User:Jeremiahbarrar/Water Pollution Report

Water Pollution Report
Water pollution’s many causes negatively affect people, animals, and the environment. It negatively effects people because it causes death and sickness. It negatively effects animals because it causes them to die. Finally, it negatively effects the environment because it kills of plants and sea life.

Having clean water is important. A person can only survive for 5-7 days without water. Water covers seventy-five percent of the earth. This is very important, because without water, nothing would be able to live on the earth. The water on earth today is the same water the dinosaurs had.

The U.S. consumes at least 350 billion gallons of fresh water a day. Residential districts use about thirty-nine percent of the water supplies. Industries use large amounts of water to make their products, at least twenty-seven percent of the water in the United States. Forty one percent of water is used for agriculture (Kahuma Kupua, p. 19).

Nature is one of the many causes of water pollution. Landslides and erosion can cause pollution. Dust and ash from volcanoes can pollute water. Suspended sediment can reduce light absorption and put dangerous compounds in the water. Pollution can be caused when topsoil runs off the ground. Removing trees and plants from banks of streams can cause pollution.

One of the main causes of water pollution is industries. Non-point pollution is hard to control because the source cannot be traced easily. A point source is pollution coming from a pipe or sewage source. Since the cheapest way to cool a factory is to use a nearby stream or lake, thermal pollution is very common. Thermal pollution uses up oxygen in the water, and causes animals to die because they cannot breathe.

Chemicals cause most water pollution. Radioactive material, tanker spills, pesticides and mercury can cause pollution. Phosphates can cause a huge algae build-up. Lead is a dangerous chemical that pollutes water. Fertilizers and pesticides can cause pollution. Mercury is a deadly chemical that attacks the nervous system. Six and a half million tons of plastic go into the ocean every year (Hare, p. 14).

Acid rain is caused by industrial smoke mixing with clouds. The lower the pH water has, the more acidic it is. Typical rain has a pH of 5-6, but acid rain has a pH of about four. Acid rain causes lakes to become acidic. An acidic lake looks clean because everything is dead.

Mainly humans cause water pollution. Rainwater can pollute groundwater if it seeps through the soil. If too many wells are made near the coast, the salt water can pollute fresh water. Landfills can cause major pollution if the protective layer at the bottom is cracked. Little attention is paid to highway runoff, farms, and construction sites. There are over twenty thousand abandoned hazardous waste sites in the United States.

In 1977, the Clean Water Act was established. The CWA's broad goals are being translated into water body specific goals. The clean water act is the cornerstone of water quality. The Clean Water Act makes dumping waste illegal. In 1979, the Clean Water Act changed their strategy to protect streams and lakes rather than fixing as many as possible. The Clean Water Act allowed EPA to build sewage treatment plants. The objective of the Clean Water Act is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the United States waters (Clean Water Act).

Water Quality Standards only protect U.S. waters. Industries can get away with polluting water that does not belong to the United States. 1 billion people or more worldwide do not have safe water.

Water Pollution negatively affects humans. Water pollution is the leading worldwide cause of death. Every year, more than five million people die worldwide from water pollution (Ostopowich, p. 5). A healthy adult should drink 64 oz. of water every day. Almost 2,000 different chemicals are in regular drinking water. A person can consume many pollutants. Diseases like cancer, dysentery, and hepatitis can be caused by pollution. Water-Soluble radioactive compounds cause cancer, birth defects, and genetic damage. Chlorine can poison people if too much is consumed.

Water pollution negatively affects animals. Polluted water can kill animals very quickly. When waste is dumped into water, it kills oxygen, and causes plants and animals to die. Oil spills can kill many birds, otters, seals, eagles, and whales. If one small animal is poisoned, it can spread to other animals that eat it, and effect humans. Since 1900, more than 391,000 whales have died. Algae can kill massive amounts of fish and sea creatures. If saltwater contaminates freshwater, freshwater animals can die. Parasitic worms can enter sewer systems, travel to streams, and kill fish living there. In 1988, 12,000 seals died because of PCB's.

Water pollution negatively affects the environment. Pollution can spread through water very quickly. Oxygen-demanding wastes can cause bacteria to use oxygen to decompose the waste. A body of water with low oxygen levels can smell like rotten eggs. Water that is treated before entering the water supply is allowed to have higher levels of pollution. Groundwater is the water that fills space between rocks and soil underground.

Oil can get absorbed into the ground, causing groundwater to become polluted. The oil can stay in the groundwater for a long time, since it does not move very fast. One gallon of oil can pollute more than one million gallons of water. In the biggest oil spill at sea, 92 million gallons off oil were put into the water.

Water pollution has been a problem for thousands of years. In 1972, most efforts were aimed at industries. In 1978, the U.S. and Canada signed an agreement to reduce toxins in the great lakes. In the biggest oil spill at sea, 92 million gallons off oil were spilled. In 1987, the construction grants program was replaced by the pollution control revolving fund.

Ultraviolet light can kill most pollutants in water. A fish can be analyzed to figure out what pollutants are in the water. Computer models can be used to interpret pollution and track the spread of polluted water.

Water pollution can be prevented by recycling paint and other chemicals at a recycling center instead of pouring it down the drain. It can also be prevented by putting all trash in a garbage can and cleaning up waste from pets.

Many causes of water pollution have been discussed. The importance of water to animals, humans, and nature has been discussed. It has been shown that the various causes of water pollution that harmfully affect people, animals, and the environment. It would only take one percent of military funds to provide clean water for the world, and it would create a much better environment for the earth.