Water Pollution From Households

A Presentation By Karan Rajpal

Households as a source of water Pollution

The combined effect of an entire city or town can be serious.

Its Effects

Eutrophication, Sedimentation, and Contamination with chemical pollutants.

Kitchens and Water Pollution

Prevent flushing down oily and greasy substances through kitchen basin

Kitchens and Water Pollution

Reduce overuse of soaps and detergents. The phosphates in the cleaning agents can aid eutrophication in surface water bodies, if the waste from your home goes untreated to a lake or a stream.

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Water Pollution from bathrooms

Use natural soaps and shampoos as far as possible. Not only are they good for your skin and hair, they reduce the amount of phosphates in the waste water. Try ‘shikakai’ instead of shampoo and ‘besan’ instead of soap.

Try to use natural cleaners for sinks and toilets.

Water Pollution from bathrooms

Excessive organic wastes and phosphates in wastewater can cause eutrophication of lake

This results in the death of the entire lake ecosystem

Proper Chemical Use, Storage, and Disposal

• Paints, used oil, cleaning solvents, polishes, insecticides, and other hazardous household chemicals.

Can end up in nearby water bodies. 

R e d u c e , R e d u c e , R e d u c e  

Proper Chemical Use, Storage, and Disposal

Donate medicines that you have no use for but still have a way to go before expiry.

R e d u c e , R e d u c e , R e d u c e  

Segregate your wastesSegregate your wastes. Compost food wastes. Give away every bit of recyclable waste to the k a b a d iw a l la h . This includes paper, junk mail and envelopes, pet bottles, glass containers, plastic boxes and lids, plastic covers in which your groceries are packaged, metallic items etc. The kabadiwallah network will ensure that these wastes are recycled, instead of them ending up in a landfill or a drain and contaminating groundwater or blocking storm water flows.

When rainwater falls on a municipal solid waste dump, chemicals in the dump mix with the rainwater and this polluted water seeps into groundwater aquifers over time.

Recycle and Dispose of Trash Properly 

Non-degradable products – Plastic Bags, Disposable Diapers

Other Dangerous Waste – Drugs and Medicines

When it rains, clean rainwater gets polluted with all these

contaminants.

The polluted rainwater flows into lakes and streams and impacts the water quality of these water bodies as well.

Paved surfaces like sidewalks, parking lots, roads, and

driveways have oil, grease, garbage, dirt and a host of

other pollutants.

Between Households

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Harvest as much rainwater as you can from your rooftop, before it gets mixed with contaminants from the street or the storm water drain.

Rainwater Harvesting

Look for alternatives to cement and concrete for paving the front yard. Use materials that will allow the rainwater to seep through into the ground.

Rainwater Harvesting

In The Garden

Avoid over-watering lawns and gardens.

Use organic manure and herbicides instead of chemical fertilizers and pesticides

Increases the leaching of fertilizers into groundwater

Grasses and natural ground cover can be attractive and practical substitutes for asphalt driveways, walkways.

But pesticides and fertilizers used on these lawns, leach into groundwater and pollute it.

In The Garden

Non-Native plants need fertilizer and extra water

They can increase the potential for higher runoff volumes, increase erosion,and introduce chemicals into the path of runoff

Check with the forest department in your town or city for a list of plants native to your region.

So let’s get together andMake a D ifference

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