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61. Pollutants regulated in the United States under national primary drinking water standards (legally enforceable limits for public water systems to protect public health) include what (5) contaminants? Microorganisms Disinfectants and water disinfection by products Inorganic chemicals Organic chemicals Radionuclides

63. Microorganisms are typically found in human and animal waste. Some inorganic contaminants such as arsenic and radionuclides such as uranium occur naturally in geologic deposits, but many inorganic and most major organic pollutants are emitted from industrial facilities, mining, and agricultural activities such as fertilizer and pesticide application

64. Sediments (soil particles) from erosion and activities such as excavation and construction also pollute rivers, lakes, and coastal waters. Sedimentation from development in Birmingham makes its way into Bayview Lake of Village Creek of the Black Warrior

65. Many dissolved compounds can be toxic and carcinogenic, so keeping them out of water supplies is a central public-health goal 65. Many dissolved compounds can be toxic and carcinogenic, so keeping them out of water supplies is a central public-health goal

66. Other contaminants completely dissolve in water and, if they enter the aquifer at a single location (e.g., from a point source), are transported with flowing groundwater as plumes that gradually mix with native groundwater.

67. Water pollution is relatively easier to control when it comes from a point source —a distinct, limited discharge source such as a factory, which can be required to clean up or reduce its effluent. Nonpoint source pollution consists of diffuse, nonbounded discharges from many contributors, such as runoff from city streets or agricultural fields, so it is more challenging to control. 52Fbroadcastmet%252Fwatershed%252Fu2_assets.htm

Urban runoff is another leading cause of Non-point source pollution. As the number of cities grows so does the amount pavement. Almost none of the water flowing over paved surfaces is absorbed, and therefore it carries all the pollutants on the surface to a water body.

68. List the (5) approaches for controlling nonpoint source pollution. (1)improving urban stormwater management systems (2) regulating land uses (3) limiting broad application of pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizer (4) restoring wetlands to help absorb and filter runoff (5) emphasizing limits on total discharges to water bodies from all sources

69. What (3) purifying functions do wetlands typically perform based on various functions of each site’s vegetation, geology, and hydrologic patterns? (1) Microbes (bacteria, fungi, algae, and protozoa) break down nutrients and some organic contaminants. (2) Vegetation slows inflowing water, which causes sediments and other particles to settle out and sink to the bottom. Plants also take up some nutrients, trace metals, and other compounds. (3) Wetland soils provide reactive surfaces for biogeochemical reactions and habitat for microbes

A wetlands ecosystem – the Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. the Bond Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia. Credit: John and Karen Hollingsworth/USFWS

70. According to Virginia Carter, U.S. Geological Survey, basins with more wetlands tend to have... lower concentrations of chloride, lead, inorganic nitrogen, suspended solids and total and dissolved phosphorus than basins with fewer wetlands.

71. Along with freshwater bodies, many coastal areas and estuaries (areas where rivers meet the sea, mixing salt and fresh water) are severely impacted by water pollution and sedimentation. What all does ocean pollution kill, damage and cause? Ocean pollution kills fish, seabirds, and marine mammals; damages aquatic ecosystems; causes outbreaks of human illness; and causes economic damage through impacts on activities such as tourism and fishing.

72. A 2000 National Research Council report cited nutrient pollution (excess inputs of nitrogen and phosphorus) as one of the most important ocean pollution problems in the United States. What problems does nutrient-rich runoff into ocean waters cause? It stimulates plankton to increase photosynthesis and causes "blooms," or population explosions. / Flash animation depicting this process

73. Since the beginning of the industrial age, human activities, especially fertilizer use and fossil fuel combustion, have roughly doubled the amount of nitrogen circulating globally, increasing the frequency and size of plankton blooms. This process can create hypoxic areas ("dead zones"), where dissolved oxygen levels are too low to support marine life. Seasonal dead zones regularly appear in many parts of the world. One of the largest, in the Gulf of Mexico, covers up to 18,000 square kilometers each summer, roughly the size of New Jersey, where river and groundwater flow deliver excess nutrients from upstream agricultural sources to the coast.

The Mississippi River basin drains approximately 41% of the land area of the conterminous United States, ranging as far west as Idaho, north to Canada, and east to Massachusetts.

Dead zone in the Gulf one of the largest ever Posted: Aug 2, 2010 Source: Associated Press

State Receives Grants To Combat Water Pollution FRANKFORT (AP) - Kentucky has received about $3.3 million in federal grants to help 10 communities and organizations protect water sources from being polluted by runoff. Articles to Read and Discuss Coal companies charged with massive violations of water pollution laws in Kentucky pollution-laws-in-k/ Kentucky to develop water pollution plan to curb 'dead zone‘ develop-water-pollution-plan-curb-dead-zone-