Why The Delaware River Was Polluted And How It Is Being Solved

Television commercials, print ads, and billboards in the Washington, DC, area are asking residents to connect two things many might find unrelated: lawn care and seafood. In one commercial, a man stuffs a big plateful of grass in his mouth after a voice-over says, “Spring rains carry excess lawn fertilizers through our sewers and rivers and into the Chesapeake Bay, where the blue crab harvest has been extremely low. So skip the fertilizer until fall, because once they’re gone, what’s left to enjoy?”(Environment, p. 7)

Problems and Potential Solutions Stormwater pollution can greatly impact our quality of life whether it be directly or indirectly. Pollution from storm water runoff can have a negative impact on our drinking water, recreational waters, and water that we use for irrigation. Pollution to our waters can affect fish, wildlife, and plant life of all kinds. There can also be potential for negative impacts on human life if people are swimming in or drinking polluted water. One issue we face in my area, Columbia, SC is an impairment for E. coli and fecal coliform bacteria. We have traced a lot of this pollution back to wildlife, such as heavy populations of geese that inhabit an area.

     Hazardous wastes are another problem for the water in our world. These wastes are toxic, reactive, corrosive or ignitable. Most problems come from humans not storing the substance properly or not disposing of it correctly. This can be easily proven in 1969, when the Cuyahoga River, in Cleveland, Ohio, caught on fire and burned for sometime. Since this happened environmentalists have taken extreme measures to reduce the amount of pollution that is coming out of the power plants that are on the river and on Lake Erie.

Due to the large bodies of water in the county, there is a high risk for drowning. Water quality pollutants in the county come from fertilizers, bacteria from animal feces, sediment from land that are being cleared and stream channel erosion. When the rain falls into farms, parking lots, construction sites, and lawns the water collects pollutants and they get carried to the stream and then eventually end up in the Chesapeake Bay. In 2010 10 out of 15 streams sampled were rated far to poor, E-Coli, dissolved oxygen, fecal coliform, Chlorophyll-A and Polychlorinated Biphenyls were noted in the samples (2013 Natural Resource Indicator Report, 2014). C & R Battery Company Inc. and the Defense General Supply Center DLA were found on the national priority list for the most hazardous waste sites identified by the Environment Protection Agency because it is a risk to human and/or the environment (Virginia Superfund Sites, 2013).

The Neuse River has played a vital role throughout much of the history of North Carolina. In recent decades however the river has seen degradation of its health and ecology via massive amounts of point and non-point source pollution. The result has been numerous events of eutrophication, resulting in the ecological “dead zones” found throughout the river. Notable contributors of this pollution have been industrial plants and agriculture, most notably power plants and hog farms. As a result, federal and state agencies have enacted strict regulations and water quality standards and procedures to monitor the tributaries, estuarine areas, and main stem of the greater Neuse River watershed.

About two hundred forty one thousand two hundred twelve people live in Cumberland County, and all of those people somehow pollute the Conodoguinet Creek. The Conodoguinet Creek is a tributary to the Susquehanna river, which is the longest river on the American East Coast, spanning 464 miles long and draining into the Atlantic ocean. Many things, such as livestock, construction sites, fossil fuels and fertilizers, all go into the Conodoguinet creek. Now, that is A LOT of pollution that can (or will) go into the creek. This does not just affect the Conodoguinet Creek, but everything that the creek drains into, like the Susquehanna river, then the Chesapeake bay, and then the Atlantic ocean, which covers over 20% of thie whole globe! As you

Is the Conodoguinet creek polluted? I thought it was, but multiple tests from my peers and I proved my hypothesis wrong. To prove our hypotheses, my peers and I did multiple tests of the organisms living in the creek. We also tested the water quality. You may be wondering, “ How does this apply to me?” “ Why should I care?”, the fact is that the Conodoguinet runs through 100 miles of Pennsylvania. It runs through farms, towns, communities, and maybe even your backyard. So, making sure we protect it should concern all of us.

Imagine an Earth devoid of clean rivers with no inland marine life or readily available freshwater. This situation may arise if humanity does not volunteer to end its polluting tendencies. Initially, each individual should focus on taking steps towards decontaminating his or her nearest water body. For those living in Delaware, this is the Delaware River, which is in need of drastic reform. “The Delaware River . . . is the fifth most-polluted river in the country, according to a report released . . . by Environment New Jersey” (Augenstein). However, this obstacle did not arise spontaneously. A recognized problem by the early eighteenth century, Delaware River pollution remained a serious issue for the next 300 years and mostly stemmed from rapid population growth and booming industrial activities (“Delaware River Water Quality”). As the years progressed, Delawareans continuously disregarded the Delaware River, and it is now immensely besmirched as a result of accumulating neglect for the river. Because of this, Delaware waters continued to befoul past the threshold of safety. Delaware waterways are currently unsafe for commercial use due to the presence of pollutants and parasites like Giardia and Cryptosporidium in the river that can cause significant health problems, especially in individuals with weakened immune systems (“Delaware”). The polluted Delaware River, sullied by companies despite the Clean Water Act, may cause a decline in Delaware’s’ marine life, human

Although the amount of pollutants from a single town or construction site may seem insignificant, the combined concentrations of contaminants threaten our lakes, streams and wetlands. When things such as: human and animal waste, decaying plants and animals, discarded litter, or food waste enter surface waters, either dissolved or suspended in stormwater runoff, they can deplete the supply of dissolved oxygen in the water. When dissolved oxygen is reduced below a certain critical level, it can impair or kill aquatic plants and animals (CNYRPDB, 2011).

This situation may arise if humanity does not take steps to mend its polluting tendencies. To begin with, each individual should focus on decontaminating his or her nearest water body. For those living in Delaware, the nearest major water body is the Delaware River, which is in dire need of reform. “The Delaware River, . . . is the fifth most-polluted river in the country, according to a report released . . . by Environment New Jersey” (Augenstein). However, this issue did not arise spontaneously. A recognized problem by the early eighteenth century, Delaware River pollution remained a serious issue for the next 300 years. This mostly originated from rapid population growth and booming industrial activities (“Delaware River Water Quality”). As the years progressed, Delawareans continuously disregarded the Delaware River, and now it is immensely polluted due to an accumulation of neglect for the river. Residents polluted the river without repercussions until the river’s deterioration began to adversely affect them. Because of this, Delaware waters continued to befoul past the line of safety. “Severe pollution was most evident by the prevalence of waterborne illnesses and in the sharp decline of migratory fish populations” (“Delaware River Water Quality”). Delaware waterways are currently unsafe for commercial use due to the presence of pollutants and parasites like Giardia and Cryptosporidium in the water. These can cause significant health problems, especially in

The Merrimack River, which flows through New Hampshire and Massachusetts, has a long and extensive history with battling pollution. For the past few centuries, the Merrimack has been a hub for industrialization. Particularly in the 1900s, textile mills sprung up all along the river due to the ability to utilize hydropower. While this development helped many cities industrialize and grow substantially, it also has led to extreme levels of pollution in the river. Since the Environmental Protection Agency passed the Clean Water Act of 1972, the Merrimack River has significantly improved in quality. Even so, there are still waste disposal problems that plague the Merrimack. Currently, sewage waste remains a considerable concern in polluting the

Toxins in the water contribute to problems of the river because of the many times back in the day when businesses dumped their waste into the river and till today isn’t not yet cleared. Another problem of the Chicago River is that the public has to interest and don’t take any access towards the river because the river is fenced and some people still remember the awful stinky smell and the black color. The purpose of this field trip was to go test the different chemicals that are in the water and the health of it and see what can be found in it. The field trip lets people know what kind of biodiversity is around the river or in the river to see and determine the health of the river to see what contributes to what the state the river is in

Often, toxic substances are being drained into the air, waterways, and undergrounds wells. According to the report by Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), over 60 million pounds of deadly chemicals are produced by industries in Florida. Notably, Florida’s water has been suffering mercury contamination until the state’s department of migration issues a circular regularly for regulations of eating freshwater fish in the region (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission). In fact, such metals emanate from coal combustion’s emissions which run into water bodies. Not to mention, pesticides and herbicides utilized by government and homeowners pollute the environment (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission). Indeed, all chemicals released into the atmosphere find themselves in rivers.

The Upper Wabash River faces a vast majority of issues that affect the quality of the watershed. The watershed has long been used for agricultural purposes that cause stress on the watershed. Through various point source and non-point source pollution various water systems have been affected with some being even impaired.

The purpose of this report is to propose a solution to the problem of reduced drinking water quality due to chemical pollution. Some bodies of water in the United States are becoming polluted from chemicals and restrictions are needed to protect drinking water quality.