How To Prevent Water Pollution

This article briefs about what water pollution is, its causes, types, affects and prevent water pollution

Introduction :

Water is one of the most precious gifts that nature has given to this world. No living beings can survive on the Earth without water. Three-fourth of the Earth's land is covered by water. In recent times the industrial growth, population explosion etc. has degraded the quality of water across the world to a great extent. The study done by nature experts has revealed that only 1 % of the total water is drinkable. The water of rivers are so polluted that, even after several cycle of refinement it is not appropriate for drinking. The polluted water causes several bacterial and viral diseases. Something needs to be done to prevent the further degrade of water quality.

Scientific meaning of Water

In Chemistry water is considered as a compound. It consists of Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen (O). It is chemically represented by H2O.

Molecular mass of water :
The molecular mass of water is: 18 amu ( Atomic Mass Unit )

Water Pollution :

About 71 % of the earth's land is covered by water. The most precious resource of the nature has been polluted by the people across the globe to a great extent. People's negligence towards the water preservation and cleanliness may lead to danger of existence of living beings on this Earth. The industrial growth and increase in population are the main causes behind the degradation of water quality across the world.
The toxic elements discarded by Industries and city sewage lead to degradation in the quality of water of rivers. If the quality of water in a river s is do contaminated that it is not proper for usage, then we can say that the water is polluted. Apart from these there are many human activities that cause water pollution. I will put light on them in details while moving further with this article. Polluted water can be very fatal not only for humans but also for animals.
Polluted water may be very harmful for living beings if consumed without purifying it. The major activities performed by people that lead to water pollution are: - City Sewage and Industrial Wastes are disposed to river.

Causes Of Water Pollution :

There are many human activities that contaminate the of water resources everywhere. The water of rivers is so polluted that it cannot be used directly for any purpose. Even for irrigation purposes such water cannot be used. After going through several refining and cleaning cycles the water becomes somewhat drinkable. So, it is very inevitable to know what all are the causes behind water pollution. Some of them can be listed as below:

Sewage and Waste Water:-

The sewage is many big cities carry all the household wastes and Industrial wastes with it and dumps that into a river.

Marine Dumping:-

The disposal of metallic wastes of aircraft, ship and other harmful products into the sea is known as Marine Dumping. This could endanger the existence of sea water organisms.

Radioactive Waste:-

Dumping of radioactive products into a sea or a river may lead to water pollution. The waste of a Nuclear reactor is generally radio-active products. These can be very dangerous for the living organisms of water.

Oil pollution:-

Dumping waste oil products into the river or sea can lead to water pollution.

Industrial Waste:-

Industrial waste products disposed to a river and sea may contaminate the water.

Atmospheric Deposition:-

The contamination in the environment around the Earth's surface can lead to Atmospheric Deposition. We have already seen Acid Rains in some parts of the world

Global Warming:-

The Earth is getting warmer every day. This may lead to abnormality in the environment of the Earth. We have already witnessed un-seasoned rain or nor rain at all during the monsoon.


There are many other causes that may lead to water pollution apart from those that I have mentioned above. For example:- deforestation,

Types Of Water Pollution :

So far we have seen what water pollution is and what common causes of water pollution are. In this section I will elaborate the types of water pollution. Depending on the pollutants and source of water that are affected the pollution type can be classified as below:

1. Point Source Pollution:-

If one can identify the exact source that causes the water pollution then we call it as Point Source Water pollution. As for example, pollution caused by the sewage of city can be considered as Point Source Pollution.

2. Non-Point Source Pollution :-

As the name suggests Non-Point Source Pollution is the exact opposite of Point Source Pollution. Here single source cannot be identified as the cause of water pollution. There may be many known and unknown sources that are causing the water pollution. But, one ca not pin point what all sources are responsible for the degradation of quality of water.

3. Surface Water Pollution:-

The contamination of surface water due to sewage, industrial wastes is called as Surface Water Pollution. The sources of surface water are rivers, lakes, seas, oceans etc. The sources of water that exists on the surface of the Earth called as Surface Water sources. If these sources are get polluted then such type of pollution is called as Surface Water Pollution.

4. Ground Water Pollution:-

As the name suggests ground water is the water that is in the heart of the Earth. They lay hundreds of feet below the surface of the Earth. The water of rain is absolved by the soil and lay beneath the ground. Ground water is used as drinking water in most of the parts of the world. If the ground water gets polluted then such pollution is known as Ground Water Pollution.

Effects Of Water Pollution :

Without water there would be no life on the Earth. Water is important not only for human beings but also for animals and plants. Water pollution can adversely affect the life on the Earth. Now let us see some of the major affects of water pollution. It is not possible to know all the affects of water pollution.. Some of the visible effects can be listed as below:

1. Damage to the cultivation of Crops
2. Danger to the marine life
3. Health related problems
4. Acid rain
5. Produced crops can be polluted as well
6. Damage to the forests and trees
7. Affect the animals that drink water in a river or lake
8. It can cause diseases like cancer or heart complications.

Preventive Actions :

It is high time we started to ponder over saving water for the sake of existence of life on the Earth. Water is the most wonderful gift that nature has given us. It has become inevitable to save this precious resource from further damage. Not only governments but the common people also ought to come forward and preserve this incredible gift of nature for future generations.
Some of the preventive measures can be listed as below:

1. Educating people about the importance of water
2. Introducing Strict Laws to punish the people who pollute water
3. Investing in the Cleaning of Polluted Water
4. Charging people who pollute water
5. All countries should work together
6. The sewage water should be cleaned before disposing into the river or sea.
7. Creating rain water storage systems

Conclusion :

Water is the most precious Gift that the nature has given to the mankind. No life can be imaged if there would be no water. It is the sole duty of each and every person the prevent this indispensable resource from getting polluted. If we don't take this seriously, the existence of Human Beings will become a History on this Earth.

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Author: K Mohan10 Sep 2014 Member Level: Platinum   Points : 4

I think water pollution is the major problem in many big cities in India. The reason being that the water board has laid the drinking water pipe line over the storm water drain in the middle of the road. The water pipes when get rusted in due course of time due to sewerage water flowing over it daily, there are every chance of people getting contaminated water along with pipe. This has happened few years back in Musheerabad area of Hyderabad were many have been dead and many have been hospitalized due to total poisoning of water due to contamination.

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