WATER POLLUTION

Presented to:
Dr. Ghulam Abbas
PRESENTED BY:
Hamza Akhtar 19013123-008
M. Hassan Asif 19013123-018
M. Shehroz Saleem 19013123-070
Hammad Arshad 19013123-073
TABLE OF CONTENT
 Introduction
 Water Pollution
 Major Sources
 Causes
 Types of water pollution
 Effects of water pollution
 Wastewater Treatment Process
 Conclusion
 Introduction

Water (chemical formula: H 2 0)

is a transparent fluid which
forms the world's streams,
lakes, oceans and rain, and is
the major constituent of the
fluids of organisms.
 96.5% of the planet's crust water is found in seas and oceans,
1.7% in groundwater,
1.7% in glaciers and the ice caps of Antarctica and Greenland,
0.001% in the air as vapor, clouds (formed of ice and liquid water
suspended in air), and precipitation.
Only 2.5% of this water is freshwater, and 98.8% of that water is
in ice (excepting ice in clouds) and groundwater. Less than 0.3% of
all freshwater is in rivers.

WATER COVERS 71% OF THE EARTH'S SURFACE. IT IS

VITAL FOR ALL KNOWN FORMS OF LIFE ON EARTH,
 WHY IS WATER SO IMPORTANT TO
?LIFE ON EARTH
Directly or indirectly, water affects all facets of life.
Without it, there would be no vegetation on land, no
oxygen for living organisms to breathe and the planet
would look entirely different than it does today. Water is
necessary keep animal, plant, human's bodies and the
environment healthy and should be valued and protected
as the precious resource it is.
 WATER POLLUTION
Water pollution is any chemical, biological, or
physical change in water quality that has a harmful
effect on living organism or makes water a
unsuitable for desired uses.

It has been suggested that Water Pollution is the

leading worldwide cause of deaths and diseases
and that it accounts for the deaths of more than
14,000 people daily
MAJOR SOURCES OF WATER POLLUTION

• Industrial Facilities

Point
• Mines
• Oil fields
• Untreated sewage

Sources • Waste-water effluent

• Construction sites
• Sewage Treatment Plants etc.

Non- • Agriculture / Irrigation

• Unsewered areas
• Abandoned Mines

point • Acid Deposition

• Runoff of Chemicals into Surface

Sources
Water etc.
 CAUSES OF WATER
POLLUTION
 Industrial activity causes huge water pollution. Wastes from factories are let off
into freshwater to carry waste from plants into rivers. This contaminates water
with pollutants like lead, mercury, asbestos and petrochemicals.
 Sewage let off from domestic households, factories, commercial buildings are
untreated in water treatment plants yet are disposed into the sea. Sewage
containing flush chemicals and pharmaceuticals causes greater problems.
 Solid waste dumping and littering of cardboard, plastics, glass, Styrofoam,
aluminium tins, etc., in water bodies.
 Oil spills from tankers and ship travel causes oil pollution. Oil does not dissolve in
water and forms a thick layer on the water surface.
 Burning of fossil fuels and emissions from industries and motor vehicles causes
formation of acidic particles in the atmosphere. These particles fuse with water vapor
resulting in acid rain. Acid rain harms aquatic life.
 Increase in water temperature is a result of global warming and thermal plants use water
as cooling agents for mechanical equipments.
Agricultural waste water trash dumped in the ocean

Boat Wastewater discharge pipe

Explosion Source-Departmentof Agriculture
Discharge of Pulp Mill effluent
 INDUSTRIAL FACITILIES
Many industrial facilities use freshwater to carry away waste from the plant and into rivers, lakes and
oceans. • Pollutants from industrial sources include:
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.
Mercury –
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. Mercury is also harmful to animal
health as it can cause illness through mercury poisoning.
Nitrates –
The increased use of fertilizers means that nitrates are more often being washed from the soil and into rivers
and lakes. This can cause eutrophication, which can be very problematic to marine environments.
Phosphates –
The increased use of fertilisers means that phosphates are more often being washed from the soil and into
rivers and lakes. This can cause eutrophication, which can be very problematic to marine environments.
Oils –
Oil does not dissolve in water, instead it forms a thick layer on the water surface. This can stop marine plants
receiving enough light for photosynthesis. It is also harmful for fish and marine birds.
Petrochemicals –
This is formed from gas or petrol and can be toxic to marine life.
 TYPES OF WATER POLLUTION
• Nutrient Pollution: (Eutrophication)
Sewage water, waste water that contain high level of nutrients
enter into water bodies. Nutrients in water encourage the growth
of algae and weed in the water. This is known as EUTROPHICATION.
This makes the water unfit for consumption and clog filters. Algal
blooms in the water consume all the oxygen in the water, leading to
suffocation for other water organisms.
• Surface Water Pollution:
Surface water includes rivers, lakes, oceans, streams, lagoons.
Surface run-off substances that are hazardous dissolve and mix with
water polluting the surface water. These run-off substances can be
from any source like factories, domestic, sewage, agriculture etc.
• Oxygen Depletion:
Increase in the content of biodegradable matter in the water
encourages the growth of microorganisms which end up using most
of the oxygen. This results in oxygen depletion, killing aerobic
organisms producing more of toxins like ammonia and sulphides.
 TYPES OF WATER POLLUTION
• Ground Water Pollution:
Chemicals from fertilizers and pesticides applied to the soil are washed off
and seep in the ground contaminating the composition of the ground
water causing pollution.

• Natural Pollution:
Sometimes pollution is caused by microorganisms like bacteria and
protozoa, this natural pollution can be lethal for fishes and other water life.
Consumption of this water can lead to serious illness to humans.

• Suspended Matter:
Particulate matter of chemicals and other substances do not dissolve in
water easily. These suspended particulate matters settle at the bottom of
the water body harming the aquatic life at the floor of the water bodies.

• Chemical Water Pollution:

Most of the industrial let-off and chemical fertilizers used in farming end
up in the water bodies. These materials are poisonous to most of the
aquatic life, can make them infertile and eventually cause death. Water
from these sources is obviously unfit for consumption.
 TYPES OF WATER POLLUTION
• Spillage:
Oil tankers and offshore petroleum refineries cause oil leakage polluting water.
Oil spills can cause death of many aquatic organisms and also stick to the bodies
and feather so seabirds which makes them unable to fly.

• Domestic Sewage:
Domestic sewage is the waste water from households. It is also includes sanitary
sewage, and it contains a variety of dissolved and suspended.
Domestic sewage contains disease causing microbes and
chemicals contained in washing powders affect the health of all life forms in
water.

• Industrial Effluents:
Untreated waste water from manufacturing industries contributes to water
pollution.
 WATER POLLUTANTS

• Cadmium Source for cadmium pollution is industries, fertilizers. Cadmium gets

deposited in visceral organs llke liver, pancreas, kidney, intestinal mucosa etc.
Cadmium poisoning causes vomiting, headache, bronchial pneumonia,
kidney necrosis, etc.
• Arsenic- Fertilizers are source for arsenic pollution. Arsenic poisoning causes
renal failure and death. It also causes liver and kidney disorders, nervous
disorders and muscular atrophy, etc.
• Agrochemicals like DDT- It is a pesticide. Accumulation of these pesticides
in bodies of fishes, birds, mammals and man affects nervous system,
fertility and causes thinning of egg shells in birds.
• Bacteria, Viruses and Parasites - These are sourced from human and animal
excreta, they are infectious agents.
 WATER POLLUTANTS
• Plastics, Detergents, Oil and Gasoline -They are a waste from industries, household
and farms. They trigger organic pollution and is harmful to health.

• lnoraanlc Chemicals - Inorganic chemicals like acids, salts, metals are o result of
industrjal effluents, household cleansers, and surface run-off and are ;njurious to
health.

• Radioactive Materials. Mining and ores processing, power plants, weapons

production and natural Bive rise to radioactive pollution like that of uranium, thorium,
cesium, iodine and radon. Radioactive pollution causes serious health diseases to all
organisms.
Sediments - Sedimentation of soil, silt due to land erosion and deposition causes
• disruption in ecosynem.

• Plant Nutrients - Nutrients like nitrates, phosphates, and ammonium are let out from
agricultural and urban fertilizers, sewage and manure.

• Animal Manure and Plant Residues- These substances in water causes increased
algal blooms and microorganism population. This increases oxygen demand of water,
affecting aquatic ecosystem. This is introduced into water due to sewage, agricultural
run-off, paper mills, food processing etc.
EFFECTS OF WATER POLLUTION
• Water pollution extensively affects health in humans and aquatic
ecosystems.
• Groundwater contamination causes reproductive and fertility disorders in
wildlife ecosystems.
• Sewage, fertilizer and agricultural run-off has nutrients, organic
substances which lead to increase of algal bloom causing oxygen
depletion. The lower oxygen levels affect the natural ecological balance of
rivers and lake ecosystem.
• Consumption and swimming in contaminated water causes skin diseases,
cancer, reproductive problems, stomach ailments in humans.
• Industrial effluents and agricultural pesticides accumulate in aquatic
environments causing harm to aquatic animals and lead to
biomagnifications. Heavy metals like mercury, lead are poisonous to small
children and women. These chemicals interfere in the development of
nervous system ln fetuses and young children.
EFFECTS OF WATER POLLUTION

• Rising water temperatures destroy aquatic ecosystem.

• Littering by humans like plastic bags, clog and suffocate aquatic animals.

• Water pollution causes soil erosion in streams, rivers and flooding due to
accumulation.
BIO-CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND(BOD)
A chemical procedure for determining how fast
biological organisms use up oxygen in a body of
water.
B O D can be used as a gauge of the
effectiveness
of wastewater treatment plants.

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD)

The requirements of oxygen needs to chemically oxidize

the organic matters in a water body.
THINGS TO REDUCE WATER POLLUTION
 Use of low phosphate-level detergents.
 Dispose of wastes(like tissue paper or odd trash) by putting them in trash bins rather
than flushing them down into drain.
 Use of native plants instead of hybrid ones. Because they require less amount
pesticides.
 Use organic fertilizers & pesticides.
 Conserve as much water as possible.
 Less use of plastics.
 Prevent oil erosion from occurring.
 Sewage treatment.
 Industrial waste water treatment.
 Agricultural waste water treatment.
 Sediment & Erosion control from construction sites.
 Control of urban runoff
 WASTEWATER TREATMENT PROCESSES
Prelimlnary treatment ;
The objective of preliminary treatment is the removal of coarse solids and other
large materials often found in raw wastewater.
Primary treatment :
The objective of primary treatment is the removal of settleable organic and inorganic
solids by sedimentation, and the removal of materials that will float (scum) by skimming
Secondary treatment:
The objective of secondary treatment is the further treatment of the effluent from primary
treatment to remove the residual organics and suspended solids.
Tertiary and/or advanced treatment:
Necessary to remove nitrogen, phosphorus, additional suspended solids,
refractory organics, heavy metals and dissolved solids
Disinfection:
By Chlorination
0-discharge:
The principle of zero discharge" is recycling of all industrial wastewater. This means that
wastewater will be treated and used again in the process. Because of the water reuse
wastewater will not be released on the sewer system or surface water.
 CONCLUSION

• Clearly, the problems associated with water pollution have the capabilities to
disrupt life on our planet to a great extent. The govt. has passed laws to try
to combat water pollution thus acknowledging the fact that water pollution
is, indeed, a seriousissue. But the government alone cannot solve the entire
problem. It is ultimately up to us, to be informed, responsible and involved
when it comes to the problems we face with our water. We must become
familiar with our local water resources and learn about ways for disposing
harmful household wastes so they don't end up in sewage t1·eatment plants
that can't handle them or landfills not designed to receive hazardous
materials.