Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Water pollution and associated problems
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Water pollution and associated problems
Yesterday morning, my classmates and I went to the conodoguinet creek. We went to the creek to find out if there is pollution in the water. We took 3 tests to find out if the water was polluted or not.
My first experiment was on a critter count. The critter count involved us to take rocks out of the creek and count all the critters that are on the rocks we find. If we find a lot of group 1 critters, critters that can’t be by pollution, then the waters aren’t polluted. If we find a lot of group 3 critters, critters that can be by pollution, then the waters are polluted. Group 2 critters are critters that can be in both, but not a lot of pollution. My group and I found lots of group 1 critters(63) which was a good sign. We also found 26 group 2 critters, so the water was polluted, but not by a lot. We found 13 group 3 critters, so we know now that the water is slightly polluted, but it is still clean.
…show more content…
Pollution in the conodoguinet creek is caused mainly by acid rain, which could have come from pittsburgh’s factories.
Pennsylvania has the most acid rain in the country, so it is not a surprise if the creek was polluted, but it’s not. It could be because of limestone rocks, or rocks that neutralize pollution in waters. Are next experiment was a eutrophication Test. A eutrophication is an enrichment of an ecosystem with chemical nutrients typically compounds containing nitrogen, phosphorus, or both. In this test we took samples of water into clear measurable tubes. There is 3 things we tested with water, Phosphate, nitrate, and dissolved oxygen. Phosphates and nitrates are examples of polyatomic ion. Phosphates and nitrates are found in fertilizers and some detergents. We tested for them and we didn’t get big results, so we know that waters aren’t polluted. There was a lot of dissolved oxygen, which is good, because that is what fish need to
breath. Then we had an acidity test, which is a test of the level of acid in substances such as water, soil, or wine. We figured out how much was in the water by using a pH scale. PH scale is a numerical scale used to specify the acidity or alkalinity. The pH scale measures acidity Alkalinity is the quantitative capacity of an aqueous solution to neutralize an acid. For the alkalinity test, the average was 13 which is okay. Overall the results of the critter count, eutrophication tests, and Acidity tests show that the conodoguinet creek is healthy. There is not a lot of pollution in the water, which is good for the environment, critters, and the community.
The main problem was lead, with seven well samples showing up positive. The calcium and nitrates both had four samples showing up positive. Hydrocarbons had 3 samples showing a positive. Heavy metals have two positives,and bacteria had only 1 positive. Many men, women, and children are getting sick from horrible water pollution and some of the water pollutants cause cancer! So through all thirty of the tests we ran we got twenty one samples back that gave us a positive result. In conclusion the water in Hickory Hollow is justified, showing various
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)
The industrialization of Canada is severely affecting the nations lakes, streams, and rivers. If something is not done to improve the situation it is going to have some severe environmental problems in its future. The following essay will be looking at the factors that cause pollution, and the effect that pollution has on the environment of Canada. It will also explore some of the methods used to treat and clean-up wastewater, and oil spills.
The algal growths in the lake feed on phosphorus mostly caused by fertilizer runoff from farms and local residences. Microcystin, a toxin that causes liver problems, is produced by the growths have caused major health concerns for wildlife and people using the lake. It is our moral obligation to clean up this mess or it will continue to harm the wildlife and environment in and the lake, as we are the one’s solely responsible for it. Organizations such as the Ohio EPA and Buckeye Lake for Tomorrow, have taken a notice to the pollution of Buckeye Lake and are formulating plans to return the lake to its former glory. Our plan is to provide a short term solution for the lake via the process of dredging, while a much larger and permanent solution is put in
The Chesapeake Bay has faced an excessive amount of pollution over the past century. The water in the bay has become so highly polluted that It is capable of causing harm to humans coming in direct contact with the water. Although algae serves a vital role in the bay’s ecosystem, it also creates a problem that is causing a large amount of the problem.
'Water pollution is any chemical, physical or biological change in the quality of water that has a harmful effect on any living thing that drinks or uses or lives(in) it. ' (Azeem 1). In Canada, most people live in the southern part along with many agricultural and industrial activities causing the worst cases of water pollution. Water pollution is caused by population growth and industrialization, but can be prevented if proper controls are taken into consideration to help reduce the discharge of waste materials. Water pollution has been a huge disadvantaging concern for humans as well as wildlife for over many decades, but can actually be prevented if attempted. Preventing waste materials from being dumped into lakes and rivers, controlling
Planning Firstly here is a list of equipment I used. Boiling tubes Weighing scales Knife Paper towels 100% solution 0% solution (distilled water) measuring beakers potato chips Cork borer. We planned to start our experiment by doing some preliminary work. We planned to set up our experiment in the following way.
Pollution of the earth is a major limiting factor to the abundance of life on earth. Pollution of all kinds can kill wildlife, causes habitat degradation or destruction, create navigational hazards, and even destroy economies and human health (https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/MD_Tracker_App_Flyer_FINAL.pdf). These effects, though, are most evident in marine environments. The dumping of waste, especially plastics, causes severe stress to the world’s oceans, rivers, lakes, and ponds. While scientist cannot know the exact extent that pollution is affecting the environment, one way in which scientists can go about determining the pollution of a region is Citizen Science, as Dickerson
About 80% of the State’s surveyed freshwater rivers and streams have good water quality that fully supports aquatic life uses, 17% have fair water quality that partially supports aquatic life uses, and 3% have poor water quality that does not support aquatic life uses. Ten percent of the surveyed rivers do not fully support swimming. The major sources of impairment are agriculture (responsible for 53% of the impaired river miles), urban runoff (responsible for 16%), and construction (responsible for 13%). These sources generate siltation, bacteria, and organic wastes that deplete disssolved opxygen.
In 1968, a survey was conducted. It found that pollution in the Chesapeake Bay cause $3 million annually in losses to the fishing industry. Meanwhile, the U.S. Bureau of sports fisheries measured DDT, a pesticide, in 584 of 590 samples. These levels were nine times the FDA limit. In 1969 bacteria in the Hudson River was 170 times the safe limit. Over 41 million fish were killed. This included the largest ever with 26 million from four food processing plants in Thonotosassa, Florida dumping discharges into the lake. South of Cleveland, Ohio the Cuyahoga River burst into flames causing damage to railroad trestles. The cause is unknown but investigation pointed to a discharge of highly volatile petroleum derivatives that could ignite easily.
The water quality of the UHS creek is excellent. But even though the UHS has an excellent water quality, it doesn’t mean that all creeks have excellent water quality. Humans can negatively impact water quality in several ways. One of them is by farm runoff. Farmers sue pesticides and fertilizers on their crops. When it rains, these chemicals are washed into nearby rivers. This increases nitrates and phosphates in the water. Algae use these chemicals to thrive. They block sunlight to other living organisms in the creek, which need sunlight in order to survive—like photosynthesis. When the high number of algae dies, bacteria thrive on the dead algae and use all of the oxygen in the water. Because of this, many animals living the creek die. This entire process is known as eutrophication. Another common human source of pollution in creeks is factory runoff. Some factories use water to power machinery or cool machinery down. When this water is put back in the river it contains harmful chemicals. Also, the water is sometimes warmer than the rest of the river and lowers dissolved oxygen in the river and upsets the balance of life in water. (http://www.lenntech.com/rivers-pollution-quality.htm)
The park in which the pond water was gathered is in an urban area in providence Rhode Island. The current state of the park is slightly polluted with people traveling through it every day. Common activities in the park can be, but are not limited to, walking, running, or driving through the park, swimming, boating, or fishing in the water, or feeding the numerous amount of wildlife throughout the park. It is assumed that all of these activities affect the ecosystem negatively. A lab was conducted to study the very effects that humans have on this quant ecosystem. Two large buckets of pond water were gathered to the site of the lab. The individuals then studied the life in the buckets that could be easily sought out, such as, large snails, frogs, and even a fish. These organisms were sketched and noted. Then the individuals took out microscopes to view micro organisms in the pond. These organisms were so tiny the individuals couldn't see them with the naked eye. A lot of macroinvertebrates and algae were discovered and noted at this point. In the end, about 28 organisms were found in total and compiled into a large chart. This chart was then used to create a trophic level pyramid (a
Today's waters are constantly being treated like sewage dumps or trash cans. We use them as garbage cans every day polluting the water more and more. "Pollution is often by way of rivers, drains and outflow pipes." Causing an outflow of sewage into our ocean waters. This is not only affecting the community but also the marine life and other sea creatures living in the ocean." This pollution includes human sewage and domestic waste water, factory outflows of acids and poisonous metals, engine oil from roadside drains and garages, farm chemicals washed off the land by rain, building-site rubble, nuclear waste from power plants, and oil from wells, refineries, and tankers." Stating that most of today's waste is from factory or factory ran products that shouldn't be polluting the water
There are many types of pollution. The main types of pollution are water, air, soil, thermal, radioactive, noise, and light. The topic for this experiment is Water Pollution. Water Pollution became a problem in the 1900’s when water started being treated like sewage. Earth Day was founded by United States Senator Gaylord Nelson on April 22, 1970 because of 1900’s pollution. Water Pollution also affects humans and animals. There was a Cholera outbreak in 1854, before water pollution became a problem, and a Typhoid outbreak in New York from 1900 to 1915. There are multiple possible causes to Water Pollution. Humans let out chemicals into the environment, and when some of those chemicals
The phenomenon of soil erosion will create the sediment that can wash into the water, which will cause the problems to the aquatic life. In order to reduce the sediment during building new structure or landscaping, the developers should use the tarp to cover the mound of dirt. As the result, the rain and wind do not carry the sediment into the flowing water. The developers also should not alter the stormwater pond as it can impede the ability of the pond to hold the stormwater runoff.