MIND NURTURE KRISHNA Page 1 of 3

EFFECT OF ENVIRONMENT ON HEALTH(PART-1)

WATER POLLUTION
❖ Definition
Water pollution occurs when harmful substances—often chemicals or microorganisms—contaminate a
stream, river, lake, ocean, aquifer, or other body of water, degrading water quality and rendering it toxic to
humans or the environment.
❖ Causes/sources of water pollution
i) Industry
• Industry is a huge source of water pollution, it produces pollutants that are extremely harmful to
people and the environment.
• Many industrial facilities use freshwater to carry away waste from the plant and into rivers, lakes
and oceans.
• Pollutants from industrial sources include:
i) Asbestos – Asbestos fibres can be inhaled and cause illnesses such as asbestosis, lung cancer,
intestinal cancer and liver cancer.
ii) Lead – This is a metallic element and can cause health and environmental problems. It is a non-
biodegradable substance so is hard to clean up once the environment is contaminated. Lead is
harmful to the health of many animals, including humans, as it can inhibit the action of bodily
enzymes.
ii) Oil pollution in water
• Oceans are polluted by oil on a daily basis from oil spills, routine shipping and dumping.
• Oil spills make up about 12% of the oil that enters the ocean. The rest come from shipping travel,
drains and dumping.
• Oil cannot dissolve in water and forms a thick sludge in the water. This suffocates fish, gets caught in
the feathers of marine birds stopping them from flying and blocks light from photosynthetic aquatic
plants.
iii) Radio active waste
• Nuclear waste is produced from industrial, medical and scientific processes that use radioactive
material. Nuclear waste can have detrimental effects on marine habitats.
• Mining and refining of uranium and thorium are also causes of marine nuclear waste.
iv) Mining and Agricultural Wastes
• Mines, especially gold and coal mines, are responsible for large quantities of acid water.
• Agricultural pesticides, fertilizers and herbicides may wash into rivers and stagnant water bodies.
v) Sewage Disposal and Domestic Wastes
Sewage as well as domestic and farm wastes were often allowed to pollute rivers and dams.
vi) Human activities:
Human activities such as bathing , washing clothes etc in towns and villages lead to water pollution
vii) Customs and Traditions:
• Disposal of dead bodies and immersion of idols of gods and goddess into water bodies during
various festivals in India degrade the quality of water.
• Plaster of Paris which is used generally used to make the idols contain gypsum , sulphur and
magnesium and idols are decorated using chemical paints that contain magnesium , cadimium and
lead. All these increase the acidity of water and concentration of heavy metals in it. Such water
pollution can damage the ecosystem by killing aquatic plants and organism and other living
creatures dependent on water.

➢ Impurities in water
1. Physical Impurities:
These impurities are mainly caused due to soil erosion including soil particles, pollens microorganisms
etc. Generally these impurities are separated by filtration.
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2. Minerals Impurities:
• These are mainly the minerals present in soil which get dissolved in ground water or surface
water. These are also known as total dissolved solid (TDS) .
• In many parts of India water gets contaminated due to the presence of fluorides , arsenic and
iron which causes fatal diseases.

3. Organic Impurities:
• Surface water is subjected to these organic impurities comprising both plant and animal
residuals and microorganisms, which are found on the surface of earth.
• Fertilizers and pesticides are the chief organic contaminants found in water.
➢ Control of Water Pollution
• Judicious use of agrochemicals like pesticides and fertilizers which will reduce surface run off Avoid their
usage of these on slope lands.
• Use of nitrogen fixing plants to supplement the use of fertilizers.
• Adopting integrated pest management to reduce reliance on pesticides.
• Prevent run off manure. Divert such run off to basin for settlement .
• Separate drainage of sewage and rain water should be provided to prevent overflow of sewage with rain
water.
• Planting trees prevent soil erosion.
• Waste water should be treated by primary and secondary treatment to reduce BOD, COD levels upto
permissible levels of discharge.
• Industrial effluents and wastes must be treated in order to reduce their toxicity
• Non biodegradable waste materials such as plastics should not be dumped in water bodies . These not
only increase the levels of toxins in water but also choke the aquatic organisms to death.
• Human activities such as bathing and washing in the rivers , ponds and lakes , washing animals,
immersing of idols must be stopped.
➢ Safe drinking water
• Safe drinking (potable) water is the water that can be delivered to the user and is safe for drinking,
food preparation, personal hygiene and washing.
• The water must meet the required (chemical, biological and physical) quality standards at the point
of supply to the users. Therefore, safe drinking water is a relative term, which depends on the
standards and guidelines of a country; the standards set for the different quality parameters are
different.
• The standard of WHO is not exactly the same as that of USA, Canada, European Commission, Russia,
India, South Africa, Ethiopia, and so on. The term “safe” depends on the particular resistance ability
of an individual.
• Water that is safe for drinking in some African countries might not be safe in European countries.
Some African countries already developed resistance to some of the water-related diseases.
➢ Importance of safe drinking water
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➢ Water borne disease

• Waterborne diseases are conditions caused by pathogenic micro-organisms that are transmitted in
water.
• These diseases can be spread while bathing, washing, drinking water, or by eating food exposed to
contaminated water.
• While diarrhoea and vomiting are the most commonly reported symptoms of waterborne illness,
other symptoms can include skin, ear, respiratory, or eye problems.
• Lack of clean water supply, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) are major causes for the spread of
waterborne diseases in a community. Therefore, reliable access to clean drinking water and
sanitation is the main method to prevent waterborne diseases.

Disease Agent Symptoms

Diarrhoea Virus or bacteria Watery or bloody stool
Typhoid fever Salmonella typhi Fever, weakness, muscle pain etc
Amoebiasis Entamoeba hystolytica Loose stools, stomach cramps
Giardiasis Giardia lamblia Diarrhoea, vomiting
Shigellosis Shigella bacteria Diarrhoea, fever
Hepatitis - A Virus Jaundice, fever
Cholera Vibrio cholerae bacteria Nausea, vomiting , muscle cramps

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