Impacts of Water Pollution

8/3/2019 Impacts of Water Pollution

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Impacts of

Water pollution



Water -

Source of life



Photo by Risab Jain

But look at what

we are doing to it

Photo by Subijoy Dutta



Photo by Sudhanshu Malhotra

Do you know it

affects us all?



Natural

Chemical

Anthropogenic

Microbial

WATER POLLUTION



Natural pollution

Groundwater in certain areas is rich in some

inorganic chemical compounds such as fluorides,arsenic etc.

These chemicals bio accumulate

in the body.

They are not excreted out of the

body easily and if rate of intakeis higher than rate of excretion,

they accumulate in the body.



Fluorosis

©Ruhani Kaur/UNICEF Indiahttp://www.fannz.org.nz

20 states in India have groundwater

that is rich in fluoride

Dental FluorosisSkeletal Fluorosis

Excess fluoride in thebody

(above 1.5 – 2 ppm)

Natural pollution



How does fluorosis impact people

Handicapped

Social outcastes

Lose livelihood

Poverty

Medical costs that they can’t meet

https://reader009.{domain}/reader009/html5/0509/5af2780c7c4a4/5af27816c166e.jpghttp://farm1.static.flickr.com

https://reader009.{domain}/reader009/html5/0509/5af2780c7c4a4/5af2781aa4e20.jpgA young girl living on the streets in India.Photograph: Rob Elliott/AFP/Getty Images



Arsenicosis causes

Liver damage ( jaundice, cirrhosis)

Vascular disease

Cancers of the

lung kidney bladder

liver

skin

Natural pollution



Anthropogenic water pollution

Chemical

Microbial

Impacts:

Health

Aquatic life

Other impacts



Nitrates

• Sources – Fertilizers

– Unsanitary conditions

– Leaks

– Unhygienic practices

Chemical contamination and its impacts

Drinking water contaminated with nitrates can lead to

serious, even fatal consequences particularly for infants.

In human body, nitrate is converted to nitrite which then

combines with haemoglobin to form metheamoglobin

which reduces oxygen levels in the blood.

This causes cyanosis (blue baby syndrome) and in severe

cases it can cause death

Anthropogenic pollution



Chemical contamination and its impacts

Mercury: Widespread use in industrial processes

and in various products (e.g. batteries, lamps and

thermometers)

These compounds bio-accumulatein our bodies and are dangerous tohealth and life. Many cause cancer,affect various vital organs and can

cause death.


Heavy Metals

Lead: Industrial effluents from battery

manufacturing industries, industries

which have a paint shop etc.

Cadmium: Marine and aerospace applications; some

fertilisers, detergents and refined petroleum products.



Chemical contamination and its impacts Anthropogenic pollution

Lead: Kidney, nerve and brain damage; anaemia –

leads to death. Children most susceptible

Cadmium: Kidney damage, genetic mutations

Mercury: Damage to brain and central nervous system


http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/impacts-of-water-pollution 14/31Dyes

Chemical contamination and its impacts Anthropogenic pollution

Synthetic Organic Chemicals

These compounds bio-accumulatein our bodies and are dangerous to

health and life.

Plastics

Pesticides

Cause cancers, damage to the nervous system,

reproductive system, endocrinal system



Bio-magnification

Accumulation of

these compounds

increases as we goup the food chain.

Organisms higher in the food chain are exposed tocontamination from different sources.



Minamata diseaseIndustrial wastewater from the Chisso corporation (manufacturing fertilizersand other chemicals) was released into the Minamata Bay in Japan

The waste water was rich in methyl mercury

Mercury content in shellfish in that region increased

People ate the shellfish and the cats ate the leftovers




Strange things started to happen – cats had convulsions and died,

crows fell from the sky, dead fish floated..

Young children had convulsions and difficulty in walking and speaking

People died

Investigation showed organic mercury poisoning affecting the nervous system

First discovered in 1956

Lawsuits and claims continue till today

Minamata disease




Water-borne

Diseases

Water-washed

Diseases

Water-based

Diseases

Water-related

vector borne

Diseases

Health impacts of Microbial

contamination of water




Water borne diseases

(also water-washed and food borne)

Diseases caused by ingestion of water contaminated by human

or animal excrement, which contain pathogenic microorganisms

•

Cholera• Diarrhoeal diseases (dysentry)

• Typhoid

• Infective jaundice

• Polio

• Roundworm



One gram of human excreta can contain:

• 10,000,000 viruses

•1,000,000 bacteria

• 1,000 parasite cysts

• 100 parasite eggs

Source: United Nations Children’s Fund,

Sanitation for All: Promoting Dignity and Human Rights. UNICEF, New York, 2000.

Faeces - the most dangerous pollutant

The Faecal-Oral Route of Disease Transmission



Food

Excreta

HandsWater Flies

Mouth

The Faecal-Oral

Route of Disease

Transmission



Diarrhoeal diseaseChildren in developing countries most affected

Responsible for the deaths of 7,00,000 million people every year (WHO, 2004)

Over 7,00,000 deaths in India in 1999 (works out to abt 1600 per day) (World Bank, 1999)



Water washed diseaseDiseases caused by poor personal

hygiene and skin and eye contact

with contaminated water

• Scabies

• Skin sepsis and ulcers

• Leprosy

• Lice and typhus

• Trachoma

• Conjunctivitis

•

Dysenteries• Ascariasis

• Paratyphoid

How Trachoma spreads



Water washed diseases

Scabies

Trachoma

Not enough water to keep clean

W t B d Di



Water based diseases

• Schistosomiasis

• Dracunculiasis (Guinea worm disease)

ycle of guinea worm infection

Schistosomiasisaffects over 200

million people

worldwide, of whom

88 million are under

15 years of age

Water Based Diseases

Life c cle of the uinea worm infection dracunculiasis

Parasitic infections for which aquatic and semi-aquatic snails function as intermediate hosts



Water related vector borne diseasesTransmission by insects having aquatic immature stages

• Dengue

• Filariasis

• Malaria

• Onchocerciasis

• Trypanosomiasis

• Yellow fever

P l ti ith t t f



http://www.worldwater.org/drinkwat.gif

Populations without access to safe

drinking water

Aff t f th i t ll ti



Affect of anthropogenic water pollution on

freshwater aquatic populations

Sewage / Organic pollution in lakes –

eutrophication (all life in lake dies)

Industrial effluents dumped into rivers – fish

kills and loss of underwater plants



Affect of anthropogenic water pollution on

marine biodiversity

• Oil spills in oceans – huge damage to marine biodiversity• Garbage in oceans – mistaken for food and consumed

by marine animals. Causes death

• Chemical pollution – from land based sources, damage marine biodiversity

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Acid rain

• Affects the hatching of fish eggs

• pHs lower than 5 can kill adult fish.

• Has eliminated insect life and some fish species

• Kills microbes in the soil and alters soil chemistry

Acid rain – rain in which SO2, oxidesof nitrogen, chlorine, CO2 etc. are dissolved



Acid rain

High altitude forests are especially vulnerable

as they are often surrounded by clouds and fog

which are more acidic than rain.

Acid rain – rain in which SO2 and oxides

of nitrogen are dissolved

Damages buildings and historicalmonuments Sulphuric acid in the rain reacts chemically withthe calcium compounds in the stones - limestone,sandstone, marble and granite - to creategypsum, which then flakes off.

Impacts of Water Pollution

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