Water contamination is the degradation of water bodies by human activities all the time. It occurs when pollutants are discharged directly into water bodies without adequate treatment to get rid of the harmful compounds. Pollutants get into water mainly from human causes or factors. Water pollution is one of the biggest issues facing India right now. As might be obvious, untreated sewage is the biggest source of such form of pollution in India. There are other sources of pollution such as runoff from the agricultural sector as well as unregulated units that are related to small-scale industry. The situation is so severe that there is probably no water body in India that is not polluted to some extent or the other. In fact, it is said that about 80% of the water bodies in India are highly polluted. The Ganges and the Yamuna are the most polluted rivers in India.
Introduction
Water contamination is the harmful effects of water, whether on the people or on the climate. This happens when unsafe synthetic substances or microorganisms or now and again essentially garbage or lots of residues are released into a stream, waterway, lake, wetland, groundwater spring, sea, therefore, any waterway. Anthropogenic warming paradox brought about by the release of high temp water from power plants and industrial facilities into an uncontaminated water source is directly seen as a water contamination as it reduces the oxygen levels and accommodates the species that can form there, which often welcomes the onslaught of non-local species, thereby modifying the natural pecking order and reducing species on a regular basis. The Sacred Ganges River takes the prize for the most polluted river in the world, carrying sewage, garbage, animal carcasses and wasted food. The biggest cause of water pollution in India is urbanization at an uncontrolled rate. Treatment and disposal of wastewater has also been a major issue in this regard. Areas near rivers have seen a lot of towns and cities and this has also contributed to the increasing intensity of the problems. Uncontrolled urbanization in these areas has also led to the generation of sewage water. Water in urban areas is used for both industrial and domestic purposes from water bodies such as rivers, lakes, streams, wells and ponds. Worst of all, 80% of the water we use for our domestic purposes is passed off as wastewater. In most cases, this water is not treated properly and as such it leads to tremendous pollution of surface level freshwater.
Sources Of Water Pollution
Two main sources of water pollution can be seen:
1. Point Source: Point sourcerefers to pollutants belonging to a single source. An example of this would be emissions from factories into the water. Point source pollution refers to contaminants that enter a waterway through a discrete conveyance such as a pipe or ditch. Examples for point source are discharges from a sewage treatment plant, a factory, and a city storm drain.
2. Non-Point Source: Non-Point refers to pollutants emitted from multiple sources. Contaminated runoff after rain that travels across multiple areas can also be considered a nonpoint source of water pollution. Nonpoint source pollution refers to diffuse contaminants that do not originate from a single discrete source. NPS pollution is often the cumulative effect of small amounts of contaminants collected from a large area. Runoff of nitrogen compounds from agricultural land that has been fertilized is a typical example.
Read Also:
- Introduction To Air Quality And Pollution Control
- Introduction And History Of Anthropogenic Pollution
- Air Pollution And Your Health
- What Is Air Pollution
- Air Pollution In India
- Prevention Of Plastic Pollution
- Health Effects Of Plastic Pollution
- Environmental Effects Of Plastic Pollution
