The water they say is life, and indeed they were right. With about 70% of the earth’s cover being water, it undeniably becomes one of our greatest resources.
As young students, we learned about the various ways to conserve water; coming to think of it, water is used in almost every important human chores and processes. It is an important element in both domestic as well as industrial purposes. However, a closer inspection of our water resources today, give us a rude shock.
Infested with waste ranging from floating plastic bags to chemical waste, oour water bodies have turned into a pool of poison. In simple words, the contamination of water bodies means water pollution.
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies (like oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, aquifers, and groundwater) usually caused due to human activities. Water pollution is any change in the physical, chemical or biological properties of water that will have a detrimental consequence of any loving organism.
Thereby the abuse of lakes, ponds, oceans, rivers, reservoirs, etc is water pollution.
Pollution of water occurs when substances that will modify the water in a negative fashion are discharged in it. This discharge of pollutants can be direct as well as indirect.
Effects of water pollution
▪Disease
▪Destruction of ecosystem
▪ Eutrophication
▪Effects the food chain
Causes of water pollution
▪Industrial waste
▪Sewage and wastewater
▪Mining activities
▪Marine dumping
▪Accidental oil leakage
▪The burning of fossil fuels
▪Chemical fertilizers and pesticides
▪Leakage from sewer lines
▪Global warming
▪Radioactive waste
▪Urban development
▪Leakage from the landfills
▪Animal waste
▪Underground storage leakage
