The water quality of the U-High creek was excellent, but not all bodies of water have excellent water quality. Humans can pollute water by farmers putting pesticides and fertilizers on their crops. Putting fertilizers on the crops pollutes water, because when it rains the pesticides and fertilizers get washed off and carried into the water, and this adds nitrates and phosphates to the water which is called eutrophication, and it increases the amount of algae in the water. When there is an excess amount of algae in water, there is an excess amount of bacteria the uses up most of the oxygen which kills plants and animals. (River Quality and Pollution,2016) The second way humans pollute water is when it rains there is runoff, and all of the pollution on the ground get carried into the water. Runoff is when it rains the soil and other things get carried to other places. An example of runoff is when there is a heavy rain, the soil sitting on the sides of a hill loosen and slide down the hill toward the bottom causing a buildup at the bottom of the hill. …show more content…
The reason this method is used is because when there is runoff and other things trying to enter into the water source the plants and grass make a “Barrier”, to block out the pollution they do not want in the water source. (Grow Zones, 2012) Two pros about this solution is that it can lower the amount of pollution getting into our water sources, and it will lower the carbon footprint the cities leave on water sources. Although there are upsides there are also downsides of this solution and they are that it takes lots of time and may change the landscape of the area around it, the second con is that many people don’t like how it looks, so it loses its aesthetic value, and houses around lakes and streams may not sell as well. (Protecting Streambanks from Erosion,
Keeping the pollution to a minimal isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do. The major water pollutants are chemical, biological, or physical materials that
Valleys aren’t the only natural landscaping to be affected though; streams that had once been clean have now been polluted with waste, or have been buried completely by mountain-rock. And when water becomes corrupt, nearby life begins to suffer as well. Take the people living near mountain removal sites as an example. As the nearby water becomes dirtied, humans must watch as their clean, flowing tap water turns to a murky brown—or even black—substitute (Burning the Future: Coal in America). And think about it, this is the water they use every single day to bathe, drink, clean dishes, wash surfaces, sanitize hands, and cook with. When the water is this unclean, is it really doing its job? Is this really the water a living being deserves to be using?
Many of these impervious surfaces have drainage systems that run directly into the watershed. As shown above in the center picture, there is direct drainage from the street to the watershed with no type of filtration, which in return has cause the glistening polluted puddle in front of the drainage pipe.
So we can conclude that the creek is not polluted based on this evidence. The creek creature are mostly from group 1 and 2. Also, the creek water contains little to no nitrates and phosphates. The creek also contains a high amount of dissolved oxygen (9.8ppm to be exact) Lastly, the creek limestone neutralize acid rain. The pH of the water is also a healthy 7. After all this evidence we can conclude that the creek is not
Possible solution example: Using a rain garden can dramatically impact the environment. During heavy downpours, our outdated sewer system cannot handle the runoff due to impermeable surfaces in the community. Dave Morris, who is a liaison to the mayor states, “Every homeowner should consider a rain garden to decrease the amount of pollutants running into the watershed” (305). Rain gardens provide a temporary place to hold rainwater, allowing it to be absorbed over time and filtering out contaminants that would otherwise end up in waterways.
Not only is pollution the cause of the death of many organisms essential to ecological balance, but human drinking water has also been affected.
I’m reporting to the watershed area of the Conodoguinet Creek to discuss possible pollution in the creek. A type of pollution that can be a problem is Eutrophication. Eutrophication is the enrichment of an ecosystem with chemical nutrients. The Conodoguinet Creek runs through agricultural land, which means a lot of fertilizer. Phosphates and nitrates are found in fertilizers. When farmers use too much fertilizers, it can leak into the creek when it rains. When a lot of fertilizer gets into the creek in can get too many nutrients, and then excessive amounts of algae will grow causing many more problems. Acid rain is also another problem. Acid rain is caused by fossil fuels being burned, from cars, factories, etc. Acid rain can get into the
Let’s start out with the pollutants in this water. There was a surprising amount of pollution found downriver of Sioux Falls, the largest city in South Dakota. It makes sense that more pollutants would be coming from more heavily populated areas, but it doesn’t change the fact that it is harming all those around it. It is thought that a lot of this pollution is coming from the city waste
The Conodoguinet Creek is a one-hundred mile long body of water running through central Pennsylvania. This area has many pollution issues, such as Eutrophication and many others. Eutrophication is when there is too much nutrients in the water. Some people might not understand why too much nutrients in the water is a problem, but it is a very serious one. The higher amounts of nutrients in the water allows a larger amount of algae to grow on the surface of the water, absorbing all the dissolved oxygen in the water, leaving no oxygen left for the fish, and they die.
The polluted water supply that results can become harmful to humans. Aquatic life quickly suffers the effects of watershed pollution.
There is a new chemical that “decreases male fertility, hormones, and testosterone” (“Declining Male Fertility”). The chemicals are in the shape or form of medicine and pesticides and can affect fish and other species in the water. Some research has shown that these “chemicals make male fish believe they are turning into females which is declining the male fertility in the water. These chemicals are getting in the water through the sewage pipes leading into the water. This not only harms the water, but also the organisms inside the water. Water pollution isn’t just hurting the environment, but also costing Americans money. Instead of drinking water from the faucets, people are buying more expensive types of bottled water. Since most people are buying expensive bottles of water, this is going to cost them more money. “Water pollution is costing the government, facilities, and Americans nearly $4.3 billion” (“Freshwater Pollution Cost $4.3 Billion”). These pollutants can cause harmful effects on us humans.
According Oraclethinkquest, "Water pollution has the potential to have a harmful effect on all living things including plants and animal species. Chemicals, radioactive waste, industrial waste in the water can affect species and their development. There is no
The largest source of contamination is runoff from land. Toxic runoff can be sewage, rainwater flowing over exposed topsoil, flooding or agricultural runoff. Rain can cause runoff of chemicals or waste that can seep into creeks, rivers and other waterways that lead to the ocean. Some of the chemicals found could be antibiotics or waste from animals, pesticides from crops or from pollutants, originating in the air, which have settled on land and washed away. Unless a solution to pollution runoff is found, this type of contamination will continue indefinitely and contribute to the deterioration of the ecosystem in the
A reason that water pollution is a problem today is because many people don’t realize that they are hurting out water supplies when they really are. There are many pollutants that hurt our water supply such as farming. When farmers spray their fields with chemicals and apply fertilizers. Some of these chemicals reach the river, and animal urine and manure may be washed into the river. Another cause of water pollution is from accidents, such as tanker spills. Accidents with chemicals may cause river pollution as well. Mining can be another cause because the dusts and minerals get washed into the rivers. Seepage is another cause of water pollution. Because chemicals from waste dumps join the groundwater flow into the river. Urban Wastes is a major cause because the sewage comes from toilets, sinks, and industrial processes. This causes many human diseases such as diarrhea, dysentery, hepatitis, and cholera.
One of the leading causes of water pollution is from agriculture. Some of the reasons for this are that agriculture is close to most bodies of water, agriculture is the most widespread land use in the U.S., and agriculture uses chemicals and nutrients to improve production. Figures