How To Keep Our Water Resources Clean

How is Water Pollution Caused?

Although certain natural processes may cause some of the water pollution, however, human activity is the largest cause of our seas, rivers and lakes getting polluted. We need to use water everyday both in our industries as well as our homes. We get this water from groundwater sources, rivers, and lakes, and after using it, and often contaminating it, most of this water gets back into the rivers, lakes, and oceans.

The used water from agricultural and industrial practices, and household use create wastewater, also referred to as sewage. If this is allowed to flow back into water systems without being treated, it causes pollution, which results in harming both humans as well as animal life. Water also gets polluted when there is a runoff of rainwater from industrial, agricultural, and urban areas, which flow directly through stormwater drains into water systems without any treatment.

The disposal of sewage is a major problem in developing countries where there isn’t adequate sanitation in large areas, thus carrying disease causing bacteria and viruses into sources of water. In countries that are developed, people often flush pharmaceutical and chemical products into their toilet.

Some of the other causes of pollution are oil spillages and dumping in oceans, dumping litter into streams, rivers, and oceans such as cardboard, newspaper, foam, Styrofoam, plastic packaging, aluminum, glass, and so on. Some of these take a very long time to degrade, e.g., plastic packaging can take 400 years, Styrofoam takes 80 years, foam takes 50 years, and aluminum takes 200 years.

Nuclear waste, atmospheric deposition, and underground storage leakages are some of the other causes of water pollution.

What are the Ways to Prevent Water Pollution?

While we need to see to it that the government is stringent about seeing to it that there are adequate treatment plants to treat sewage, and seeing to it that industries have treatment plants and nuclear plants have proper waste storage systems for radioactive material, and so on, there are many things that we can do individually to prevent water pollution. Given below are a few ways to prevent water pollution:

• Toxic products like paints, automobile oil, polishes, and cleaning products should be stored and disposed off properly. As a matter of fact, it is better to use non-toxic, products for the house as far as possible. Also, never dispose off such products by throwing them into your toilet or sink.
• Dispose off your trash in a proper manner and try and incorporate the recycling habit as far as possible. Non-degradable products like tampons, sanitary napkins, and diapers should not be flushed down the toilet, for these can end up damaging the process of sewage treatment, and usually end up as litter on beaches.
• Refrain from throwing litter into streams, lakes, rivers, or seas. If you do spot litter on beaches or in water systems, after ascertaining that it is safe, collect them and dispose off them in any nearby waste disposal system.
• Try using environmentally friendly household products like toiletries, soap-based household cleaning material, and washing powder as far as possible.
• Try using natural fertilizers and pesticides as far as possible, or if not, do not overuse them or over-water gardens and lawns. This will help in reducing the pollutants that get into water systems due to runoffs.
• Automobile oil should be re-used as far as possible. Also, it is important to keep your automobile well maintained in order to prevent leakages of toxic fluids like antifreeze and oil.
• Also, actively conserve water by turning the tap off when you do not need running water, such as while brushing teeth. Apart from preventing water shortages, it lessens the amount of water that needs to be treated.