1. Water Pollution

2. WATER POLLUTION
Water pollution- Any physical, biological, or chemical change in water quality that adversely affects living organisms
Point Sources
Factories, Power plants oil tankers
Non-Point Sources (runoff)
Agricultural fields, Feedlots

3. Types of Pollution Disease-causing Agents – pathogens
Oxygen Demanding Agents – organic waste: manure
Water-soluble Inorganic Chemicals – acids, toxic metals
Inorganic Plant Nutrients – nitrogen and phosphorus
Organic Chemicals – oil, pesticides, detergents
Sediment or Suspended Material – erosion, soil
Water-soluble Radioactive Isotopes – radon uranium
Heat – electric and nuclear power plants

4. TYPES AND EFFECTS OF WATER POLLUTION
Infectious Agents- waterborne diseases
Main source-untreated or improperly treated human and animal wastes
Effects-diseases
typhoid fever, cholera, dysentery
Hepatitis A
E. Coli

5. Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD)
Oxygen is removed from water when organic matter is consumed by bacteria.
Low oxygen = fish kill
Sources of organic matter
Natural inputs-- bogs, swamps, leaf fall, and vegetation aligning waterways.
Human inputs-- pulp and paper mills, meat-packing plants, food processing industries, and wastewater treatment plants.
Nonpoint inputs-- runoff from urban areas, agricultural areas, and feedlots.

6. Fish Die

7. BOD Effects on Water Quality
All streams have some capability to degrade organic waste. Problems occur when stream is overloaded with biochemical oxygen-demanding waste.

8. Water Soluble: Inorganic Pollutants
Metals
Mercury, lead, cadmium, and nickel
Highly toxic
Readily absorbed into plant or animal tissue (tend to bioaccumulate in food chains)
Main source: surface runoff, acid mine drainage, burning of fossil fuels, by-product of industry

9. Water Soluble: Inorganic Pollutants
Nonmetallic Salts
Reaching toxic levels through irrigation and concentrated by evaporation
Leaching of road salts
Acids and Bases
Often released as by-products of industrial processes.

10. Inorganic Plant Nutrients
Phosphorus and nitrogen are the major concerns
Sources:
Human, animal (e.g., Hog Farms), and industrial waste
Storm water
Soil erosion
Excessive use of fertilizers for crops, lawns, and home gardens

11. Inorganic Plant Nutrients
High nutrient concentrations can cause Eutrophication (“well-fed” in Greek) of water bodies
Eutrophication-rapid increase in plant life.
Ex. Algae bloom
Blocks sunlight so plants below die.
Decomposition of dead plants consumes oxygen.
Low oxygen conditions may kill fish etc.
Aesthetics (color, clarity, smell)

12. Organic Chemicals
Main source: household cleansers, surface runoff from farms and yards, industry
Improper disposal of industrial and household wastes.
Runoff of pesticides from high-use areas.
Fields, roadsides, golf courses
Runoff from oil from roads

13. Pesticide Runoff

14. Sediment Examples-soil, silt Major human sources-land erosion
Harmful effects
Reduce photosynthesis
Disrupt aquatic food webs
Destroy spawning grounds of benthic species
Clog harbors and lakes

15. Radioactive Materials
Radioactive isotopes of iodine, radon, uranium
Main source: nuclear and coal burning power plants, mining, nuclear weapon production
Effects: genetic mutations, birth defects, cancer

16. Objectives and Warmup:
Explain the human causes of groundwater pollution and the negative side effects.
Warmup:
Calculate how much savings a water heater blanket might provide over a year given the following data. In 1997, an average household used 2,835 kWh per year in water heater electricity; assume that you have the same usage. The water heater blanket used increases the efficiency of the heater by 15%. You pay $0.08/kWh of electricity.
2,835 kWh * .15 = kWh saved kWh * $0.08/kWh = $34.02 saved. Interesting note: Water heater blankets cost about $15-20.

17. Thermal Pollution
Occurs when water is withdrawn and then heated water is returned to its original source
Lowers dissolved oxygen levels
An increase in temperature, even a few degrees, may significantly alter some aquatic ecosystems
Human sources-water cooling of electric power plants

18. Surface Water Pollution
Rivers
Easy targets for dumping of sewage and industrial wastes
Lakes, reservoirs and ponds more vulnerable to contamination than streams and rivers because of less mixing and aeration.

19. Case Study: Great Lakes
Basin contains >95% of fresh surface water in U.S. and 20% of world
Severe cultural eutrophication in 1960s (e.g., Lake Erie)
$20 billion pollution–control program improved water quality since 1972
Fig. 12–22
© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP Water Resources and Water Pollution by Paul Rich

20. Groundwater Pollution
About half the U.S. population, and 95% of rural residents, depend on underground aquifers for drinking water.
Sources include: leaky septic tanks, fertilizers, pesticides, landfills, hazardous waste dumps, underground storage tanks
Groundwater is renewed slowly, such that pollution lingers for long periods of time
Extremely difficult to cleanup contaminated groundwater; prevention of contamination more effective

21. Groundwater Pollution

22. Prevention of Groundwater Contamination
Reduce sources of water pollution that feed into the aquifer
Monitor aquifers near landfills & underground storage tanks
Require leak detection devices for underground tanks
Banning disposal of hazardous wastes in deep wells and landfills
Storing hazardous wastes above ground

23. Ocean Pollution
Half of world's population lives within 100 km (60 miles) of oceans and 14 of 15 largest cities are coastal
Approximately 80% of debris originates onshore and 20% from offshore sources.
About 35% of U.S. municipal sewage discharged virtually untreated in ocean waters
Estimated somewhere 3 and 6 million metric tons of oil are discharged into the world’s oceans.
Transport creates opportunities for major spills.

24. Marine Impacts
Degrades the quality and health of our oceans and marine habitats
Poses risks to human health and safety
Harms marine life

25. Main Types of Ocean Pollution
Petroleum (oil)
Sewage sludge
DDT and PCBs
PCBs: used as liquid coolants, electrical equipment, insulation, etc.
Mercury (industry)
Marine Debris
Point source (municipal and industrial facilities, oil tanker spills)
Non-point source (material washed down storm drain: fertilizers, pesticides, oil, trash)
bss.sfsu.edu/ehines/geog600/ Freshwater%20and%20ocean%20Pollution.ppt

26. Ocean Pollution: Petroleum
Oil spills can be caused by:
Tanker accidents
Intentional dumping
Drilling/ pumping operations
Major oil spills into the ocean are a fact of our modern oil-powered economy…
Can be the result of : loading/unloading accidents, collisions, or tankers running aground, like the 1989 Exxon Valdez
Others are intentionally created, like the oil spilled in the Persian gulf war in 1991
Or the blowout of an undersea oil well during drilling or pumping…
Ixtoc #1 oil well, gulf of Mexico…1979 Bay of Campeche blowout and oil slick, affected up the Texas coast. The well blew out, caught fire, and flowed for 10 months, spilling 140 million gallons of oil into the gulf…the world’s largest oil spill from an oil well.

27. Effects of Oil Spills Floating oil Heavy oil sinks
Oil slicks on beaches
© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP Water Resources and Water Pollution by Paul Rich

28. Oil Pollution in the Ocean

29. Marine Debris
Transported by currents on the surface or in the water column…
Other debris sinks and remains on the sea floor.

30. How Marine Debris Affects Marine Life
Entanglement
Ingestion
Smothering

31. Pollution in Coastal Waters
Highly affected by pollution:
Heavily used
Close to sources of pollution
Shallow-water bodies
Not as well circulated as the open ocean
bss.sfsu.edu/ehines/geog600/ Freshwater%20and%20ocean%20Pollution.ppt

32. Case Study: Chesapeake Bay
Largest estuary in U.S.
Severely degraded by water pollution from 6 states
Deposition of air pollutants
Fig. 12–24
© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP Water Resources and Water Pollution by Paul Rich

33. WATER POLLUTION CONTROL
Source Reduction
avoid producing it or releasing it
Studies show as much as 75-90% less road salt can be used without significantly affecting winter road safety.
Monitor aquifers near landfills and underground storage tanks;
Require leak detection systems and liability insurance for existing and new underground tanks that store hazardous liquids;
Ban or more strictly regulate disposal of hazardous wastes in deep injection wells and landfills;
Store hazardous liquids aboveground with more safeguards.

34. Water Pollution Control Cont.
Soil conservation methods
Applying only needed amounts of fertilizers, water, pesticides
Preserving wetlands (natural filters)
Reduce materials carried away by storm runoff

35. Drinking Water Quality
Much of the world's drinking water is contaminated and poses serious health threats
Most drinking water is purified by storage in reservoir (suspended matter settles), and treated by sand filters, activated charcoal, and addition of chlorine
U.S. Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 requires EPA to establish national drinking water standards
Bottled water and home filters usage has increased
© Brooks/Cole Publishing Company / ITP Water Resources and Water Pollution by Paul Rich

36. Water Quality Standards
The EPA sets Maximum Contaminant Levels (MCLs) for drinking water
There are standards for numerous contaminants, two of which cause an immediate health threat if exceeded
Coliform bacteria - because they may indicate presence of disease causing organisms
Nitrate - can cause ‘blue baby syndrome”—nitrate reacts with blood and blood can’t carry as much oxygen

37. Municipal Water Purification Plant

38. Wastewater Treatment Objectives
Purpose is to produce water suitable to return to aquatic environment.
Removing physical, chemical, and biological
In some cases, wastewater can be clean enough for reuse for particular purposes.
Wastewater treatment systems use the same processes of purification that would occur in a natural aquatic system
faster and controlled
isis.csuhayward.edu/alss/Geography/ mlee/geog4350/4350c4f01.ppt

39. Sewage or Wastewater Treatment
Sewage or wastewater is composed of sewage or wastewater from:
Domestic used water and toilet wastes
Rainwater
Industrial effluent (Toxic industrial water is pretreated)
Livestock wastes

40. Wastewater Treatment
Types of treatment systems include: Septic Tanks or Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs).
Septic Tanks
single household
WWTPs
Municipal or industrial waste.

41. Septic Tanks Approx. 22 million systems in operation ( 30% of US)
Suitability determined by soil type, depth to water table, depth to bedrock and topography
Commonly fail due to poor soil drainage
Potential contaminants: bacteria, heavy metals, nutrients, synthetic organic chemicals

42. So What Happens After We Flush?

43. Municipal Sewage Treatment
Primary Treatment
Solids separated using grates, screens, and settling tanks.
Secondary Treatment - Aeration
Effluent (waste stream) from primary treatment goes through aeration tank
Bacteria degrade organic materials
Kills pathogens
Sludge from primary and secondary treatment is incinerated, composted or used in soil

46. Municipal Sewage Treatment
Tertiary Treatment - Removal of plant nutrients (nitrates and phosphates) from secondary effluent.
Filtration
Chlorination (or ozone)
Treated water is discharged to waterways
Used for irrigation

47. Water Pollution Legislation
Clean Water Act 1977
Regulates discharge of pollutants into water
Safe Drinking Water Act, 1974, amended 1996
Ocean Dumping Ban Act 1988
Prohibited dumping of sewage and industrial waste
The Water Quality Act (State of California) :Under the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act (Porter-Cologne), the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) has the ultimate authority over State water rights and water quality policy. Porter-Cologne also establishes nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards (Regional Boards) to oversee water quality on a day-to-day basis at the local/regional level. Regional Boards engage in a number of water quality functions in their respective regions. One of the most important is preparing and periodically updating Basin Plans,(water quality control plans). Each Basin Plan establishes: 1) beneficial uses of water designated for each water body to be protected; 2) water quality standards, known as water quality objectives, for both surface water and groundwater; and 3) actions necessary to maintain these standards in order to control non-point and point sources of pollution to the State's waters.
The Federal Act established the basic structure for regulating discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States. It gave EPA the authority to implement pollution control programs such as setting wastewater standards for industry. The Clean Water Act also continued requirements to set water quality standards for all contaminants in surface waters. The Act made it unlawful for any person to discharge any pollutant from a point source into navigable waters, unless a permit was obtained under its provisions. It also funded the construction of sewage treatment plants under the construction grants program and recognized the need for planning to address the critical problems posed by nonpoint source pollution.
Safe drinking water act aims to ensure that drinking water is safe from the source to the tap: sets national standards for drinking water, sets enforceable maximum contaminant levels.
This convention was established to control pollution of the sea by dumping of wastes which could create hazards to human health or to harm living resources and ocean life, to damage amenities, and to interfere with other legitimate uses of the sea. It also encourages regional agreements supplementary to the Convention.It contains three Annexes: dumping of matter listed in Annex I is prohibited; dumping of matter listed in Annex II is allowable only by special permit; dumping of matter listed in annex III is allowable only by general permit. It calls on Parties "to promote measures to prevent pollution by hydrocarbons, other matter transported other than for dumping, wastes generated during operation of ships etc., radioactive pollutants and matter originating from exploration of the sea bed."The Convention was adopted on 29 December 1972 in London, Mexico City, Moscow and Washington, D.C., and entered into force on 30 August 1975
161 countries are parties as of December regulates carrying of oil, noxious liquids in the hold of ships, hazardous substances, sewage, and garbage from ships, air emissions from ships.
bss.sfsu.edu/ehines/geog600/ Freshwater%20and%20ocean%20Pollution.ppt