Overview
Water pollution can be described as the contamination of water bodies. Such contamination makes water unsafe for human use and mostly occurs in water sources like lake, rivers, oceans, aquifers, and groundwater. The contamination happens when pollutants are discharged into water bodies. The issue is threatening human survival because it is estimated that over 2.5 billion people do not have access to clean water for basic hygiene and domestic use. A UNICEF report estimated that over 3000 children die every day due to consumption of contaminated drinking water.
The World Health Organization reports that water pollution is a global problem because it is causing deaths of over 250 million people worldwide through diseases related to water pollution. Mostly the pollution of water bodies is caused by sewage like throwing garbage on water bodies or open ground. Consequently, this is making the available water unsafe for use. For instance, it is reported that 40 percent of rivers and 46 percent of lakes in America are unsafe and should not be used for human consumption (Vaughan, & Russell, 2015). These rivers and lakes have been declared unhealthy for swimming, fishing, or aquatic life.
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In some parts of the world, the pollution is more dangerous and is risking human lives. For instance, the Ganges River in India is the most polluted river in the world. Mostly the contamination in this river occurs through sewage, trash, food, and animal remains. During the 2011 Tsunami in Japan, the country was experiencing the nuclear crisis, and more than 11 million liters of radioactive water was discharged into the Pacific. This was a high level of water pollution and threatens both any life that depends on this water body. Similarly, Bangladesh is also experiencing pollution to its water bodies. It is reported that most of its water bodies are contaminated with arsenic. This results in high levels of toxic because the pollutants have poison and carcinogen. More than 85 percent of the countries groundwater is contaminated with the poison (Davies, & Mazurek, 2014).
If water pollution is not addressed adequately, more than 3.5 billion people in the world will lack a supply of fresh water by the year 2025 (Pandey, & Ramontja, 2016). The lack of fresh water for human consumption is mostly attributed to water pollution. As the world population grows bigger, the water sources are at risk of being polluted and health is impacted. Consequently, makes it hard for the population to get safe and healthy water for their domestic use.
How Water Pollution Is Happening In the World
According to the World Wide Fund for Nature, water pollution is the most serious ecological threat that the world is suffering from. Scientific research shows that water pollution occurs when toxic substances are released into the water bodies. Such substances may dissolve in the water, be suspended in the water or it may be deposited on the shores of the water bodies. The toxic substances might also find their way into underground water reservoirs, and they cause contamination (Islam et al., 2015). Consequently, these substances contaminate and degrade the quality of water.
Water pollution occurs in a number of ways, but the most common source of water pollution is sewage and industrial waste discharge. Pollution may also be caused by human agricultural practices such as wastewater, fertilizers, and use of the chemical. When the remains of these substances get to water bodies, they end up contaminating them. Other forms of pollution occur due to chemicals disposal, oil spillage ad suspended matter.
Raw domestic sewage is one of the popular sources of water pollution in the cities. This form of pollution releases organic pollutants into the water. The organic wastes might also come from urban run-off, industrial effluent, and farm wastes. Organic waste may occur as proteins, carbohydrates, fats and nucleic acid. Raw sewage contains more than 70 percent of organic waste. This waste is come with disease-causing organisms (Lu et al., 2015).
Industrial waste causes large-scale water pollution. Most the industrial waste contains a toxic substance that is harmful to life. Sulphur is a common component that is present in industrial waste and is harmful to marine life. There is also asbestos, lead, and mercury which are metallic and non-biodegradable. Most of this pollutants cause diseases like cancer.
Effects of Water Pollution
Water pollution is known to interfere with ecological processes. For instance, when there is waste deposited on the surface of the water body causes turbidity of water resulting in reduces natural processes like photosynthesis and circulation of oxygen. This means the marine and aquatic lives will be at risk. The deposit of organic and metallic waste on the bottom of the water bodies alters the characteristics of the substratum. The presence of oil on the water bodies risks aquatic lives in the sense that it suffocates them and with sticks on bird’s feathers making it hard for them to fly.
When surface and underground water are polluted, the human population risk of getting water pollution-related diseases. In America millions of people are suffering and dying because of these diseases. There are chemical and pathogens present in polluted water, and this is causing serious health concerns. Some of the infectious that occur due to water pollution include Typhoid, Giardiasis, amoebiasis, Ascariasis, Hookworm, diarrhea, vomiting, diarrhea and hepatitis is. Liver damage and cancer are also caused by consuming contaminated water (Sykes, & Skinner, 2015). Chemicals such as chlorinated solvents and pesticides are causing kidney failure and interfere with reproductive health.
The Issue of Water Pollution in the US
Currently, only 20 percent of rivers in America have water that is safe for human consumption. Most the contamination in the American water bodies is being caused by farm wastes, raw sewage, and industrial waste discharge. The water in the rivers is reported to have increased bacteria, and this makes it unsafe for human consumption. The waters have mercury, and they cannot support aquatic life. The northeast and deep souths are parts of America that is greatly affected by the issue of pollution.
In efforts to reduce water pollution, the US government has come up with initiatives to reduce water pollution. Recently the US government came up with the national enforcement initiative which will ensure there is a reduction of disposal of hazardous waste into the environment (Davies, & Mazurek, 2014). This will ensure there is control of substances that are being released into the environment. There is also the national pollution prevention policy to help reduce the pollution. The policy requires that all pollution that cannot be prevented or recycled be treated safely.
References
Davies, J. C., & Mazurek, J. (2014). Pollution Control in United States: Evaluating the System . Routledge.
Islam, M. S., Ahmed, M. K., Raknuzzaman, M., Habibullah-Al-Mamun, M., & Islam, M. K. (2015). Heavy metal pollution in surface water and sediment: a preliminary assessment of an urban river in a developing country. Ecological Indicators, 48, 282-291.
Lu, Y., Song, S., Wang, R., Liu, Z., Meng, J., Sweetman, A. J., ... & Wang, T. (2015). Impacts of soil and water pollution on food safety and health risks in China. Environment international , 77 , 5-15.
Pandey, S., & Ramontja, J. (2016). Turning to nanotechnology for water pollution control: applications of nanocomposites. Focus on Sciences, 2(2).
Sykes, G., & Skinner, F. A. (Eds.). (2015). Microbial aspects of pollution . Elsevier.
Vaughan, W. J., & Russell, C. S. (2015). Freshwater recreational fishing: The national benefits of water pollution control . Routledge.
