Water Quality

What are water quality standards? Standards of quality: water quality is a measurement of the substances in water beside water molecules. Acidity of water 0-14 on pH scale. 7 is neutral. Hardness of water, refers to the amount of calcium and magnesium in the water. Toxins or pollutants; such as E. Coli can cause harm to people if they drink the water.

How do we treat drinking water? Water from both public and private supplies often need some type of treatment to ensure it is safe. First filtration and coagulation, Second chlorination, Third aeration and additional treatment, Fourth testing samples

What are water pollutants? Water pollution is the addition of any substance that has a negative effect on water or the living things the depend on the water. Pollutants are the substances that pollute the water. Examples: Giardia, DDT, PCB, Mercury, Carbon 14, Oil, Gasoline There are two types of pollutants; point source-can identify the location the pollution is coming from and non-point source-can’t identify the place the pollution is coming from.

What are the effects of pollutants? ■ Humans eat fish on a regular basis. Some of these fish have toxic chemicals stored in their bodies. Over time the chemicals are stored in our body fat. This can lead to birth defects and or cancer to name a few.

What are the main sources of pollution? Three main sources of water pollution are human waste, industrial waste, and chemical runoff.