteristics with reference to the type of household activity generating shows that kitchen and laundry sources produce more compared to others in terms of organics and physical pollutants. Arguably, kitchen wastewater accompanies food waste ; while laundry wastewater has in its substantial contents of washing detergents (visvis its volume) (Pidou, 9). Those households that do laundry outdoor the wastewater may contain in its sand and clay particles. Water from the bathroom (also referred to as the light grey water) contains mainly washing products and hair that are minimally concentrated as well as small proportions of organic materials. The level of physical contaminants ranges between 33 – 249 NTU for composite grey water that is an indicator of high turbidity when compared to that of the sewer or potable natural water. The popular range particle size that cause turbidity occurs within 5 and 200ÃŽ ¼m. Pidou (9) explain that particle size for various sources of water in bathroom fall in the range of 10-100ÃŽ ¼m; moreover molecules contained in grey water have molecular weight less than 3kDa. Grey water composite whose mean concentration level falls between 154 and 113 mg.L-1 for BOD as well as suspended particl es, respectively, has concentration strengths that range between low to medium relative sewage (Pidou, 10). Analysis of wastewater from bathroom falls within the low to medium strength of sewage; laundry falls at medium to high; while, kitchen sink at high strength sewage. The ratio of the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and the biological oxygen demand (BOD) estimates at 3.2. In most cases, domestic sewage and effluent discharge have their ratios at 2.2 and between 3 – 10, respectively (Pidou, 10). The values reported for grey water imply that the biodegradability is relatively low. The COD:N:P ratio with values of 1:0.02:0.01 for grey water composite provided the necessary confirmation. Actually, the ratio reported for the same for sewage is at 1:0.09:0.02 (Pidou 12). It can be concluded the low rich nutrient of grey water contributes to the diminished biodegradability. Analysis of waste water from bathrooms and laundry activities gives the ratio for COD:N:P at 1:0.02:0.06 and 1:0.02:0.15, respectively an indicator of the high concentration of phosphorus (Pidou, 10). The absence of N and P in the wastewater is because that comes from human waste. Pidou (11) explains that more than four-fifths and two-thirds domestic loads of N and P, respectively come from faeces and urine. Pidou (11) explains that across the different wastewater types, the number of microbial ranged between 101 and 108 cfu/100mL. Moreover, added that the relative number of coliforms varies with the population distribution of residents found in the respective catchments (Pidou 12). Interestingly, households that had no children had low total and faecal coliforms count at 80 and 6 cfu.100mL-1 compared to households with children at 3.2Ãâ€"105 and 1.5Ãâ€"103 cfu.100mL-1, respectively. Principally, investigations on grey water have established the presence of E. Coli, faecal coliforms and total coliforms as indicators of contamination. There are likely chances of finding in grew water a v ariety of bacteria, protozoa, helminths as well as pathogenic viruses (Pidou 12). Hygiene and sanitation activities such as bathing of the young; after the toilet hand wash; doing contaminated apparel as well as rinsing edibles are the most likely contributors of microorganisms ending up in the grey water. In a Swedish residential study, it was found that grey water had 101.4-104 cfu.100mL-1 for somatic coliphages as well as 102.3-104.8 cfu.100mL-1 for C. perfringes spores.   The constituent for faecal enterococci was at 103-105.1 cfu.100mL-1; while the concentration of E. Coli and coliforms were 104.3-106.8 cfu.100mL-1 and 105.5-108.7 cfu.100mL-1, respectively (Pidou 12). Heavy metals also accompany domestic grey water. These include zinc cadmium, nickel, copper, lead, tin, cobalt and chromium. Grey water has also been found to have high amounts of xenobiotic organic compounds (XOCs) (Pidou 12). It is highly advised not to discharge grey water after reuse due to toxic as well as environmental risks posed by the presence of xenobiotic organic contents in domestic ingredients. There are higher chances of coming across XOCs in surfactants, preservatives and antioxidants, softeners, solvents, fragrances and flavours. The XOCs are not biodegradable, but also bio-accumulative. There are bio-concentration factors more than 100 as well as a log Kow beyond 3. The toxicity with EC/LC50 is less than 1 mg.L-1. Pidou (12) cites that kitchen and laundry waters lead to higher toxicity levels in the domestic grey water. Analysis of Oil Refinery Wastewater Mix According to Ishak, Malakahmad and Isa (251) oil refinery activity require colossal amounts of water for desalting, catalytic and treatment procedures to generate desired outcomes, such as LPG, jet fuel, and petrochemical feedstock as well as distillation and thermal cracking. It is estimated that the amount of wastewater generated is 0.4 to 1.6 times the quantity of unrefined oils. Nevertheless, release of untreated oil refinery wastewater into water masses poses environmental as well as human health impacts associated with harmful contaminants such as phenol, hydrocarbons, and dissolved minerals (Alade et al. 163). Some hydrocarbons are carcinogenic. Persistent exposure to contaminants may lead to health complications like leukemia as well as tumor growths on organs. However, oil refinery wastewater has been treated using physical and chemical approaches, higher costs for chemicals and apparatus and massive sludge formation has made the biological approaches to be highly preferred. Biological wastewater treatment methods are elementary, affordable as well as environmentally friendly. The application of membrane bioreactor achieved elimination efficacy within the range of 78 and 98 percent for COD, 96 and 99 percent for BOD, 74 and 99 percent for TSS and 99 to 100 percent for turbidity. Table 1: Proportions of Water Use at the Domestic Level Purpose Proportion Used (in %) Toilet wash-out 3 5 Wash basin 8 Overhead bathing 5 Ordinary Bathing 15 Laundry 12 Utencil cleaning 4 Out door activities 6 Kitchen sink 15 Source: Pidou et al. (34) Table 2: Distribution of Domestic Water Reuse Domestic Reuse % Water Reused Toilet flushing 54% Irrigation and Garden watering 36% Outdoor use and cleaning 5% Laundry 2.5% Infiltration 2.5% Source: Pidou et al. (36) Table 3: The Characteristics of Domestic Grey Water Source BOD (mg.L-1) SS (mg.L-1) Turbidity (NTU) Total coliforms (cfu/100mL) Mixed grey water 5-466 (154) 25-304 (113) 33-240 (84) 102-108 (107) Bath 129-192 (161) 47-58 (53) 46-60 (53) 102-104 (103) Shower 99-212 (155) 15-353 (173) 21-375 (131) 101-104(104) Hand basin 33-252 (138) 36-505 (183) 102-164 (133) 103-106(105) Kitchen 536-1460 (891) 235-720 (528) Laundry 48-472 (276) 68-465 (238) 50-444 (254) 103-106(105) Standards 10 10 2 ND Sewage 282 ±68 191 ±68 2.4Ãâ€"109 ±2.2Ãâ€"109 Adopted from Pidou (12) Table 4: The Characteristics of Petroleum Refinery Wastewater Aspect Estimates 1 Estimates 2 Estimates 3 Estimates 4 BOD5, mg/l 570 150 – 350 150 -350 COD, mg/l 850-1020 300 – 800 300 – 600 330 – 556 Phenol, mg/ 98-128 20 – 200 Oil, mg/l 12.7 3000 50 40 -91 TSS, mg/l 100 150 130 -250 Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene and xylenes (BTEX), mg/l 23.9 1 – 100 Heavy metals, mg/l 0.1 – 100 Chrome, mg/l 0.2 – 10 Ammonia, mg/l 5.1 – 2.1 10 – 30 4.1 – 33.4 pH 8.0 – 8.2 7 – 9 7.5 – 10.3 Turbidity, NTU 22 52 10.5 -159.4 Source: Ishak, Malakahmad and Isa (252); Mahmoudkhani et al. (13) Table 5: XOCs contributed into the domestic grey water XOCs source Toxic content Surfactants benzalkonium chloride and alkylphenol ethoxylates Preservatives and antioxidants bronopol and triclosan Softeners diisononylphtalate and phosphonates Solvents heptane and 1,2,4- trichlorobenzene Fragrances and flavours hexyl cinnamic aldehyde and styrene Modified from Pidou (12) Table 6: Performance of MBBR Capacity on Conventional Sludge Parameter Performance Footprint requirement Low Efficacy in nutrient elimination High Tolerance of toxics Better than Conventional Activated Sludge Sludge settling Poor in toxic stress conditions Elimination of advanced total suspended solids (TSS) Variable Capacity to manage concentration surges Good Enhanced heavy crude degradation Good Tolerance to low temperatures Good Waste release Med Energy consumption Procedure for implementation Relatively straight forward Retrofit against new construction Retrofit, modular, needs additional retrofits Other Problems Abrasion losses 2%/yr; Limits fine bubble aeration Capital spending Low Source: BP North America (28) Table 7: Wastewater Parameters before and after MBBR Installation Parameter Before MBBR Installation After MBBR Flow 50 GP M 75 GPM Total Suspended Solids (TSS) About 200 TSS/mg/l About 900 TSS/mg/l Flocculants (fats oil and grease) About 150 FOG/mg/l About 650 FOG/mg/l BOD About 1,500 BOD/mg/l About 6,200 BOD/mg/l Source: Colic et al. (17) Table 8: Average Performance within a Month’s Period Parameter Before MBBR After MBBR Clarifier Total Suspended Solids (TSS) 45 TSS/mg/l 20 TSS/mg/l Flocculants (fats oil and grease) 12 FOG/mg/l 1 FOG/mg/l BOD 1,100 BOD/mg/l 18 BOD/mg/l Source: Colic et al. (18) Assessment of Oil Refinery Wastewater Treatment Performance Across Biological Treatment Technologies Technology Operation Cost Toxic Removal Sludge settleability Sequencing Batch Reactor (SBR) Very good Good Very good Normal Continuously Stirred Tank Bioreactor (CSTB) Very good Good Good Good Membrane Bioreactor Very good Good Very good Good Fluidized Bed Bioreactor (FBB) Good Good Very good Good Rotating Biological Contactor (RBC) Good Good Good Good Source: Ishak, Malakahmad and Isa (254) Table 9: The stringent Standards for Wastewater Reuse Country Application Aspect BOD (mg.L-1) TSS (mg.L-1) Turbidity (NTU) Faecal Coliforms (cfu.100mL-1) Total Coliforms (cfu.100mL-1) Japan Toilet flushing 2 ND Landscape 2 1000 Recreational 2 ND Israel Wastewater Reuse 10 10 1 Spain, Canary Islands Wastewater reuse 10 3 2 2.2 USA, California Unrestricted water reuse 2 avg 5 max 2.2 avg 23 max in 30 days USA, Florida Unrestricted water reuse 20 5 25% of sample ND and 25 max Australia, Queensland Greywater reuse for garden watering in unsewered area 20 30 100 Canada, British Columbia Unrestricted urban reuse 10 5 2 2.2 Source: Pidou et al. (35) Research theories and its application MBR According to Yang, Cicek and Ilg (201), research on membrane bioreactor technology has in the recent past concentrate on the UK, Japan and France, though the additional input has come from Germany, South Korea and China. There has b een keen interest to integrate gas and extraction function within the MBRs solutions. Scholarly works have delved on topical issues like fouling, optimizing operational performance and microbial characterization (Yang, Cicek and Ilg 201). Other areas likely to benefit from MBR innovation include elimination of a nitrate treatment for drinking water, elimination of endocrine disrupting compounds from wastewater streams and water types, improving bio-fuels generation through the membrane aided fermentation and gas production and purification on MBRs (Yang, Cicek and Ilg 201). MBBR The recent development in biological wastewater treatment has several facets. The introduction of new technology of bio-film processes a derivative of activated sludge process under the theory of biological wastewater treatment. Another face is the elementary process of wastewater treatment through processing system that result in biological transformation of organic matter such as the nitrification and de-n itrification. There are advancement on the biological process of phosphorus elimination and impact mechanism. Other areas of research advancement are Activated sludge model series, bio-film model series, pollution sludge treatment process solutions. Figure 3: Chronological account of Journal Artforle on MBR Technologies on Wastewater Treatment Source: Yang, Cicek and Ilg (202) Figure 4: Chronological and Country Distribution of Journal Publications of MBR Technologies Source: Yang, Cicek and Ilg (202) Table 10: Biological Wastewater Treatment Technologies Performance Location Housing/ Complex Type Scheme HRT (flow rate, Loading rate) Performance COD (mg.L-1) BOD (mg.L-1) Turbidity (NTU) TSS (mg.L-1) Total coliforms (cfu/100mL) Japan Stadium / Toilet flushing Screening + Sedimentation + Flotation + Rotating filters + Sand filter + Disinfection (622 m3/day) 243 6 336 20 207 10 10 Japan House Anaerobic filter + Submerged bio-filter + Sedimentation + Disinfection (1.735 m3 /day) 11 8 6 Korea Pilot scale Sequencing batch reactor + MF hollow fibre membranes 13 hours (1.2 m3/day) 79 30 5 5 185 China Pilot scale Screening + Membrane bioreactor 3.6 hours 130-322 40 99 212 5 146 -185 1 15 -50 0 ND Israel Student flats / Toilet Flushing Screening + Rotating biological reactor + Sedimentation + Sand filter + Disinfection About 18 hours 158 40 59 2 33 1 43 8 6.105+ 1+ Israel Student flats / Toilet flushing Screening + Membrane bioreactor + Disinfection About 18 hours 206 47 95 1 80 0 103 13 3.105+ 27+ Jordan House / Irrigation Sedimentation + Anaerobic filter 1-2 days 300 -1200 375 107 Denmark Industrial laundry Membrane bioreactor 2-2.5 days (60 m3/day) 1700 50 645 2 Germany Apartment building / Toilet flushing Sedimentation + Rotating biological contactor + UV Disinfection (2.1 m3/day) 100 200 43 85 4 104-105 104 Germany House / Toilet flushing Fluidized bed reactor + UV Disinfection (0.04 m3/day) 113 633 6 0 256 4 103-105 104 Finland Apartment building / Toilet flushing Aerated biofilter + UV Disinfection 8000 75 1.106+ 20+ Australia House / Toilet flushing, laundry and garden watering Screening + Biofilm + UV Disinfection 9 6 9 0* Australia House / Toilet flushing and outdoor use Septic tank + Sand filter + UV Disinfection 97 6 1 48 3 2.105 9 Norway Houses / Irrigation Septic tank + Aerated biofilter + Constructed wetland 62 10# 100 Germany Pilot scale Membrane bioreactor 10 hours 493 24 7 4 UK Student residence / Toilet flushing Screening + Aerated biofilter + Deep-bed filter + Activated carbon 9 1 6 995 UK Pilot scale Biological aerated filter 4 hours (0.4 m3/m2/h) 363 80 131 5 109 8 UK Student residence / Toilet flushing Biological reactor + Sand filter + GAC + Disinfection (263 m3/year) 201 62 212 5 7.105 3 UK Pilot scale Biological aerated filter 3.7 hours (0.328 m3/day) 128 13 41 4 3 52 6 2.106 2.104 UK Pi lot scale Submerged membrane bioreactor 13.6 hours (0.071 m3/day) 128 7 41 1 4 52 4 2.106 2 UK Pilot scale Membrane aeration bioreactor 0.8 hours (0.225 m3/day) 128 17 41 9 7 52 13 2.106 2.104 UK Pilot scale Side-stream Membrane bioreactor 2.8 days (0.137 m3/day) 273 2 181 1 1 58 4 3.104 1 UK Pilot scale Biological aerated filter + UF membrane 1.2 hours 80 6 25 0 52 1 6.105 1 UK Pilot scale Biological reactor + Sand filter + GAC (2.88 m3/day) 34 12 21 2 20 1 2.102 1 UK Arena / Toilet flushing Biological aerated filter 1.25-5 hours (120 m3/day) 84 14 31 3 3.105 3.103 Source: Pidou et al. (41); Al-Mughalles et al. (290) Adaptation Of The Processes In Canada And North America According to Yang, Cicek and Ilg (201), the application of MBR in North America occupies 11 percent of global installations. Popular brand of MBR in North America is Zenon, though elsewhere Kubota and Mitsubishi-Rayon are the common installations. It is focussed that the rise in stringent s tandards for wastewater treatment may popularize the MBR technologies, globally; thus driving innovation. Figure 5: Distribution of Use of MBR Technologies Source: Yang, Cicek and Ilg (207) Conclusion Literature show that the MBR technologies application has centred on wastewater treatment from domestic sources; while, MBBR technologies have been used in the oil refinery wastewater. Information on the advancement of MBR technologies is easily available visvis MBBR. This is probably, because the MBR technologies have present for longer than the MBBR ones. The BP petroleum company in North America has comprehensively availed information on its application of MBBR technology, though no clear details on areas of technological improvement or future arrangement on the same. Research interest in MBBR bioprocesses on wastewater treatment focus on enhancing the biological transformation of organic matter related to nitrification and de-nitrification. Research on MBR technologies relate to t he elimination of nitrate, elimination of endocrine disrupting compounds, improving bio-fuels generation and gas production and purification. Abdul-Majeed, Mohammed, Hisham Alwan, Mohammed Baki, Fauad Abtan and Hussein Sultan. â€Å"Wastewater Treatment in Baghdad City Using Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR) Technology.† Eng. Tech. Journal. 30.9 (2012): 1550-1560. Uotechnology. Web. Alade, Abass, Ahmad Jameel, Suleyman Muyubi, Mohamed Karim and Zahangir Alam. â€Å"Removal Of Oil And Grease As Emerging Pollutants Of Concern (EPC) In Wastewater Stream.† IIUM Engineering Journal. 12.4 (2011):161-169. Iium. Web. Al-Hamaiedeh, H and M Bino. â€Å"Effect of treated grey water reuse in irrigation on soil and plants.† Desalination. 256 (2010):115–119. elsevier. Web. Al-Mughalles, Mohammed, Rakmi Rahman, Fatihah Suja, Mastura Mahmud and Sharifah Abdullah. â€Å"Greywater Treatment Using GAC Biofilm Reactor and Sand Filter System.† Australian Journal of B asic and Applied Sciences. 6.3 (2012):283-292. Ipcbee. Web. BP North America 2008, Emerging Technologies and Approaches to Minimize Discharges into Lake Michigan. Web. Chipasa, Kangala. â€Å"Accumulation and fate of selected heavy metals in a biological wastewater treatment system.† Waste Management. 23 (2003):135–143. Elsevier. Web. Colic, Miroslav, Eric Acha and Ariel Lechter. â€Å"Advanced Pretreatment Enables MBBR Treatment of High Strength Candy Manufacturing Wastewater.† Water Environment Federation. (2009):4142-4152. Cleanwatertech. Web. Colic, Miroslav, Wade Morse, Ariel Lechter, Jason Hicks, Steve Holley and Carl Mattia 2008, Enabling the Performance of the MBBR Installed to Treat Meat Processing Wastewater. Web. Hastuti, Elis, Ida Medawaty and R Pamekas. â€Å"Application Of Domestic Wastewater Treatment Using Fixed Bed Biofilm And Membran Bioreactor For Water Reuse In Urban Housing Area.† Journal of Applied Sciences in Environmental Sanitatio n. 6.3 (2011): 367-376. Trisanita. Web. Ishak, S, A Malakahmad and M Isa. â€Å"Refinery wastewater biological treatment: A short review.† Journal of Scientific Industrial Research. 71 (2012):2521-256. niscair. Web. Mahmoudkhani, Rouhallah, Akbar Azar, Alireza Dehghani and Hossein Ghoreishi. â€Å"Treatment of Contaminated Waters with Petroleum by Moving Bed Biofilm Reactor (MBBR).† 2012 International Conference on Life Science and Engineering IPCBEE. 45.3 (2012):12-16. Ipcbee. Web. Pidou, Marc, Fayyaz Memon, Tom Stephenson, Bruce Jefferson and Paul Jeffrey. â€Å"Greywater recycling: treatment options and applications.† Engineering Sustainability. 160.ES3 (2007):119-131. dspace. Web. Pidou, Marc 2006, â€Å"Hybrid membrane processes for water reuse†. PhD thesis, Cranfield Univ., 2006. Dspace lib. cranfield. Web. Xia, Siqing, Liang Duan, Yonghui Song, Jixiang Li, Yvette Piceno, Gary Andersen, Lisa Alvarez-Cohen, Ivan Moreno-Andrade, Chun-Linhuang and Sla womir Hermanowicz. â€Å"Bacterial Community Structure in Geographically Distributed Biological Wastewater Treatment Reactors.† Environ. Sci. Technol. 44 (2010):7391–7396. Berkeley. Web. Yang, Wenbo, Nazim Cicek and John Ilg. â€Å"State-of-the-art of membrane bioreactors: Worldwide research and commercial applications in North America.† Journal of Membrane Science. 270 (2006):201–211. elsevier. Web.

Essay on Affirmative Action vs. Client Wishes

Essay on Affirmative Action vs. Client Wishes Essay on Affirmative Action vs. Client Wishes Essay on Affirmative Action vs. Client WishesToday the affirmative action is still relevant and the case of the commercial prepared by Sharon and Jennifer proves the full extent to which the affirmative action is a challenging issue, especially, of individuals and organizations deal with traditionalist, conservative customer group. In this regard, wishes of clients may turn out to be stronger than internal inclinations of employees to stand for affirmative action. On the other hand, the case may not be treated one-sidedly since, along with their civil position Sharon and Jennifer bear the professional responsibility to perform their functions properly and meet their customers’ needs and requirements. Therefore, if the commercial does not match the concept and vision of the customer, then Sharon and Jennifer should consider the option of changing the advertisement respectively to customer’s expectations. In such a way, the case of Jennifer and Sharon has the conflict be tween their social responsibility and their civil position, on the one hand, and their professional responsibility, on the other.In such a situation, the solution of the ethical dilemma faced by Jennifer is extremely difficult. In facing, changing the commercial will meet her personal interests and aspirations in terms of her professional development but, on the other hand, her position in regard to the affirmative action turns out to be a challenge to her promotion. At this point, Jennifer should not neither accept nor deny the demand of Mr. Hurn. Instead, she should propose the alternative solution to the ethical dilemma that would resolve the conflict. To put it more precisely, Jennifer can suggest further negotiations with the customer of the company to persuade him to change his mind and leave the commercial as it is or introduce minor changes in the content but not the cast of the commercial to convey certain messages in a different light, if necessary. To put it more precisel y, Jennifer can try to persuade the customer that the commercial, as it is at the moment, is the most efficient in terms of its impact on the audience. In other words, the commercial cast is selected purposefully and changing the race of actors would change the meaning of the commercial, its message and its impact power on the target customer group. In addition, the target customer group may not necessarily reject African American characters depicted in the commercial. On the contrary, the involvement of African American actors may expand the target customer group and attract minorities, whereas the traditional customer group may also receive the commercial positively because the attitude of white Americans to African Americans differ and the customer cannot be absolutely sure that customers will reject it. On the contrary, customers may like the commercial because of the perfect match of characters, message and content of the commercial. Probably, the content may need some changes to shift emphasis and to convey the message the customer wants more accurately and articulately. In addition, Jennifer should remind Mr. Hurn and the client about the affirmative action and anti-discrimination legislation along with the general attitude of the public to racial issues in the US. For instance, if Sharon or actors decide to file a lawsuit on the ground of the violation of the affirmative action and discrimination of African American actors, both the company, where Jennifer works, and their customer may get involved into the scandal that undermine their public image and competitive position in the market.

Media Influence on School Children in Britain Essay

Media Influence on School Children in Britain - Essay Example There are both negative and positive implications of media to children in our society today. Media offer academic learning opportunities to school children. Shows such as Teletubbies and Blue’s Clues among others have offered learning opportunities to pre-aged children over the past thirty years. Zoom, Zoboomafoo, and cyber chase programs are sated with edifying scientific facts to the youth. Educational programs have enabled children to highly adapt to the programs they are watching. For instance, Barney show, which teaches the English language, boosts the linguistic ability of those children who don’t understand the English language properly. On the other hand, programs such as National Geographical Channel explores the geographical features enabling a leaner to be conversant with his/her environment. Children are taught different types of animals and they are showing their real appearances. It makes it easier for such kids to visualize.Children have been able to lear n pro-social skills through media. â€Å"Children adapt to social skills like sharing, empathy, and self-calming by watching others do it â€Å", reports Klinker, an author (social and emotional development).Watching of T.V programs such as soap operas helps a child learn from adult hence enhancing the high level of social intelligence.Media has its negative effect on children as well. Children tend to pick up weird unethical behaviors from models presented in on TV screen e.g. eating disorders and body image.... For instance, Barney show, which teaches English language, boosts the linguistic ability of those children who don’t understand the English language properly. On the other hand, programs such as National Geographical Channel explores on the geographical features enabling a leaner to be conversant with his/her environment. Children are taught different types of animals and they are showed their real appearances (Palmer & Young, 2007, p.34). It makes it easier for such kids to visualize when discussed during class sessions. Children have been able to learn pro-social skills through media. â€Å"Children adapt to social skills like sharing, empathy and self-calming by watching others do it â€Å", reports Klinker, an author (social and emotional development).Watching of T.V programs such as soap operas helps a child learn from adult hence enhancing high level of social intelligence (Bryant & Zillmann, 2005 p.45). Media has its negative effect on children as well. Children tend pick up weird unethical behaviors from models presented in on TV screen e.g. eating disorders and body image (Liebert & Sprafkin, 1998 p.29). Magazines tend to portray girls who are skinny. As a result young girl put themselves on diet and at times they restrict themselves to eating in quest for a skinny sexy body. School girls caught up these trends as little as 7 years of age. In 2006, a national eating disorder treatment center indicated that 67% of school teachers complained of eating disorders in their classroom. The issues of modes of dressing and fashion trends have been major issues in the media where by individuals want to be kept updated. Children on the other hand have been on the receiving end. Parents have found it difficult to

The New Volkswagen Beetle Research Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The New Volkswagen Beetle - Research Proposal Example It needs to work on the targets it aims for, the position estimate, the price of its product and where will you sell it in order to keep stay on the highest profit. This will require feasibility studies to generate the required standard of meeting its goals. It is a chance to meet the growth of the society as well as generate new platforms that will position it in a place that will greatly provide more chances of growth and determination for the sake of getting the right position at all times. We will talk about all of these in deeper space through this research. The Volkswagen Beetle had to change its targets and had to replace them from Primary target to secondary target. It used to target the baby boomers generation as the Primary target. In this time, the new beetle is targeting two different generations. They are the millennials and the baby boomers. It is a cool car for young millennials because it has a good technology such as the GPS, and has a modern design. Millennials are the primary target for the Volkswagen Beetle. Women buyers were the most for a length of time than men. The secondary target is baby boomers. The Volkswagen Beetle uses the classical marketing to attract the baby boomers and the old generation of the millennials that have a good salary, and only feel tired of work and family life. It also includes who miss their children and who believe that old days were more fun. In this case, the strategy for beetle marketing department is to be the practical vehicle that supports every time you are going to meet friends by pla ying music and searching in the GBS. On the other hand, Volkswagen Beetle marketer uses the modelling marketing for young millennials by including technology such as apps with iPhones and improving the car style to follow the new modern. Volkswagen Beetle uses two different campaigns for the Primary and the secondary. The Volkswagen Beetle is German Company interred in the American market in 1949. In 1968, it was selling half million cars in the only USA. Nowadays, it sells cars throughout the world such as Ireland, Japan, UK and recently China.

Sociology GCSE mass media notes Essay Example for Free

Sociology GCSE mass media notes Essay New media – anything that uses new technology that usually involves some process of convergence e.g. phones as they can now access the internet. New media is likely to be digital, interactive and dispersed (not controlled by a single source of professionals). Democracy – rule by the people for the people Consumer society builds as it is cheaper and quicker for companies to advertise on the internet Exploits WC and MEG’s through news, stereotypes, folk devils and media ampflication Faster for many functions such as advertising and research etc Reinforces digital divide as the RC are more likely to posses new media The internet enables us to be democratic as it allows us to see and research information Increases social isolation as those without new media feel less ‘involved’. Allows us to have more knowledge and enhances us intellectually Higher risk of criminal behaviour happening e.g. fraud, illegal downloads and paedophiles of children’s websites Widens consumer choice Lack of regulation – many things go uncensored and undiscovered Infotainment – the replacing of news information by entertainment Enhances the power of the powerful, risking democracy as we only see information from the side of those in power Theoretical views Functionalist – media reinforces social order through the NV’s system Marxist – division of labour is kept as WC cannot become socially mobile due to poor access to information Feminist – dislike how women are portrayed; women that go against portrayal are seen as deviant Functionalist – socialises us with NV’s, gender roles etc Marxist – selective as it exploits the WC; it is always from the point of view of the RC and those in power Feminist dislike how women are portrayed; women that go against portrayal are seen as deviant Functionalist – no problem with it as it provides information Marxist – dislike as it benefits the RC and reinforces the digital divide Feminist – dislike as it present women in a derogatory way e.g. pornography The Press – privately owned media that primarily communicates the news; they are profitable organisations Broadcasting – lots is financed privately: PBS is not profit making, CSB is private and the BBC make profit through TV licenses with prices decided by the government. Media affect on behaviour The hyperdermic syringe model – The media has power over its audience: it can control and persuade people. The audience receives its daily injections of information from the media and this determines behaviour. It has an immediate effect o the audience as the media controls us. Evidence to support the HSM Lab experiments were conducted by Bandura Ross and Ross Liebert and Baron. Bandura: children who watched violence were more likely to hit the doll with a mallet. However, there were no other toys to play with and the children were aware this was wanted from them. Liebert and Baron: Children that watched violence were given the option to help or hurt someone when light came on, indicating a child in another room needed help with a game. Many clicked hurt, which sent an electric shock. However, lab experiments do not measure long term affects and we cannot isolate media as a variable. The uses and gratification model is used to argue against the HSM. The uses and gratification model – The media does not use us; we use the media. This theory is how the media is used to actively satisfy peoples needs based on their ability to exercise choice and control. Audiences actively seek media for specific gratifications and this theory deals with why media is chosen, what purpose media serves, and how media competes with other media sources to meet satisfaction. We retain information from the media based on five factors: Information e.g. wildlife programmes Personal Identity e.g. religious TV Personal relationships e.g. Jeremy Kyle Entertainment e.g. Big Brother Diversion/Escapism e.g. soaps The decoding approach – We use the media to support the values we already have, not give us new ones. McQuall suggests that the audiences are active decoders of the content of the media and have different interpretations in terms of: Selective retention – remembering certain information if it has significance to you Selective exposure – only exposing yourself to what you want or need; we’ll only watch things if they support our values Selective perception – we all understand parts of the media in different ways and use it in different ways The media has an immediate effect on the audience The media does not have an immediate effect on the audience Marxist – it has a negative immediate effect on the audience as they control us to have particular behaviour e.g. hierarchy Decoding approach – we expose ourselves to what we chose so only learn what we wish to learn Hyperdermic syringe model – the media controls our behaviour as we are given daily injections Selective retention – we only remember the information that means something to us Imitation – we copy what we see Selective exposure – we only expose ourselves to the media that interests us Functionalists believe values are learnt through the media Selective perception – we all interpret the media in different ways, so our behaviour is not immediately or directly affected in the same way Media can also be to blame for deviant and criminal behaviour: Media affects Explanation Imitation The audience are influenced by what they see to the extent that they copy the images and messages they are exposed to. Children in particular are prone to imitation and often engage in violent and inappropriate behaviour as a result. Sensitisation The audience hears and sees a lot of images in the media that makes them more aware of the consequences of the behaviour. They are less likely to engage in the behaviour and instead are likely to report to the police or intervene if the behaviour is witnessed. For example, child abuse reports went up due to coverage in soaps Desensitisation If an audience is exposed to violence in most of the media output, they begin to believe what they see is normal and are therefore no longer shocked by it in real life Cathartic effect Sex and violence in the media helps the audience to release inbuilt tensions and anxieties. By watching the behaviour there is no need to engage in it. Sex offenders are treated with pornography Disinhibition Violent and sexual images become so common that the audience no longer feels embarrassed or ashamed to behave in this way as they think it is normal Moral panic – the false worry about people and deviance/crime in society Deviance amplification model 1) A small group of people commit some act of deviance 2) The media pick up on the interesting story: a ‘problem group’ is identified 3) The media sensationalise the news to grab the attention of the audience 4) Causes of the deviant behaviour are simplified for easy explanation e.g. bad parenting 5) The group is labelled as folk devils and stereotyping occurs; other incidents of this deviant behaviour are made into news and it seems more common than it really is 6) A moral panic develops and the public’s concern is aroused at the real or imaginary ‘threat’ posed to society; the media campaign for action to be taken against the perceived threat 7) More social control – politicians, police and magistrates respond to public demands as shown in the media, and law-and-order campaigns are begun to stamp down on the deviants The impact of media on society today Primary socialisation – the first place to learn the norms and values of society; the family Secondary socialisation – other areas of your life in which the value system is reinforced or, in some cases, contradicted Functionalists believe the media is beneficial as it reinforces social order Marxists dislike the media as they reinforce the hierarchy of the RC over the WC and false class consciousness Feminists dislike the media as it reinforces gender roles and patriarchy What the media reinforces Through Gender roles Children’s programmes adverts Patriarchy Soaps music videos Political socialisation Debates the news Glamorisation of violence Soaps video games Hegemonic masculinity Competition between men soaps Stereotypes Soaps Global culture – when the culture of one community spreads worldwide through media and, globally, people are exposed to this culture. It is also known as media imperialism. Mass culture – the culture shared by the majority of society due to a general interest in certain things the media presents Media dominates family life; whereas before families were hardworking, hierarchical and communicative around the hearth, families today have their living rooms organised around the TV (the substitute hearth) and other media devices dominate leisure time. Identity – who you are as a person; this can be influenced by what we see in the media as, nowadays, people use the media to confirm and explore their identities. The media shapes our views on what we should be consuming and what we should be like. The media’s representation of age, gender ethnicity Children Rogers argues that children are presented as either angels or devils. The impact of this is that children are not held accountable for their actions if they are angles. However, it they are devils, they experience negative interaction as they are to blame. These stereotypes lead to labelling Youths The news amplifies stories on youths to make their devious and criminal behaviour appear more common. Teens become folk devils as they are all believed to be delinquent. Cohen says that the young as used as scape goats for society’s own issues and this can lead to a self-fulfilling prophecy. Age As children are easily manipulated, gender stereotypes are reinforced through TV programmes. This is known as age patriarchy. Elderly Grumpy – conservative, stubborn and resistant to social change Mentally challenged – deteriorating health Dependent – burden on the younger generations as they are weak Elderly women – grey hair, old clothes; being different is being ‘mutton’ Men have higher status as world leaders, politicians etc We are an age denying society Ethnicity People are free to upload on the internet as they wish so racism can happen on the internet or dangerous cults can start online YouTube is not moderated so various videos can be uploaded Impact of media on society 1) Socialisation 2) Mass culture 3) Effects family life 4) Reinforces and causes stereotypes on age gender and ethnicity 5) Effects behaviour and can create violence – audience effect models 6) Politically socialises us Political socialisation – your learning of political values, beliefs and preferences Whipping system – when an MP is told they need to vote in favour of their party or they will no longer be a part of it Rebel MP’s – Mp’s that do not vote the way of their party Political spin (spin doctors) – write speeches with ‘sound bites’ that can be used as newspaper headlines Curtis and Mair (2008) believe that: The press has too much influence on how people vote Negative coverage of politicians and politics has discouraged people from voting If readership of newspapers declines then: Newspaper’s ability to influence the outcomes of general elections will also have declined Fewer people will be exposed to the press’ supposedly negative coverage of politics and politicians that discourages people from voting at all The media promote democracy The media restrict democracy Because the media in Britain are not controlled by the state, the risk of censorship by governments is reduced, and free speech is protected. Journalists are free to report as they wish – within legal limits The media reflect the conservative views of their wealthy owners. While journalists are often critical and expose wrongdoing, they will frequently avoid issues which might cost them their jobs by upsetting newspaper owners or TV station bases The wide variety of privately owned media means a range of opinions are considered and public debates take place. By criticizing the actions of governments, the mass media can play an important ‘watch-dog’ role and keep governments in touch with public opinion The variety of opinion presented is limited. Working-class political views – such as strikes – are rarely reported. The ideas and actions of the least powerful groups are the most likely to be excluded. Those who in some way present a challenge or threat to the existing way society is organised are presented as irresponsible or unreasonable extremists The media give an unbiased account of news. TV news has to be impartial News values, agenda-setting, norm-setting and other sources of bias mean only some issues are covered, and these are not presented in neutral ways. The media choose what to report and how to report it, and therefore provide a biased view of the world The media accurately reflect public opinions that already exist in society rather than creating new ones. People wouldn’t read newspapers or view TV and websites unless they were providing what their audiences wanted The media do not simply reflect public opinion, but actively form and manipulate it. People can only form opinions on the basis of the knowledge they have, and the media are primarily responsible for providing this knowledge. The owners of the mass media hold overwhelmingly conservative views, and their ownership gives them the power to defend their position by forming favourable public opinion Anyone can put his or her views onto the internet via blogs, social networking sites etc Only the rich have the resources necessary to publish and distribute a newspaper on a large scale, or to set up a television or radio station, and it is the wealthy that own and control the main means of electronic communication. The concentration of ownership of the mass media is a threat to democracy, as a small powerful group of media owners can control access to ideas, information and knowledge. Those who wish to put forward alternative views to that presented in the mass media may not be allowed access to the media b their owners, and will therefore be denied any real opportunity to persuade public opinion of their ideas Concentration of press ownership Functionalists take the pluralist approach and they believe that the media isn’t used by owners to control the audience but is available for secondary socialisation. Marxists take the conflict approach as they believe that the media is used by its owners to control the audience. Pluralist approach Conflict approach A range of interests exist in society and no single group dominates Society is based on conflicting interests between different groups Media represents a range of different interests within society e.g. Woman’s Weekly, The Pink Paper and the Financial times Owners of the media are part of a minority who use their power to influence opinions in their own best interests Newspapers only give the audience what they want to receive i.e. the Sun does not have much international news because readers of the Sun do not want to read it, not because Rupert Murdoch does not want them to know Press owners have intervened directly to control content e.g. Harry Evans was hired as editor of the Sunday Times and was then allegedly fired from his post by Rupert Murdoch as a result of Evans’ political policy If owners of the media tried to give us something we did not want, consumerism would decrease; this is known as consumer power and would cause a decrease in companies’ profit m argin The Big Six – the few companies that own a vast majority of the press and world media. This is problematic as these companies can promote their own political beliefs and values through everything they own, meaning we are exposed to the owners’ own beliefs and values. They have the power to influence our views and beliefs. Consequences of press ownership Political socialisation – influences us to believe certain things and therefore affects the voting pattern and behaviour Negative portrayal of MEG’s Support those in power and authority to reinforce capitalism Presentations of different groups within society – age, gender, ethnicity Ethnic presentations in the media Black populations are presented as criminals. Cottle (1994) believes that this representation effectively hides racism and, through the hyperdermic syringe model, they believe they are criminal and this leads to self-fulfilling prophecy Sociologists argue that people from the groups internalise – from the media – that their lives are restricted and so they live the lives shown to them by the media Agenda setting – the media can focus attention on some issues and ignore others. They don’t tell us what to think but what to think about. This can affect political views and voting habits. Those who decide what makes the news are called gatekeepers as they have the power to influence what we think about. Norm referencing – the media reinforces norms and values so we conform. Those who conform are viewed and shown in a positive light and those who don’t in a negative light. This causes us to label people, leading to stereotypes. The cameras are always from the point of view of those in authority, giving a very selective view on what is happening. Defining ‘New Values’ – News doesn’t happen; journalists make news and have a list of things that ‘make news’. These are news values and, the more that are satisfied, the better the news is. This affects our understanding of events. Profit motive – Media is about money; owners and companies get this from advertisers. The advertisers must be satisfied with what goes on the news and the media listen because they want the money. Laws – there are laws in place saying what the media can and can’t share, so laws have a large impact on what goes on the news and how the news is presented. Digital natives – have grown up in the digital world using new media to communicate; there is a digital divide between digital natives and novices. Digital novices – have been born into a generation that used old media to communicate and new media has been introduced within their lifetime, meaning they have to learn how to use it and have not grown up with it. The mass media and power Press ownership In Britain, press ownership is concentrated in a few hands; this could give some individuals in the media the ability to influence mass opinion. Some argue that, in order to keep democracy, press ownership should be spread between larger numbers of individuals. The pluralist approach to press ownership According to the pluralist approach, a range of views and interests exists in society and no single group dominates. This range of views is reflected in the wide variety of newspapers and magazines available, so all political viewpoints are represented within the various publications that consumers can choose to buy. The pluralist approach rejects the idea that press owners control content. Instead, it suggests that newspapers simply give people what they want to read as, companies that fail to do so, are unlikely to succeed in competitive market and are more likely to go bankrupt. So, this view states that consumers are the ones who influence content through their market power. The conflict approach to press ownership According to the conflict approach, press owners are in a strong position to put their own political views across. This is because, as owners, they are able to control content and they do so in favour of their own political and economic interests. Supporters of this approach point to several developments within the media to support their position. These include the increasing concentration of press ownership in the hands of a few companies and individuals and the emergence of multimedia (or cross-media) conglomerates (such as News Corporation) that operate on a global, rather than national, scale. As a result of such developments, much of what people read comes from a few multinational media empires. The exercise of power within the media The media have the power to select which issues are ignored and exploited. In doing so, they direct public discussion and therefore affect what people think about it. This could give the media influence over people’s political views and their voting behaviour. The news media also have power in relation to norm referencing; they are able to outline the acceptable boundaries of behaviour. The views and behaviour of some groups and organisations are presented positively, whilst others are presented negatively. Through nor referencing, positive images of some groups ad negative images of others are created, and this helps to shape public opinion. The internet and the distribution of power Some sociologists argue that digital technology will lead to a reduction in power and influence of media power as it allows everyone to produce media content, rather than just consume it. For this reason, the internet could help to safeguard democracy by spreading the power to communicate and to exert influence more widely among different individuals and groups. Because anyone can upload information, comment on information given, contact politicians etc, they can exert influence. They can also find out about pressure groups (such as Greenpeace) or issues such as global warming. In this way, the internet could empower people and provide them with more opportunities to participate in politics. Other approaches, however, question how far the internet has increased political participation and empowered people as most people use the internet for things like shopping rather than for political reasons. Critics also argue that ‘e-democracy’ requires expensive technology and funding to start up and maintain so not everyone can get involved. The press is free because The press isn’t free because Members of the public exercise control through our market power. We can easily switch newspapers if we are unhappy with what we read. Hence, the market controls content and the consumer is sovereign There has been an increasing concentration of press ownership in the hands of a few companies and individuals meaning smaller companies have been swallowed by media giants Owners cannot simply dictate content but have to give us what we want to buy Multimedia conglomerates operate on a global rather than a national scale so a small number of multinational companies now have interests in media across the globe There is freedom to set up new newspapers if existing ones do not meet market demands Multimedia conglomerates such as News Corporation have emerged as a result of other companies merging together The media is an ISA used to teach us the norms and values of a capitalist society. The media is controlling us.

The Effects of Television on Society Essay -- essays research papers

It may be hard to admit, but television has become an intricate part of our everyday lives. People often find themselves sitting in front of the television screen for a longer period of time than ever before and this is due to the fact that television has evolved immensely over the past few years. Society is so addicted to television that it has become an issue. People are not aware of the dangers that television can inflict on the human mind and because of this people are becoming socially unproductive. Television shows have also evolved over the years as more and more TV shows resort to sex and violence to capture their audiences. These shows reflect negatively upon our younger viewers and it is becoming a problem. Despite all these negative aspects, there are however educational programs and television ads that benefit the viewers.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The definition of addiction is the condition of being habitually or compulsively occupied with or involved in something. Now the word addiction hasn’t always been commonly associated with television, but over the past years it is becoming more common. The average person spends about 1000 hours watching television each year. That’s equivalent to watching 24 hours of television a day for six weeks straight. Like a drug addict, a television addict thrives on a certain experience to get high. In this case the high is watching television. Winn states, â€Å"Something about that particular experience makes life without it less than complete† (505). A television addict doesn’t believe he can live life without television. Television addicts devote every waking hour to watching TV and some even revolve their whole life around it. These addicts live off the incredible experience they feel when watching television and because of this they are unab le to stop. People often use television as a scapegoat for the many problems that goes on in their own lives. They watch TV to live out the life they never had. Maria Winn explains, â€Å"†¦the television experience allows the participant to blot out the real world and enter into a pleasurable and passive mental state†(Winn 506). They are able to enter an imaginary television world as a place where they can forget about their troubles and live the perfect life they never had. Dove states, â€Å"It is not that we confuse TV with reality, but that we prefer it to reality†¦Ã¢â‚¬ (Dove 503-... ...e one of the hardest things to shop for. Commercials can narrow down everything you need to know about the car in about thirty seconds or less. The use of commercials can help benefit everybody who watches. Even though television has its benefits, the amount of negative aspects is just overwhelming. People are forgetting that watching too much television can be harmful to the human mind. It causes people to forget everything they know about the reality world and enter into the imaginary world. People are watching so much TV that they are becoming television addicts. These addicts devote their entire life to watching TV. These addicts aren’t even aware of the things that are going on around them. If people exerted the same amount of energy and time they spent watching TV to doing something useful the world would be a much healthier place for everyone. Works Cited Dove, Rita. â€Å"Loose Ends.† The McGraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. Boston: Mc-Graw Hill, 2003. 503-504 Winn, Maria. â€Å"Television Addiction.† The Mcgraw-Hill Reader: Issues Across the Disciplines. 8th ed. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. Boston: Mc-Graw Hill, 2003. 505-07.

Sin Taxes

Principles and Processes of Government Budgeting| Sin Taxes, Good or Bad? | An Examination of the Use of Sin Taxes in the United States| By: Stacy Madden4/27/2012 | Executive Summary Historically sin taxes have been an effective and efficient way for the government to raise revenue. The federal government used tariffs and consumption taxes to generate almost all of its revenue in the early years of our nation. The tax structure and philosophy has evolved and changed since the beginning of our nation, however the use of sin taxes has remained a good way for governments to raise revenues.Sin taxes no longer provide a significant portion of federal or state governments; however they do provide a consistent stream of revenue. This paper examines the use of sin taxes in the United States. First, the paper provides a basic understanding of sin taxes, current definition, and history. Next, the paper outlines the goods and services most commonly targeted by sin taxes and provides information about the effectiveness of these taxes to raise revenue and accomplish policy outcomes.Common goods and services targeted by sin taxes include; tobacco, alcohol, fuel, hazardous chemicals, gambling, prostitution, pornography, and unhealthy foods. Lastly, the paper will examine the ethical and moral implications of sin taxes from the perspective of those who support and oppose the use of sin taxes in the United States. Introduction Ben Franklin adequately stated the importance of taxes with his famous quote, â€Å"but in the world nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes. Citizens have vested governments with the power to tax in order to provide services for the common good. There are many different ways for a government to tax its citizens in order to raise revenues, ranging from taxes on income, wealth, and property, to taxes on goods and services. The United States uses many of these taxes in varying levels to raise the needed funds to carry out government busine ss. Some taxes are generally accepted and uncontested, while others are highly politicized and hard for Americans to accept.Presently, the federal government relies on income taxes for the bulk of its revenue whereas states and localities rely more heavily on other forms of taxes to raise money for their functions. The primary function of taxes is to raise revenue for the government, however governments have used taxes to help spark social change, punish those who partake of certain goods and services, or regulate the consumption of specific goods and services. In these instances, taxes move from matters of revenue to issues of social policy, acting as mechanisms to force certain behaviors from citizens.More specifically, sin taxes have been used in the United States to help change behavior or regulate the consumption of goods and services deemed as sinful. In this paper, I will define sin taxes and outline the political meaning of â€Å"sin,† provide a brief history of sin t axes and their use, examine the most common forms of sin taxes in the United States, and lastly discuss the ethical and moral implication of utilizing sin taxes as a mechanism of social change. Sin Tax, a DefinitionBefore considering the implications of sin taxes and their influence on the behavior of Americans, it is important to define the term. Taxes, most generally, are levied by governments to raise revenue in order to conduct business in the public interest. The United States, utilizing a progressive income tax to raise the bulk of its revenue, possess a culture where citizens pay most of their taxes on time. (Mikesell 493) This system is not one that commonly uses taxes as a punishment, instead encouraging its citizens to pay their taxes for the common good and success of the nation as a whole.Noncompliance is low, and the government has even employed strategies to enhance payment, such as instruction and assistance. (Mikesell 494) Sin taxes, however, do not take this positiv e approach to raise revenue, instead, governments use their powers of taxation to punish behaviors when utilizing sin taxes. Most commonly, sin taxes are excise or consumption taxes that charge fees for guilty pleasures or human indulgence. Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 60) Sin taxes, therefore, are intended to encourage citizens to consume or use taxed items responsibly or discourage behavior associated with the consumption of taxed items. Goods or services generally taxed through sin tax policy have some common characteristics including inelastic demand, promote behavior that is harmful to the individual, and promote behavior that is harmful to others.Goods or services targeted by sin taxes have an inelastic demand because they are generally habitual, addictive, or highly pleasurable. Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 60) Further, these goods or services are targeted by sin tax legislation because consuming or utilizing the good or services can lead to self-destructive behavior, negative consequences for c ommunities, and generally are considered socially undesirable. Thus, sin taxes are not prohibitive; citizens are allowed to consume targeted goods and services as long as the tax is not steep enough to make consumption of the good or service impossible. Viscusi 556) Further, the voluntary nature of sin taxes is generally more tolerable than involuntary nature of income taxes. (Schmidt, Barr and Swanson 1677) The most confusing and controversial element when considering sin taxes is the definition of sin.This word can be highly political and misleading, automatically making most think of sin in religious terms. However, sin, in the context of sin taxes, refers to addictive, self-destructive, and socially undesirable, behavior from the consumption of goods and services without crossing into religious doctrine. Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 60) In this context, then, sin is behavior that is undesirable enough to be targeted by taxes as a form of regulation or determent, but not so socially unacce ptable to be illegal to the public. (Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 60) Therefore, sin taxes should not be considered as forms of punishment for poor consumption choices, but instead be a catalyst to foster sounder and safer decisions. (Viscusi 547) However, this can be a slippery slope, the limited use of taxes on goods and services deemed as sinful could grow and encompass others outside the scope of sin.Sin Tax History Sin taxes have a long history, originating with religious doctrine and the power of organized religions to collect fees. Popes levied the earliest forms of sin taxes on prostitutes, brothels, and the sale of indulgence to raise money for religious projects. (Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 59) Laws required prostitutes to designate half of her property and fortune to convents, and brothels were taxed continuing through the 16th century. Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 59) Further, Russian Czar Peter the Great imposed fees on the length of beards to tax vanity, and the Puritans used sin taxes to curb ex travagance. (Lorenzi, Sin Taxes 59)The United States has a long history of utilizing taxes on socially undesirable goods and services to fund the government. In the early years of our democracy, the federal Government derived almost all its revenue from consumption taxes in the form of duties on imports and excise taxes on liquors and tobacco. American Economic Association 50) This tradition was set early when Congress enacted excise taxes on tobacco and snuff, refined sugar, distilled spirits, carriages, and property sold at auctions in order to finance the debts incurred during the Revolutionary War. (Hines 51) However, these taxes were not well received by a public that was over taxed by the British government and violent protests, in what was later coined the Whiskey Rebellion, resulted in the abolition of many unpopular excise taxes during the Jefferson Administration. Hines 52)The War of 1812 and the Civil War both required the federal Government to raise revenue and as a resu lt old excise taxes were reinstated as well as taxes on gold, jewelry, silverware, watches, playing cards, feathers, patent medicines, billiard tables, leather, telegrams, yachts, and many other luxuries, however these taxes were quickly repealed once the wars were over. (Hines 62) The federal Government was permitted to levy a personal income tax with the 16th Amendment, which became the main source of revenue in 1913. Hines) Federal excise taxes did not completely disappear during this time; however prohibition severely limited the possible revenue of excise taxes before the Depression.The repeal of Prohibition and expansion of excise taxes on luxuries during the Depression helped to finance the increased federal spending of the New Deal Programs totaling more than 15 percent of the federal revenue in 1933. Hines 52) The expansion of programming during and following World War II required higher income taxes, fully transferring the bulk of government revenue away from excise and co nsumption taxes to the system we employ today. (Hines) The federal government still utilized some consumption and excise taxes, however these were limited to those goods and services mostly deemed socially undesirable, or sin taxes. Popular Goods and Services Taxed as â€Å"Sin† Tobacco and Alcohol The scope of goods and services targeted by sin taxes is limited in American society.The two oldest and most widely targeted goods are tobacco and alcohol. As evidenced in the history of sin taxes, alcohol and tobacco have been taxed to finance federal and state governments, particularly in slow fiscal times or to raise money for major legislation or wars. These goods have been targeted by sin tax legislation because they have the potential to raise money rather quickly, have been relatively accepted as sinful, and have direct casual relationships with health or social problems. Hines 63) Further, it is easier for governments to justify taxes on tobacco and alcohol to the public si nce both goods tend to have negative consequences for the public at large. Legislators can disguise taxes on tobacco and alcohol as regulations to help protect society from the health and social consequences resulting from overconsumption of these goods while requiring those who consume tobacco and alcohol to finance the consequences of their consumption choices. (Boyd and Seldon 365) Thus, in times of increasing taxes it is easier and more popular to increase taxes on goods instead of taxes on income.Cigarettes have been a major target of sin taxes in most recent history as the health risks have been widely publicized. In order to combat cigarette consumption, the federal government and many states have levied taxes on the production and/or sale of cigarettes. The rationale behind this tax is quite simple, those who partake in the pleasure of smoking should help pay for the health care required resulting from their choice. (Gruber 203) Today, all states and the federal government i mpose an excise tax on cigarettes, and these taxes are increasing as governments try to balance their budgets. American Medical Association 1909)Cigarette excise taxes are widely accepted in public opinion, the hazards of smoking have demonized the industry and those who choose to purchase the products. (Gruber 194) Utilizing sin taxation to regulate consumption of tobacco has been highly effective, according to the CDC, â€Å"A 10% increase in the price of cigarettes can reduce consumption by nearly 4% among adults and can have an even greater effect among youths and other price-sensitive groups. (American Medical Association 1909) Sin taxation on alcohol, while a widely targeted good, seems to be less popular and publicized in popular media. Taxes on alcohol tend to be lower than those on tobacco, and many states handle the sale of alcohol differently (alcohol license tax, state operated liquor stores, etc. ), making the tax less visible to the public. (Johnson and Meier 580) Fur ther, it is harder to gauge the effect specific liquor, beer, and wine taxes have on consumption.For example, higher taxes increasing the price on one might cause consumers to substitute to another, more affordable alternative, such as substituting wine with beer. (Johnson and Meier 591) However, studies show increased prices on alcohol as a result of taxation have affected alcohol consumption rates to an extent even if it is minimal. (Boyd and Seldon 365) Sin taxation on both tobacco and alcohol have seemed to decrease the consumption of these goods while raising revenues for state and federal governments, however little attention is given to other factors affecting decreasing consumption rates.The American public has been flooded with messages about the dangers of smoking and national campaigns have worked to warn Americans to stop smoking, helping to decrease cigarette consumption in the United States along with the steep sin taxes increasing the prices. Further, many cities and states are adopting smoking bans in public places, limiting the accessibility of facilities for smokers. Also, there are very few substitutes for tobacco products, forcing smokers to either pay the tax or consume less.Political movements and tougher legislation against behavior resulting from alcohol consumption might be affecting consumption rates just as easily as increased prices resulting from sin taxes. Taxes on alcohol and tobacco can also increase production costs, causing producers to utilize their resources to raise other commodities that are not as heavily taxed, decreasing the overall production of tobacco and alcohol products. Boyd and Seldon 370) Further, lower consumption rates may not mean that consumption is actually dropping if consumers are turning to affordable black market substitutes. (Johnson and Meier 591) Environmental Americans have become increasingly accustomed to sin taxes that will help promote safer environmental practices and sustainability. Increased understanding of environmental factors surrounding pollution has increased the need for governmental regulation of emissions. As a result, the federal government has levied taxes on goods and services that contribute to pollution.The most common of these taxes is that on fuel; gasoline and diesel. Sin taxes levied on gasoline are intended to discourage driving and reduce pollution as well as traffic congestion in the process. (Hines 52) This tax is easy for government to justify since the majority of funds raised from the tax are spent on highway maintenance and construction. (Hines 52) While this tax may not have been enacted with â€Å"sin† regulation in mind, environmental regulation helps to justify it now, putting it in the â€Å"sin† category.Environmental sin taxes are not limited to fuel; they are also levied on gas-guzzler cars, heavy road vehicles, highway-type tires, and all forms of air transportation. (Hines 53) Ozone depleting chemicals also present an op portunity to tax environmental sin. Not only does the federal government limit the use of these hazardous chemicals, they are also taxed. (Hines 53) The strict regulation and higher taxes on these chemicals has severely reduced their production and use, almost making the usage limits irrelevant. Hines 53) In the future, scaled taxes on specific chemicals could help further reduce their use and potential harm to the ozone, however the federal government has not utilized sin taxes thoroughly enough to enact further environmental regulation. Gambling, Prostitution, and Pornography Gambling is a service that has been a target of sin taxes since the early years of our nation, easily defined as a sin but harder to single out and tax since it is not a good. The federal government has not taxed gambling with the same enthusiasm as tobacco, alcohol, or fuel taxes.Taxing gambling in the United States is tricky, Native American and state sponsored gambling is tax free, and setting gambling tax es too high can cause taxpayers to turn to alternatives, such as illegal gaming establishments. (Schmidt, Barr and Swanson 1682) Further, it is harder for consumers to feel the effects of gambling taxes since most tax costs are not directly funded by service prices. Instead, most sin taxes are levied on the gaming establishments in the form of license agreements for specific games or total revenue. Schmidt, Barr and Swanson 1687) Thus, gambling taxes do not technically raise the cost of the service and encourage citizens to make better decisions, instead gambling establishments bear the majority of the burden of the tax cost. While gambling sin taxes are hard to levy on individuals for regulation, they can be a tool to monitor and stop organized crime through IRS oversight. (Schmidt, Barr and Swanson 1681) Prostitution and pornography are equally difficult to tax, each for their own, separate reasons.Prostitution, while generally considered immoral, is legal in some states and on pa per is considered victimless since it is a consensual act between two adults. (Lorenzi, Taxing Antisocial Behavior for the Common Good 331) Further, taxes in this industry generally are levied on the establishment, much like gambling, and if the tax becomes too high, consumers will look for substitutes, generally illegal. Pornography is equally as difficult to tax, since so much of this product is available online.States are still trying to figure out how to charge a sales tax on online purchases, rather unsuccessfully, and pornography is no exception. Thus, taxes on this industry are limited to taxes on producers and networks, not individual consumers. (Lorenzi, Taxing Antisocial Behavior for the Common Good 331) In the end, taxes on prostitution and pornography are not as readily apparent to the consumer as with tobacco, alcohol or fuel, reducing the individual deterrent qualities of a sin tax on these goods and services. Fat TaxesObesity rates in the United States have been risin g, and as a result so have health issues and healthcare costs. (Chaufan, Hong and Fox 87) In recent years, state and federal governments have debated utilizing sin taxes to raise the cost of purchasing calorie dense foods with no nutritional value in order to deter consumption. However, these â€Å"fat taxes† are not new and have been present since the 1920’s. (Creighton 127) They are gaining in popularity as the obesity epidemic continues to cause widespread health issues.These unhealthy goods are particularly targeted by health officials because they are most commonly marketed to kids, and children who develop poor eating habits when they are young and more likely to become obese as adults. (Fletcher, Frisvold and Tefft 968) Thus, with evidence from the tobacco industry, sin taxes on unhealthy goods would seem to be a good method to encourage healthier food purchases. Further, taxing these goods could provide huge revenue increases for federal and state governments s ince the unhealthy food industry profits are similar to those of the alcohol industry. Fletcher, Frisvold and Tefft 968) Utilizing taxes as a mechanism to change behavior has not been as successful for curbing obesity. Taxing soft drinks has proved to discourage consumption, particularly for children and groups with limited spending capability. (Fletcher, Frisvold and Tefft 972) However, changing behaviors that lead to obesity takes more than just cutting specific foods out of a diet. For example, diets high in caloric intake can cause obesity regardless of where the calories are coming from if a person does not get enough exercise.Curbing obesity almost requires a personalized plan for each individual, focusing not only on their diet, but also exercise habits, genetic makeup, and lifestyle. (Chaufan, Hong and Fox 88) Simply targeting one factor does not help fix problems with the other factors. Further, there are too many substitutes for unhealthy junk food, allowing citizens to co ntinue to make poor health choices, even if we target certain goods. (O'Donoghue and Rabin 1841) Ethical and Moral Considerations of Sin TaxesSin taxes can be a valuable tool for government to raise revenue and help shape social policy. However, adding morals and values to a tax requires ethical and moral considerations above those of most other forms of taxes. These taxes are levied with a specific policy outcome in mind, yet sometimes it may be difficult to separate the government’s interest in raising revenue with the government’s overarching policy goal. Since these taxes generally have some sort of stigma attached with the goods or services taxed, it is also important to ensure these tax policies are enacted for the common good.Sin taxes have been the target of moral and ethical discussions mainly because it is hard to decide what exactly constitutes a sin. Disputes arise as legislators decide what goods and services need to be regulated for the public wellbeing. While many of the goods and services taxed as sin have historically been deemed evil, immoral, seedy, or bad; discourse about who decides these products deserve to be regulated and taxed above and beyond other goods and services must be evaluated. This seems to be the central moral question surrounding sin taxes.Should a minority of the population have to pay an extra tax to support the government simply because they partake or utilize a specific good or service? Taking this question a step further, sin taxes have the potential to raise large revenues, so is it ethical to make a few pay for government services for all? Who gets to decide how these funds will be spent, and who or what will this spending affect? (Green 70) The last overarching question surrounding the sin taxes focuses on the government’s power to tax, namely, can the government use its power to tax to shape and enforce social policies?Those in favor of sin taxes would argue there are many reasons why it is mor al and ethical to require consumers who purchase these particular goods and services to pay more than the average taxpayer. Namely, sin taxes target goods and services that cause negative consequences for the public at large. (Green 68) These could be increased health care costs or higher demand for social services. It is logical, then, to require these consumers to pay more since they are directly contributing to higher government costs for all.Not only is it logical and moral to require these consumers to pay more for the added costs as a result of their consumption, higher taxes can help them make better, healthier choices. Sin taxes have been proven to reduce the consumption of specific goods and services, helping to create sustainable, prosocial behaviors for the future. (Lorenzi, Taxing Antisocial Behavior for the Common Good 328) Sin tax policies can help deter and regulate antisocial behaviors as a result of consumption of sin goods and services while simultaneously raising revenues to pay for the programming needed to help those affected by this behavior.Further, sin taxes raising money on the backs of those partaking in antisocial behavior reduce the need to tax prosocial behaviors. For example, revenue generated from sin taxes can be used to fund government business, reducing income tax costs for the larger population. (Lorenzi, Sin Taxes) Targeting these immoral behaviors and using them to fund governmental operations ensures those engaged in prosocial behavior are not bearing a larger share of the cost of government. This is an attractive and easy sale to the public since higher taxes make all citizens unhappy.Sin taxes on paper are extremely regressive, and as a result unfavorable to many. However, lifetime incidence studies prove the effects of these taxes on lower income taxpayers is about equal to those in middle or higher income households. (Poterba 327) Those who oppose sin taxes see the value they bring to both government revenues as well a s the common good; however these positives do not outweigh the negative ethical and moral implications. First and foremost, opponents of sin taxes believe it is immoral for the government to rely on funding from the very behaviors it has deemed sinful and therefore is trying to regulate or change. Lorenzi, The Moral Grounds of Sin Taxes 68) Opponents see sin taxes as a stepping stone to banning certain goods and services, which should be a social policy decision supported by the public, not forced on them through prohibitive taxes. (Viscusi 547) Opponents therefore do not believe taxes should be used as a mechanism to enforce social policies or enact social change. (Creighton 135) In essence, the government is taking away the individual’s autonomy, legislating they should not purchase certain goods and products. (Green 72) This is a difficult issue to balance, Americans value independence and the freedom to choose.Further, sin taxes are regressive, putting the large burden of payment on those with the least ability to pay. (Hines 65) In slow economic times, when governments tend to raise sin taxes to help close the revenue and expenditure gap, sin taxes could actually hurt the economy, pushing these citizens to the end of their economic resources. (Johnson and Meier 582) In the end, the same population the government is targeting to raise the revenue would be the same population in need of government services once their resources were depleted.Further, utilizing sin taxes as a form of punishment or regulation directly competes with the message of the general tax code, namely, every citizen has the obligation to pay their taxes and support the government. The United States evolved their tax system from one based on consumption and tariffs to one based on taxing income based on the ability to pay. Sin taxes do not fit fairly into this carefully crafted tax structure we use today, sending the public mixed messages about citizen’s role in the taxatio n process. Lastly, opponents of sin taxes are skeptical if they are actually reaching the policy outcomes intended.Studies show increased prices on certain goods and services reduces consumption, however there could be many other factors contributing to the decline in usage. For example, reduced consumption might be a result of heightened public awareness about the health risks, greater access to prevention and rehabilitation, harsher criminal legislation surrounding a specific behavior, or any number of other factors. Further, sin taxes on some goods, like unhealthy foods, really do not work at all since there are so many additional factors that might be contributing to the issue. Chaufan, Hong and Fox 87) Opponents also are skeptical sin taxes even reduce consumption since the presence of similar or equal substitutes might encourage consumers to find these goods and services elsewhere, such as illegal gambling establishments or black market cigarettes. (Johnson and Meier 591) The availability of substitutes could in turn create greater antisocial behavior and costs to the government in the form of criminal investigation, prevention, and added health risks from unsafe goods and services. ConclusionTaxes are an inevitable fee all must pay to support the government. Citizens vest the power to tax with governments in return for government services. Governments take the power to tax a step further with sin taxes, not only raising revenue but also enacting or enforcing social policy. Sin taxes have been used successfully throughout history, particularly when citizens unanimously agree a sin exists. Sin taxes have also been successful in regulating or curbing consumption resulting in antisocial behavior as well as generating revenue.On the surface, it would seem as if sin taxes are a great way to raise revenues and influence or enforce social policy. However, there are many ethical and moral implications surrounding sin taxes. Digging deeper into the positive and n egative consequences of these taxes sheds light on the inherent problematic nature of the tax, and leads to questions about its place in the American tax structure. Legislators must be cognizant of these moral and ethical questions before deciding to enact taxes that could potentially be discriminatory to some members of society.These taxes should be evaluated on a case by case basis, with clear and measureable policy outcomes included in the evaluation. Policy outcomes that are not easily measured may not be the best use of sin tax influence for social change. In the end, taxes on goods or services labeled as sinful have great potential to raise revenue, and as a result these taxes are popular to help close revenue and expenditure gaps. Perhaps sin taxes are a great case study for tax structures based on consumption instead of income. Hines 69) Sin taxes target consumption, and this seems to work well to raise revenue for the government. Many of the ethical and moral questions surr ounding the use of sin taxes to influence social change could be eliminated within a tax structure based on consumption; however this shift would be a major tax reform in the United States. This may not be the answer we are looking for, yet sin taxes provide a window in which to examine tax policy, and possibly change the way our tax structures work in the future.Works Cited American Economic Association. Consumption and Other Indirect Taxes. † American Economic Review 9 (1919): 49-62. American Medical Association. â€Å"State Cigarette Excise Taxes-United States, 2009. † MMWR: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 2010. Boyd, Roy and Barry J. Seldon. â€Å"Revenue and Land-Use Effects of Proposed Changes in Sin Taxes: A General Equilibrium Perspective. † Land Economics 67. 3 (1991): 365-374. Chaufan, Claudia, Gee Hee Hong and Patrick Fox. â€Å"†Sin-Food† Taxes and Sugar-Sweetened Beverages–The Right Policy For the Wrong Reasons? † Ame rican Journal of Health Promotion 25. (2010): 87-90. Creighton, Robert. â€Å"Fat Taxes: The Newest Manifestation of the Age-Old Excise Tax. † Journal of Legal Medicine 31 (2010): 123-136. Fletcher, Jason M. , David E. Frisvold and Nathan Tefft. â€Å"The Effects of Soft Drink Taxes on Child and Adolescent Consumption and Weight Outcomes. † Journal of Public Economics 94 (2010): 967-974. Green, Rebecca. â€Å"The Ethics of Sin Taxes. † Public Health Nursing 28. 1 (2010): 68-77. Gruber, Jonathan. â€Å"Tobacco At the Crossroads: The Past and Future of Smoking Regulation in the United States. † Journal of Economic Perspectives 15. (2001): 193-212. Hines, James R. Jr. â€Å"Taxing Consumption and Other Sins. † Journal of Economic Perspectives 21. 1 (2007): 49-68. Johnson, Cathy M. and Kenneth J. Meier. â€Å"The Wages of Sin: Taxing America's Legal Vices. † The Western Political Quarterly 43. 3 (1990): 577-595. Lorenzi, Peter. â€Å"Sin Taxes. † Social Science and Public Policy 41. 3 (2004): 59-65. —. â€Å"Taxing Antisocial Behavior for the Common Good. † Society 47. 4 (2010): 328-332. —. â€Å"The Moral Grounds of Sin Taxes. † Society 44. 1 (2006): 67-71. Mikesell, John L. Fiscal Administration. Belmont, CA: Thompson Wadsworth, 2007. O'Donoghue, Ted and Matthew Rabin. â€Å"Optimal Sin Taxes. † Journal of Public Economics 90 (2006): 1825-1849. Poterba, James M. â€Å"Lifetime INcidence and the Diatributional Burden of Excise Taxes. † American Economic Review 79. 2 (1989): 325-330. Schmidt, Robert, Charles F. Barr and David A. Swanson. â€Å"Socioeconomic Impacts of the Proposed Federal Gaming Tax. † International Journal of Public Administration 20. 8-9 (1997): 1675-1698. Viscusi, W. Kip. â€Å"Promoting Smokers' Welfare With Responsible Taxation. † National Tax Journal 47. 3 (1994): 547-558.