WATER POLLUTION: CAUSES, EFFECTS,

SOLUTIONSBRIANNE HENRY

WATER POLLUTION• WATER POLLUTION BY DEFINITION IS THE CONTAMINATION OF A WATER

SOURCE BY CHEMICALS THAT CAN HARM HUMANS, ANIMALS, AND THE ENVIRONMENT

• THE POLLUTION CAN COME FROM MULTIPLE SOURCES AND THEY ALL FALL UNDER DIFFERENT CATEGORIES

• THE CATEGORIES THEY FALL UNDER ARE TOXIC AND ORGANIC SUBSTANCE, THERMAL AND ECOLOGICAL POLLUTION

TOXIC SUBSTANCE POLLUTION• TOXIC SUBSTANCE POLLUTION SIMPLY MEANS THAT A CHEMICAL THAT DOES

NOT BELONG IN THE WATER, GOES INTO THE WATER AND CONTAMINATES IT. • THE MOST POPULAR CHEMICALS THAT IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CHEMICAL

POLLUTION ARE PESTICIDES, HERBICIDES, AND OTHER COMPOUNDS. • THE SOURCE OF THESE POLLUTANTS COME FROM FARMS, WHO USE LARGE

AMOUNTS OF HERBICIDES AND PESTICIDES TO PROTECT THEIR PLANTS FROM VARIOUS BUGS.

• THERE ARE ALSO DIFFERENT FERTILIZERS THAT ARE USED THAT CAN WASH INTO THE WATER SYSTEM AND DAMAGE THE WATER SUPPLY

ORGANIC SUBSTANCE POLLUTION

• THIS FORM OF POLLUTION OCCURS WHEN ORGANIC MATTER LIKE MANURE GOES INTO THE WATER SYSTEM

• WHEN THE MATTER INCREASES IN ONE SOURCE OF WATER, THE POPULATION OF DECOMPOSERS INCREASE AND THEY TAKE A GREAT DEAL OF OXYGEN

• AS A RESULT, THERE WILL BE A COMPETITION FOR THE REST OF THE OXYGEN AND SOON THE OTHER AQUATIC ORGANISMS WILL START TO DIE

• WITH THE DEATH OF THE AQUATIC ORGANISMS, THE DECOMPOSERS WILL TAKE OVER THE ENVIRONMENT

ORGANIC SUBSTANCE CONT.

• ONE TYPE OF ORGANIC POLLUTION HAPPENS WHEN INORGANIC POLLUTANTS INCREASE IN AN AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM.

• THESE INORGANIC POLLUTANTS ARE NITROGEN AND PHOSPHATES• WHEN THEY MULTIPLY, IT CAUSES PLANTS AND ALGAE TO GROW BUT WHEN

THERE IS TOO MUCH PLANTS AND ALGAE IN ONE WATER ECOSYSTEM, THE OXYGEN DEPLETES WHEN THEY DIE. IN TURN, IT CAUSES DECOMPOSERS TO MULTIPLY

• THIS IS A PHENOMENON CALLED EUTROPHICATION

THERMAL POLLUTION

• THIS FORM OF POLLUTION HAPPENS WHEN WATER IS USED AS A COOLING AGENT NEAR A POWER OR INDUSTRIAL PLANT AND THE WATER IS THEN RETURNED TO THE ECOSYSTEM.

• AS A RESULT, THE WATER IS AT A HIGHER TEMPERATURE THEN THE REST OF THE BODY OF WATER AND IT CAN MESS UP THE OXYGEN LEVELS IN THE ECOSYSTEM

• THE CHANGE IN OXYGEN LEVELS CAUSES THE AQUATIC ORGANISMS TO COMPETE FOR THE OXYGEN THAT THEY NEED TO SURVIVE.

ECOLOGICAL POLLUTION

• ECOLOGICAL POLLUTION OCCURS WHEN ANY OF THE OTHER FORMS OF POLLUTION ARE CAUSED BY NATURE, NOT BY HUMANS

• FOR EXAMPLE, WHEN A VOLCANO ERUPTS, THE LAVA THAT FALLS IN THE WATER CAN CAUSE THERMAL POLLUTION

• THE ASH FROM THE VOLCANO CAN ALSO CAUSE TOXIC SUBSTANCE POLLUTION .• ANOTHER EXAMPLE IS WHEN A RIVER FLOODS AND ALL THE ORGANIC MATTER FROM

THE GROUND AND WHATEVER ANIMAL THAT IS CAUGHT IN THE FLOOD CAN CAUSE ORGANIC SUBSTANCE POLLUTION

HUMAN/ANIMAL HEALTH AND WATER POLLUTION

• IT IS NO SECRET THAT WATER POLLUTION HAVE HORRIBLE EFFECTS ON HUMAN AND ANIMAL HEALTH. EVEN THOUGH A LOT OF EFFECTS ARE NOT IMMEDIATE, IT CAN STILL COME LATER ON IN LIFE.

• THE HEAVY METALS FOUND IN WATER CAN RESULT IN SLOW DEVELOPMENT AND BIRTH DEFECTS WHEN CONSUMED BY THE FISH WHICH WILL BE CONSUMED BY HUMANS.

• POLLUTANTS FROM SEWAGE AND INDUSTRIAL WASTE CAN LEAD TO ILLNESSES AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES, POISONING, INFANT MORTALITY, IMMUNE ISSUES AND THEY CAN BE FATAL

• OTHER PARTICLES CAN ALSO EFFECT FRESHWATER WHICH WILL REDUCE THE QUALITY OF DRINKING WATER FOR HUMANS AND ANIMALS

ECONOMY AND WATER POLLUTION

• EVEN THOUGH IT IS NOT AN IMMEDIATE THOUGHT, WATER POLLUTION CAN HAVE A GREAT IMPACT ON THE ECONOMY

• IT IS PRETTY EXPENSIVE WHEN THE CONTAMINATED WATER HAS TO BE TREATED AND CERTAIN MEASURES HAVE TO BE TAKEN IN ORDER TO PREVENT THE WATER FROM GETTING RE-INFECTED.

• WHAT FACTORS IN THE PRICE OF TREATING THE WATER IS THE LOCATION, CONTAMINATION SIZE, AND THE TYPE OF POLLUTANT.

• LOCATION DETERMINES HOW MUCH THE TREATMENT WILL COST. IF THE LOCATION IS HARD TO GET TO, THE PRICE GOES UP . IF THE LOCATION IS EASY TO GET TO, THE PRICE GOES DOWN

• IF THE AREA IS LARGE, THE PRICE WILL GO UP. IF THE AREA IS SMALL, PRICE GOES DOWN• TYPE OF POLLUTANT MATTERS BECAUSE SOME POLLUTANTS ARE HARDER TO GET RID OF

COMPARED TO OTHERS.

ENVIRONMENT AND WATER POLLUTION

• THE EFFECTS OF WATER POLLUTION ON THE ENVIRONMENT VARIES DEPENDING ON THE TYPE OF POLLUTANT

• WHEN THE POLLUTANT IS A HEAVY METAL, IT CAN BE VERY TOXIC TO THE FISH AND OTHER AQUATIC LIFE, CAN EFFECT THE REPRODUCTIVE NATURE OF THE ANIMALS

• THE WASTE FROM SEWAGE AND INDUSTRIES CAN INFECT THE FISH AND GIVE THEM DISEASES AND OTHER INFECTIONS

PREVENTING WATER POLLUTION

• THE PREVENTION OF WATER POLLUTION STARTS WITH US. THERE ARE MULTIPLE THINGS THAT WE CAN DO TO HELP KEEP THE WATER HEALTHY:

• BE MINDFUL WITH WHAT GOES DOWN THE SINK AND TOILET. AVOID THROWING LITTER DOWN THE DRAINS

• DO NOT OVERUSE PESTICIDES AND FERTILIZERS• INCREASE THE PLANTS IN YOUR GARDEN TO PREVENT FERTILIZERS AND PESTICIDES FROM

GOING INTO WATER SOURCES • AVOID THROWING LITTER IN OCEANS, LAKES, AND RIVERS• ATTEMPT TO CLEAN UP THE LITTER THAT YOU DO SEE AND DISPOSE OF THEM PROPELY

TREATMENT OF WATER POLLUTION :SEPTIC TANKS

• SEPTIC TANKS ARE USED FOR THE TREATMENT OF SEWAGE FROM AN INDIVIDUAL BUILDING .

• WHEN THE SEWAGE GOES FROM THE BUILDING TO THE TANK, THE SOLIDS ARE SEPARATED FROM THE LIQUID.

• THE SOLIDS ARE SEPARATED BY DENSITY. THE HEAVIER MATERIALS FLOAT TO THE BOTTOM, WHILE THE LIGHTER MATERIALS FLOAT TO THE TOP.

• THERE IS A BIOLOGICAL PROCESS THAT HELPS DEGRADE THE WASTE• THE LIQUID THAT REMAINS FLOWS OUT THE TANK AND GOES TO A DRAINAGE SYSTEM

AND WHATEVER SOLIDS THAT ARE LEFT ARE FILTERED OUT

TREATMENT OF WATER POLLUTION: OZONE WASTEWATER TREATMENT

• THIS IS A GENERATOR THAT HELPS BREAK DOWN THE POLLUTANTS IN THE WATER

• THESE GENERATORS USE ULTRAVIOLET RADIATION TO CONVERT OXYGEN INTO OZONE.

• OZONE IS A GAS THAT CAN OXIDIZE BACTERIA, MOLDS, AND ETC. • THE OZONE CAN KILL BACTERIA, OXIDIZE SUBSTANCES LIKE IRON AND FILTER

THEM OUT• AFTER THE OZONE IS DONE BEING USED, IT CAN REVERT BACK TO OXYGEN

AND THERE WILL BE NO PROOF THAT IT WAS USED • UNFORTUNATELY, THE TREATMENT NEEDS A HUGE AMOUNT OF ENERGY

FROM ELECTRICITY AND IT CANNOT REMOVE DISSOLVED MINERALS AND SALTS

CONCLUSION

• WATER POLLUTION IS CAUSED BY MULTIPLE THINGS THAT CAN ULTIMATELY HARM NOT ONLY HUMANS, ANIMALS, PLANTS AND THE ENVIRONMENT BUT IT CAN ALSO EFFECT THE ECONOMY.

• EVEN THOUGH IT IS CAUSED BY MULTIPLE THINGS, THERE ARE MULTIPLE WAYS TO PREVENT IT AND TREAT IT

• WATER IS AN IMPORTANT RESOURCE THAT NEEDS TO BE TAKEN CARE OF AND TREASURED. IF WE DO NOT, WE WILL LOSE OUR MOST VALUABLE RESOURCE.