1. Water Pollution JUST WHY IS WATER SO IMPORTANT???

2. Water should be one of our most precious resources… but why? n Our bodies are made up of 66% water n We must have water to survive n We can live weeks without food but only a FEW DAYS WITHOUT WATER

3. The Earth’s Water n 95% of the earth’s water is SALT WATER (oceans) n 5% of the earth’s water is FRESH WATER (rivers, lakes, streams) n Only 1% of the FRESH WATER is available for our use

4. How much water do you think one person uses each day? One person uses about 80- 100 gallons of water every day! That’s a lot of H 2 O!

5. How Do We Use Water? n drinking water n watering flowers/grass n dishwashers n washing cars n brushing teeth n dishwashers n bathing/showering n washing hands

6. Does this mean that I pollute? Water POLLUTION is putting things in the water that do not belong. Water pollution begins in our homes. When we wash our hands, brush our teeth, or do laundry, we are polluting the water. Once all that toothpaste and soap you just used to clean your teeth, hands, body and clothes spirals down the drain, it becomes WASTEWATER.

7. So, where does the wastewater go when it leaves our homes? The wastewater travels through pipes called a sewer system. The sewer system brings the wastewater from your home to the Sanitation District No. 1’s Dry Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant. The Treatment Plant’s job is to SANITIZE, or clean the wastewater that just left your home. The wastewater goes through 3 stages of treatment: chemical, biological, and physical.

8. Step 1: Chemical Treatment n Chlorine is the only chemical that SD1 uses. n It is added to the wastewater.

9. Step Two: Physical n Gravity pulls the solid waste to the bottom of the treatment tanks. n These solids are called SLUDGE.

10. Step Three: Biological n In this stage, SD1 imitates nature. n Tiny MICROORGANISMS that live off the oxygen in the water eat about 92% of the waste that is left after the first two steps of treatment. n When the microorganisms are full, they sink to the bottom becoming sludge. n The sludge is scraped from the bottom of the tank and is separated from the water.

11. NOW READY FOR THE OHIO... The once wastewater has been through three steps of treatment and is now safe to be returned to the Ohio River.

12. POLLUTION WASTEWATER SANITIZE PHYSICAL SLUDGE MICROORGANISMS SOAP SEWER SYSTEM TREATMENT CHLORINE OXYGEN

13. As water travels through the water cycle, what pollutants travel along ? n From people n From streets n From neighborhoods/communities n From companies/factories n Any others

14. Pollution questions to think about... n What have you seen in our area rivers, lakes, ponds and streams that do not belong there? n How did they get there? n Could we ever run out of fresh water? n What can we do to help with the issue of water pollution?