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Water Pollution Part I. Sources - General Point Source: when a harmful substance is released directly into a body of water Usually monitored and regulated.

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Presentation on theme: "Water Pollution Part I. Sources - General Point Source: when a harmful substance is released directly into a body of water Usually monitored and regulated."— Presentation transcript:

1 Water Pollution Part I

2 Sources - General Point Source: when a harmful substance is released directly into a body of water Usually monitored and regulated in developing countries Ex: industrial discharge into a river Non-point source: deliver pollutants through transport or environmental change Indirect and more difficult to monitor and control Ex: fertilized from a farmers feild

3 Sources - Air pollution: mercury, sulfur dioxide, nitric oxides, and ammonia fall out of the air and into bodies of water Cause: Acidification, eutrophication and contamination of fish

4 Sources – Methyl Mercury Inorganic mercury enters water systems and is converted to methyl mercury by bacteria Enters food chain and bioaccumulates Humans exposed by eating contaminated fish Methyl mercury is more toxic than inorganic mercury Organisms take a long time to process out methyl mercury

5 Sources – Other chemicals Variety of chemicals Bioaccumulate and poison fish, marine mammals, birds, and humans Affect the development and reproduction of various marine animals Examples: Metals Solvents Oils Detergents Pesticides Prescription drugs ●Hormones ●Antibiotics ●Personal care products ●Household products

6 Sources - Microbial Pathogenic (disease-causing) microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, protozoa) Ex: cholera, typhoid, polio, meningitis, hepatitis, “Montezuma's revenge” Infects drinking sources when raw sewage is dumped into rivers, lakes, and bays 90% of sewage in developing world is raw Leaking septic tanks and other sources contaminate groundwater and streams

7 Sources - Mining Methods of contamination: Exposes heavy metals and sulfur compounds that can leach out of rock and into water sources Rainwater washes chemicals out of mining waste and into water sources Pools of mining waste leak and contaminate ground water Direct dumping of mining waste into rivers Examples: 2003 – US reclassified mining waste from mountain top removal so it could be dumped in valleys Iron Mountain mine in CA – closed in 1963, still drains sulfuric acid and heavy metals into the Sacramento river

8 Sources - Noise Commercial shipping, military sonar, recreational boating create noise that interferes with marine organisms who use sound to communicate, navigate, and hunt

9 Sources - Nutrients Phosphorus and Nitrogen from fertilizers cause algal blooms Damages rivers, lakes, oceans, estuaries, and deltas

10 Sources – Oil Spills From ship and well leaks and spills Effects: Coats sea birds making them more vulnerable to temperature fluctuations and poisons them when they clean themselves Poisons food sources and leads to bioaccumulation Limits photosynthesis Clean up: Use microorganisms to “eat oil” Use chemical agents to try to control oil for clean up Controlled burning, skimming, booming, vacuuming oil from surface and shorelines

11 Sources – Oxygen-depleting Substances Biodegradable wastes serve as food for microorganisms which take oxygen out of the water Results in: Anoxic water and fish kills Increased activity from anaerobic bacteria which produce ammonia, amines, sulfides, methane

12 Source - Plastic From litter that enters watersheds Problems: Plastic photodegrades into smaller pieces Leach chemical toxins into environment Consumed by marine animals and clogs their digestive tracks Gets caught on animals Spread invasive species Absorb toxins and then leach them into upper water column Makes it more difficult for animals to see and capture real food Affect 250+ species world wide

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14 Sources – Suspended Matter Suspended waste settles out and contaminates mud at the bottom of rivers affecting organisms throughout the food web Can include, silt, plastics, other forms of trash

15 Sources - Thermal Produced by industry Reduces the ability of water to hold oxygen Causes death of animals with low tolerance to heat and low oxygen conditions Can change species composition of the area

16 Case Study - Minamata disease Between 1932 and 1968, 27 tons of mercury- containing chemicals were dumped into Minamata Bay, Japan Mercury accumulate in fish and shellfish caught in the bay Disease symptoms (mercury poisoning): blurred vision, hearing loss, loss of muscular coordination, reproductive disorders

17 Case Studies – Oil Spills Exxon Valdez (1989): Oil tanker ran aground Dumped 11 – 30 million gallons in Prince William Sound, Alaska Destroyed the habitat from plankton on up Deepwater Horizon (2010): Following an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon, well spilled oil into Gulf of Mexico for months Most significant environmental disaster in the US Oil followed currents, contaminated the Gulf Coast Damage to fishing, tourism, and other industries Environmental damage to many habitats


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