The 3 main causes of water pollution
Water pollution is the number one problem facing the world with a tremendous impact on the life of the human race. This enormous human error is caused by a person’s selfish motives to get rich without considering the welfare of their fellow men.
Each country has its own water treatment facilities to minimize the occurrence of water contamination in severe conditions. But, even though government and private authorities are doing their best to control water pollution and reduce pollution, there are some unscrupulous entrepreneurs who work underground to satisfy their greed and personal advantage.
Water pollution has many causes, but I have only identified the top 3 as the most serious.
1. Radioactive and industrial waste
This type of water pollutant comes from nuclear power plants and industries that are being washed into rivers, lakes and oceans in a high proportion. The more factory a country has, the higher the rate of pollutants released that they dump into the body of water.
These factories release some toxic chemicals like mercury, sulfuric acid, lead, and used oil. Lead and mercury are two toxic chemicals that are harmful to plants and animals, and especially to humans, and can cause death if ingested in large amounts. These chemicals are not biodegradable and are difficult to clean when mixed with water.
2. Eutrophication
The continuous use of inorganic chemical fertilizers and pesticides for the production of crops and manufactured foods for animal production where their waste is transported to the water by heavy rains. Once they accumulate in the water, these waste chemicals cause the dense growth of plant life like phytoplankton, causing the algae to flourish. These algae use oxygen in their growth process while depleting some marine life to use the oxygen that results in their death.
In addition to depleting oxygen from the water, algae also produce some toxic substances that affect higher life forms and the food chain and lead to contamination of the water source.
3. Mining
Mining companies exhibit heavy metals and sulfuric compounds previously stored underground in the soil profile. Once placed on the ground surface, some sediment drains into the water body, resulting in acid mine drainage and metal contamination.
It is most serious in gold mining, where cyanide is poured into rock piles to extract the gold from the mineral rock. After the operation, the cyanide eventually reaches the bottom and bottom of the river, lake or ocean.
Other sources of pollutants are not as serious as the top 3 mentioned above. However, small as they are, they still contribute to the polluting effect on our water, which must be addressed by all concerns, including you.