Water Pollution

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Water Pollution
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Key Concepts

• Types, sources, and effects of water pollutants

• Major pollution problems of surface water

• Major pollution problems of groundwater

• Reduction and prevention of water pollution

• Drinking water quality

Refer to Tables 22-1 and 22-2 p. 492 and 493
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Types of Water Pollution

• INFECTIOUS AGENTS
• Examples Bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and
  parasitic worms
• Major Human Sources Human and animal wastes
• Harmful Effects Disease

Water Contamination - Milwaukee
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Table 22-2Page 493
Table 22-2 Common Diseases Transmitted to Humans
Through Contaminated Drinking Water
Type of Organism Bacteria Viruses Par
asitic protozoa Parasitic worms
Disease Typhoid fever Cholera Bacterial
dysentery Enteritis Infectious
hepatitis Amoebic dysentery Giardiasis Schis
tosomiasis
Effects Diarrhea, severe vomiting, enlarged
spleen, inflamed intestine often fatal if
untreated Diarrhea, severe vomiting,
dehydration often fatal if untreated Diarrhea
rarely fatal except in infants without proper
treatment Severe stomach pain, nausea, vomiting
rarely fatal Fever, severe headache, loss of
appetite, abdominal pain, jaundice, enlarged
liver rarely fatal but may cause permanent liver
damage Severe diarrhea, headache, abdominal
pain, chills, fever if not treated can cause
liver abscess, bowel perforation, and
death Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, flatulence,
belching, fatigue Abdominal pain, skin rash,
anemia, chronic fatigue, and chronic general ill
health
Parasites Malaria
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Table 22-2Page 493
Table 22-2 Common Diseases Transmitted to Humans
Through Contaminated Drinking Water
Type of Organism Bacteria Viruses Par
asitic protozoa Parasitic worms
Disease Typhoid fever Cholera Bacterial
dysentery Enteritis Infectious
hepatitis Amoebic dysentery Giardiasis Schis
tosomiasis
Effects Diarrhea, severe vomiting, enlarged
spleen, inflamed intestine often fatal if
untreated Diarrhea, severe vomiting,
dehydration often fatal if untreated Diarrhea
rarely fatal except in infants without proper
treatment Severe stomach pain, nausea, vomiting
rarely fatal Fever, severe headache, loss of
appetite, abdominal pain, jaundice, enlarged
liver rarely fatal but may cause permanent liver
damage Severe diarrhea, headache, abdominal
pain, chills, fever if not treated can cause
liver abscess, bowel perforation, and
death Diarrhea, abdominal cramps, flatulence,
belching, fatigue Abdominal pain, skin rash,
anemia, chronic fatigue, and chronic general ill
health
Water Contamination - Milwaukee
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OXYGEN-DEMANDING WASTES Examples Organic waste
such as animal manure and plant debris that can
be decomposed by aerobic (oxygen-requiring)
bacteria Major Human Sources Sewage, animal
feedlots, paper mills, and food processing
facilities Harmful Effects Large populations of
bacteria decomposing these wastes can degrade
water quality by depleting water of dissolved
oxygen. This causes fish and other forms of
oxygen-consuming aquatic life to die.
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• INORGANIC CHEMICALS
• Examples Water-soluble 1) acids, (2) compounds
  of toxic metals such as lead (Pb), arsenic (As),
  and selenium Se), and (3) salts such as sodium
  chloride (NaCl) in ocean water and fluorides
  (F) found in some soils
• Major Human Sources Surface runoff, industrial
  effluents, and household cleansers
• Harmful Effects Can (1) make fresh water
  unusable for drinking or irrigation, (2) cause
  skin cancers and crippling spinal and neck damage
  (F), (3) damage the nervous system, liver, and
  kidneys (Pb and As), (4) harm fish and other
  aquatic life, (5) lower crop yields, and (6)
  accelerate corrosion of metals exposed to such
  water.
• Minamata Bay

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Types of Water Pollution

• ORGANIC CHEMICALS
• Examples Oil, gasoline, plastics, pesticides,
  cleaning solvents, detergents
• Major Human Sources Industrial effluents,
  household cleansers, surface runoff from farms
  and yards
• Harmful Effects Can (1) threaten human health by
  causing nervous system damage (some pesticides),
  reproductive disorders (some solvents), and some
  cancers (gasoline, oil, and some solvents) and
  (2) harm fish and wildlife.

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• RADIOACTIVE MATERIALS
• Examples Radioactive isotopes of iodine, radon,
  uranium, cesium, and thorium
• Major Human Sources Nuclear and coal-burning
  power plants, mining and processing of uranium
  and other ores, nuclear weapons production,
  natural sources
• Harmful Effects Genetic mutations, miscarriages,
  birth defects, and certain cancers

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PLANT NUTRIENTS Examples Water-soluble
compounds containing nitrate (NO3 ), phosphate
(PO43), and ammonium (NH4) ions Major Human
Sources Sewage, manure, and runoff of
agricultural and urban fertilizers Harmful
Effects Can cause excessive growth of algae and
other aquatic plants, which die, decay, deplete
water of dissolved oxygen, and kill fish.
Drinking water with excessive levels of nitrates
lowers the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood
and can kill unborn children and infants
(bluebaby syndrome).
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• HEAT (THERMAL POLLUTION)
• Examples Excessive heat
• Major Human Sources Water cooling of electric
  power plants and some types of industrial plants.
  Almost half of all water withdrawn in the United
  States each year is for cooling electric power
  plants.
• Harmful Effects Lowers dissolved oxygen levels
  and makes aquatic organisms more vulnerable to
  disease, parasites, and toxic chemicals. When a
  power plant first opens or shuts down for repair,
  fish and other organisms adapted to a particular
  temperature range can be killed by the abrupt
  change in water temperatureknown as thermal
  shock.

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Types of Pollution

• SEDIMENT
• Examples Soil, silt
• Major Human Sources Land erosion
• Harmful Effects Can (1) cloud water and reduce
  photosynthesis, (2) disrupt aquatic food webs,
  (3) carry pesticides, bacteria, and other harmful
  substances, (4) settle out and destroy feeding
  and spawning grounds of fish, and (5) clog and
  fill lakes, artificial reservoirs, stream
  channels, and harbors.

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Water Pollution and Solubility
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Hypoxia and Anoxia
Area Most Effected Gulf of Mexico Long Island
Sound WHY?
Eutrophication Nutrient pollution
Chesapeake Bay Largest US estuary Relatively
shallow Slow flushing action to Atlantic Major
problems with dissolved O2
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Figure 22-6Page 498
Biomagnification
Silent Spring
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Pollution Sources and Effects
Nonpoint Sources Point Sources
Rhine River Minamata Bay
Oxygen Sag Curve Factors that influence dissolved
oxygen in the water Biological Oxygen
demand Recovery
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Case Study The Great Lakes
An Industrial Legacy
Great Lakes
Fig. 22-8 p. 500
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Groundwater Pollution
Gasland
Love Canal
Causes Low flow rates Spills Low
oxygen Landfill leachate Few bacteria pesticides
/fertilizers Cold temperatures waste lagoons
Times Beach
Aquifer cleanup
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Ocean Pollution
Message from the waves
Fig. 22-11 p. 504
Troubled Waters
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Oil Spills

• Sources offshore wells, tankers, pipelines and
  storage tanks

• Effects death of organisms, loss of animal
  insulation and buoyancy, smothering

• Significant economic impacts

• Mechanical cleanup methods skimmers and blotters

• Chemical cleanup methods coagulants and
  dispersing agents

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• Name 3 types of water pollution. Identify the
  sources, and effects of each.
• What is bioaccumulation?
• What is biomagnification?
• Give an example of a pollutant that exhibits
  biomagnification.

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Solutions Preventing and Reducing Surface Water
Pollution
Nonpoint Sources

• Reduce runoff

• Buffer zone vegetation

• Reduce soil erosion

Point Sources

• Clean Water Act (1972)

• Water Quality Act (1965) Established water
  purity standards with states retaining initial
  responsibility for water purity.

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• Water Laws
• Clean Water Act (1972) Established the basic
  structure for regulating discharges of pollutants
  into the waters of the United States. It gave the
  EPA the authority to implement pollution control
  programs such as setting waste-water standards
  for industry.
• Federal Water Pollution Control Act (1948)
  Created comprehensive programs for eliminating or
  reducing the pollution of interstate water and
  improving the sanitary condition of surface and
  underground water supplies.
• Safe Drinking Water Act (1974) Established
  standards for safe drinking water in the United
  States.
• Ocean Dumping Ban Act (1988) Made it unlawful
  for any person to dump or transport for the
  purpose of dumping sewage, sludge, or industrial
  wastes into the ocean.
• Oil Spill Prevention and Liability Act (1990)
  Strengthened the EPA's ability to prevent and
  respond to catastrophic oil spills.
• Source Water Assessment ProgramSWAP (1996)
  Required states to identify sources of public
  drinking water supplies and assess susceptibility
  to contamination.
• Source Water Protection ProgramSWPP (1996)
  Encouraged states to adopt a community-based
  approach to preventing water pollution.
• Surface Water Treatment RuleSWTR (1996)
  Addressed control of microbial pathogens,
  including cryptosporidium.

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Water Treatment Municipal
Waste Water Treatment
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Wastewater treatment High-Tech v. Low-Tech
Hyperion Wastewater Treatment Plant Los Angeles
Solar Aquatic Waste Treatment
Treating mining wastewater
Z-weed Desalinization
Wetlands treating sewage
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Technological Approach Septic Systems

• Require suitable soils and maintenance

Technological Approach Sewage Treatment

• Physical and biological treatment

Fig. 22-15 p. 510

• Advanced Tertiary Treatment
• Uses physical and chemical processes
• Removes nitrate and phosphate
• Expensive
• Not widely used

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Municipal Water Treatment Process"
Coagulation Alum and other chemicals are added
to water to form tiny sticky particles, called
floc, that attract dirt particles. Flocculation
The water is stirred slowly with paddles to mix
the alum with the dirty water. Sedimentation
The water is no longer stirred and is allowed to
settle. The heavy particles (floc) settle to the
bottom and clear water moves off the top to the
filtration chamber. Filtration Water passes
through filters that help remove even smaller
particles. Our filters consist of gravel, sand,
garnet and charcoal. Each layer filters out a
smaller and smaller particle. The charcoal not
only acts as a filter but neutralizes taste and
odor. Disinfection After filtration, the water
moves into a disinfection chamber where it is
mixed with chlorine. A small amount of chlorine
is added to kill any bacteria or microorganisms
that may be in the water. It is at this step that
we also add a small amount of fluoride for dental
health. Storage Water is placed in a closed
tank or reservoir where it flows through pipes to
homes and businesses in the community
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Drinking Water Quality

• Purification of urban drinking water

• Protection from terrorism

• Purification of rural drinking water

• Safe Drinking Water Act

• Maximum contaminant levels (MCLs)

• Bottled water

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Water Video Clips

• Composting Toilets Z-weed
• Drinking Water from a Contaminated Aquifer
• Desalinization
• Drugs in water

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Persistent Organic pollutants (POPs)
The Dirty Dozen or Terrible Twelve The Dirty Dozen or Terrible Twelve
aldrin1 hexachlorobenzene1,2,3
chlordane1 mirex1
DDT1 toxaphene1
dieldrin1 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)2,3
endrin1 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (dioxins)3
heptachlor1 polychlorinated dibenzo-p-furans (furans)3
Unknown Pollution Threats Pharmaceuticals in the
water supply
PCBs
1Pesticide 2Industrial Chemical 3Byproduct
PAHs