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Water PollutionAPES: Ch. 14
Water Pollution
• Is defined as the contamination of streams, rivers, lakes, oceans, or groundwater with substances produced by human activity that negatively affect organisms.– Has potential to impact both aquatic & terrestrial
organisms– Pollution can either come from point sources or
nonpoint sources
Point Sources vs. Nonpoint Sources
• Point sources are:– Distinct locations like factories or sewage treatment
plants that discharge pollution into a body of water.– Easier to pinpoint source of pollution
• Nonpoint sources are:– Diffuse areas like an entire farming region, suburban
community, or storm run-off from parking lots.– Harder to control pollution from these sources
NONPOINT SOURCES
Urban streets
Suburban development
Wastewater treatment plant
Rural homes
Cropland
Factory
Animal feedlot
POINT SOURCES
Human Wastewater
• This is produced by human activities including:– Sewage, gray water, bathing, washing clothes &
dishes.– Biggest challenge?
• To keep wastewater from contaminating drinking water.• Can be difficult because many use same water source
for drinking, bathing, washing, and disposing of sewage.
Human Wastewater
• Three major reasons wastewater is a concern:– Wastewater naturally undergoes decomposition
by bacteria, which creates a demand for dissolved oxygen (Oxygen Demand).
– Nutrients in released in wastewater decomposition can make water sources eutrophic (Nutrient Release).
– Wastewater can carry a wide variety of disease-causing organisms.
Oxygen Demand
• Oxygen-demanding waste:– Dissolved oxygen in water is used by many animals
in respiration. – Organic matter that enters a body of water &
feeds the growth of decomposers (microbes).– Microbes require oxygen to decompose waste– More waste . . . More oxygen needed
Oxygen Demand
• Measured in terms of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)– The amount of oxygen a quantity of water uses
over a period of time at a specific temperature.– Lower BOD = body of water is less polluted by
wastewater, whereas, higher BOD = body of water is more polluted by wastewater.
• Normal = 5 to 20 mg of oxygen due to decomposition of leaves, twigs etc.
• High = 200 mg of oxygen due to decomposition of domestic wastewater.
Oxygen Demand
• Dead Zones:– High BOD due to decomposition– Dissolved oxygen is too low for other organisms to
survive (lethal).– Some areas there is so little oxygen that life is
absent.– These areas are called “dead zones”
• Can be self-perpetuating due to dying organisms decomposing causing continued BOD
• Mississippi delta in Gulf of Mexico• UN estimates 200 dead zones globally
Fig. 21-A, p. 507
MississippiRiver Basin
TX
MSLA
Mississippi River
Gulf of Mexico
Ohio River
Mississippi River
Missouri River
Depleted oxygen
LOUISIANA
Gulf of Mexico
Nutrient Release• Products of decomposition:
– Include nitrates (NO3-2) & phosphates (PhO4
-2)
• Additional nutrient sources:– Soaps & detergents
• Provides abundance of nutrients to a body of water – Called eutrophication– Anthropogenic inputs of nutrients is called cultural
eutrophication– Produces algal blooms which die & decompose– Chain of events that leads back to low oxygen– Chesapeake Bay is an example
Pollution of Freshwater Lakes by Cultural Eutrophication
Overgrowth -> Breakdown -> Fish Kills -> Anaerobic Bacteria
Algae, cyanobacteria, water hyacinth, duckweed
Breakdown of these plants consumes oxygen
Less O2 causes organisms to die
Produce toxic HS and flammable CH4
1 2 3 4
Chesapeake Bay
• Point Source - Industry – 60% of phosphates, toxic waste• Non point Source – Agriculture/Municipal – 60% Nitrates,
pesticides
Ocean PollutionDILUTE-DISPERSE-DEGRADE• Can handle a lot of
pollutants• Arguments over safety
– Safer than burying vs. – Delaying pollution
prevention– Promotes degradation of
ocean and connected wetlandsRed Tide – eutrophication in ocean
• Release Toxins• Damage fisheries• Kills birds• Poison Seafood
Fig. 21-10, p. 505
Healthy zoneClear, oxygen-richwaters promote growthof plankton and sea grasses,and support fish.
Oxygen-depleted zoneSedimentation and algaeovergrowth reduce sunlight,kill beneficial sea grasses, useup oxygen, and degrade habitat.
Red tidesExcess nitrogen causesexplosive growth of toxicmicroscopic algae,poisoning fish andmarine mammals.
FarmsRunoff of pesticides, manure, and fertilizers adds toxins and excess nitrogen and phosphorus.
Toxic sedimentsChemicals and toxic metals contaminate shellfish beds, kill spawning fish, andaccumulate in the tissues of bottom feeders.
Construction sitesSediments are washed intowaterways, choking fish and plants, clouding waters, and blocking sunlight.
Urban sprawlBacteria and viruses fromsewers and septic tanks contaminate shellfish beds
Oxygen-depletedzone
Closedbeach
CitiesToxic metals and oil from streets and parking lots pollute waters;
IndustryNitrogen oxidesfrom autos andsmokestacks,toxic chemicals,and heavy metals in effluents flow into bays and estuaries.
Closedshellfish beds
Disease-causing Organisms
• Wastewater carries a variety of pathogens:– Viruses, bacteria, and parasites
• Water-born diseases are:– Cholera, typhoid fever, stomach flu, diarrhea– Worldwide most common: cholera and hepatitis– In USA, hepatitis A & bacterium Cryptosporidium– Large-scale outbreaks are rare in US, but common
in developing world.
Water Born Disease Statistics
• 1.1 billion do not have access to safe drinking water.
• Diarrheal diseases can be prevented by:– Safe drinking water, proper sanitation, & proper
hygiene• 42% of world population lacks access to
proper sanitation– Over half live in China & India– In sub-Saharan Africa only 36% have access
Disease-causing Organisms
• Not feasible to test water for all pathogens • Scientists use indicator species –
– An organism that indicates whether or not disease-causing pathogens are likely to be present.
– Best indicator: fecal coliform bacteria• Generally harmless micro-organisms that live in human
intestines• Most common is Escherichia coli or E. coli
Treatment of Wastewater
• Two most widespread systems for treating human sewage is:– Septic systems – found in rural areas with low
population density.– Sewage treatment plants – found in areas of high
population density such as urban & suburban• System to treat wastewater from large
livestock operations (feed lots) is a manure lagoon.
Septic Systems
• Septic system is a simple system with two components:– Septic tank (1,900 – 4700 L):
• Buried underground near house• Three layers develop:
– Scum layer (top): anything that floats & rises to the top– Sludge layer (bottom): anything heavier than water sinks– Septage (middle): layer of fairly clear water that contains
bacteria, pathogenic organisms, and nutrients (PO4-2, NO3
-2)
Septic Systems
– Leach field:• Septage moves by gravity out of tank to underground pipes
which lie below the lawn• Septage slowly seeps out due to perforations in the pipe.• Septage is filtered by surrounding soil & changed into CO2
and nutrients.• Pathogens can:
– Become part of the sludge– Be outcompeted by other micoorganisms– Be degraded by soil micoorganisms in leach field
– Pro: no electricity needed to run septic system, but sludge needs to be removed periodically.
Sewage Treatment Plant
• Managed by municipalities that are centralized.
• Two steps to treating sewage-– Primary treatment:
• Goal is for solids to settle out of wastewater• Solids are dried & exposed to bacteria that can digest
pathogens; this material is called sludge.• Final product is either dumped in landfills, burned, or
converted into fertilizer
Sewage Treatment Plant
– Secondary Treatment:• Involves the remaining wastewater• Goal is to use bacteria to break down 85 – 90% of
organic matter and convert it into CO2 and nutrients• Processes include –
– Aeration to promote growth of aerobic bacteria (less odoriferous than anaerobic bacteria)
– Secondary wastewater is left in settling ponds for several days to remove any remaining particles
– Disinfection using chlorine, ozone, or UV light kills remaining pathogens
– Final product is released into nearby river, lake, or ocean
Manure Lagoons
• Animal waste problems similar to human waste.
• Only a problem when on a large scale like concentrated feed lots.
• Manure from feed lots contains antibiotics & hormones
• Large amounts of manure are handled in manure lagoons– Large, human-made ponds lined with rubber.
Manure Lagoons
• Manure is broken down by bacteria (same as in sewage treatment plants)
• Manure can be spread of farm fields• Risk of manure lagoons –
– Leaks in rubber can contaminate groundwater– Overflow to adjacent water bodies– Application as fertilizer can runoff to nearby water
bodies