Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.

1 Water Pollution Notes 3/6 Contaminant- Anything in the water deleterious to a particular end use regardless of its origin whether it occurs in the watershed source or in a water supply Pollutant- Anything in the water deleterious to a particular end use that is of anthropogenic origin o Subset of contaminant Water Pollution- Any chemical, biological and physical change in water quality that has a harmful effect on living organisms or makes it unusable for agriculture o Massive quantity of pollutants produced by humans, their machines, plants and animals Types of pollution o Pollution of Streams and Lakes Agriculture- largest source of water pollution in U.S (64% streams, 57% lakes) o Ocean pollution o Groundwater pollution o Drinking water quality o Waste water treatment o Water Legislation Sources of pollution o Point- factories, sewage treatment plants, mines, oil wells, etc. o Nonpoint- acid deposition, substances picked up in runoff, seepage intro groundwater, etc. Sources of pollution o Disease causing agents- pathogens o Oxygen demanding agents- organic waste; manure o Water soluble inorganic chemicals- acids, toxic metals o Inorganic plant nutrients- nitrogen/phosphorus o Organic chemicals- oil, pesticides, detergents o Sediment- erosion and soil o Radioactive Isotopes- radon/uranium o Heat- electric and nuclear power plants o Genetic Pollution Disease-causing Agens o Waterborne Bacteria Escherichia coli Vibrio sp. o Waterborne Protozoans Giardia sp.

Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.1 o P. Darben Oxygen demanding agents o Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) Oxygen is removed from water when organic matter is consumed by bacteria Low oxygen may kill fish and other organisms Sources of organic matter Natural inputs- bogs, swamps, leaf fall Human inputs- pulp and paper mills, meat-packing plants Nonpoint inputs- runoff from urban areas Water-soluble inorganic chemicals o Heavy metals Metallic elements w/ density greater than 5g/cm3 Most are extremely toxic Readily absorbed into plant or animal tissue Combine with biomolecules (proteins/nucleic acids) o Acid rain Term to describe ways that acids fall out of atmosphere Wet deposition refers to acidic rain, fog and snow Dry deposition refers to acidic gas and particles Causes Sulfur dioxide SO2 and nitrogen oxide NOx 2/3 from sulfur dioxide and from nitrogen oxide from electric power from fossil fuels Measured using pH scale Affects sensitive bodies of water, located in watersheds At pH 5, fish eggs cannot hatch Lower pH, adult fish die Inorganic Plant Nutrients o Phosphorus and Nitrogen Human, animal and industrial waste Storm water Soil erosion Excessive use of fertilizers Eutrophication Organic Chemicals o Biological Magnification Concentrations increase at increasing levels in the food chain- PCBs, DDT, etc. o Degradable: that can be chemically decomposed: decomposable plastic wastes

Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.1 Phyto: decomposed by exposure to light Bio: decomposed by biological agents, especially bacteria Sediment or Suspended Material o Erosion Sediment is #1 source of water pollution Sediment loading effects Destruction of spawning Absorption and transport of other pollutants Reduced light penetration Radioactive Isotopes o China Sydrome Reactor meltdown, uranium melt through bottom of reactor and sink 50 feet into earth Molten uranium reacts with groundwater, producing large explosions Heat o Thermal pollution Water is withdrawn and used for cooling purposes, heated water returned to original source Increase in temperature may alter aquatic ecosystems o Waste Heat Pollutant as dangerous to waters as more tangible forms of waste Industrial cooling waters is first order source of heat Nuclear plants- waste even high proportion of heat Genetic pollution o Hydrillia Dense mats alter water quality Grow with less light and fewer nutrients, can outcompete Fish population negatively affected if hydrilla exceeds 30%-40% coverage of lake Pollution of Streams and Lakes o Rivers Easy targets for dumping of sewage Many rivers so polluted that few species can live in them o Flowing water can recover rapidly by dilution and decay o Eutrophication Accelerated with human input of nutrients o Pollution of Streams and Lakes Laws of 1970s increased quality of wastewater treatment plants Ocean Pollution o Ocean Pollution

Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.1 Half world lives within 100km of oceans 35% waste discharged untreated in ocean waters Ocean is ultimate repository of waste o Pollution in Coastal Waters Coastal waters highly affected by pollution Heavily used Close to sources of pollution Shallow-water bodies Not well circulated o Types of Ocean Pollution Oil, sewage, DDT/PCB, Mercury o Petroleum Oil spills can be caused by tanker accidents, intentional dumping, drilling Groundwater Pollution o Groundwater pollution Greater threat to humans that much more visible surface water pollution Groundwater renewed slowly 25% usable groundwater contaminated in U.S Difficult to clean up contaminated groundwater o Prevention Reduce sources that feed into the aquifer Monitor aquifers near landfills Require leak detection systems Ban or strictly regulate disposal of wastes Drinking Water Quality o Drinking Water Quality Much of drinking water is contaminated U.S Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974 requires EPA to est. national drinking water standards Bottled water is more contaminated than tap water o Water Quality Standards EPA sets Maximum Contaminant Levels for drinking water Standards for numerous contaminants, two cause immediate health threat Coliform Bacteria- indicate presence of disease causing organisms Nitrate- Cause blue baby syndrome nitrate reacts with blood and blood cant carry oxygen o Water Treatment Stages Screening, aeration, pH correction, Coagulation, sedimentation, prechlorination and dechlorination, filtration, disinfection, pH adjustment

Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.1 Screening: removal of any coarse floating objects Aeration: dissolving oxygen into water to remove smell and taste pH correction: preparing for coagulation and to precipitate metals Coagulation: causes agglomeration and sedimentation of suspended solids through the addition of a coagulating agent Sedimentation: floc settles out and is scraped and vacuumed off the bed of large sedimentation tanks Pre/dechlorination: kill algae that clog water filters Disinfection: water completely free of suspended sediment is treated with oxidizing agent, usually chlorine Waste Water Treatment o Treatment Objectives Wastewater treatment systems take human and industrial liquid wastes and make them safe o Sewage or Wastewater treatment Composed of sewage or wastewater from Domestic used water and toilet waste Rain Industrial effluent Livestock wastes o Wastewater Treatment Septic Tanks- treat small volumes of waste WWTPs- treat larger volumes of municipal or industrial waste Water Legislation o Water Quality Standards Standards are a function of Ability to detect and remove contaminants Understanding of actual or possible impacts U.S EPA recorded 700 contaminants that have been found in drinking water EPA requires monitoring and reporting of 83 variables and set MCLs o Legal Attempts to Control Water Pollution Clean Water Act 1977 Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Ac 1987 Federal Water Pollution Control Act 1972 Safe Drinking Water Act, 1974 amended 1996

Kenny Truong 3/7/14 Ogo P.1 London Dumping Convention, 1975 is the international treaty regulation disposal of wastes MARPOL 73/78 implemented in the U.S by Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships under lead of U.S Coast Guard