Post 2 : Industrial, Agricultural, and Domestic Waste

Classification of water pollution sources


Agricultural waste is a non-point source of pollution. It is mostly caused from runoff and leaching of nitrogen-based fertilizers from farms. This runs off into streams, lakes, oceans, rivers, and groundwater, contaminating it and can cause serious damage to or destroy ecosystems. It is also point source because animals on farms produce a large amount of waste which directly pollutes the environment.



Industrial waste is a point source of pollution. Its common source of this type is from factories and manufacturing plants. The waste from these factories is disposed of and discharged into streams, lakes, or oceans, which spreads the pollutants. Also, they dump hot water, causing thermal pollution, which disrupts ecosystems and kills off some plant and animal species while overgrowing others. Much of the pollution is dumped directly into waters.



Domestic waste is a point source pollution because wastewater from homes is usually disposed of directly in bodies of water. Domestic waste can be from cleaning products to garbage. It also includes materials that can be recycled or biodegradable. It is household items that pollute the environment.

Repercussions of Each
Fertilizer runoff from farms and agriculture business run into streams and waters and cause algae blooms and dead zones in the waterways. The algae in the water feed off the nitrogen in the fertilizer and reproduce rapidly. This causes the algae to deplete the oxygen in the water, killing all animal marine life.
These wastes when not properly disposed, effect the atmosphere and can lead to the destruction of the ozone layer resulting in diseases such as cancer. Global warming, acid rain also effect the life on earth.
Domestic waste also affects drainage. When solid wastes are dumped in drainage channels and gutters, it blocks the flow of the sewerage. This may cause flooding. At the same time, solid wastes also affect soil drainage, which hinders the growing crops.
Indusrial waste causes changes in the landscape and visual discomfort, air pollution, pollution of surface waters, changes in soil fertility.


Prevenative Measures
Agricultural preventative measures
MEFRA (The Ministry of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) produced in 1991 a “Code of Good Agricultural Practice” to give farmers detailed advice on the treating, storing, and applying of animal livestock waste, the disposal of used and dirty water, fertilizers, fuel oil, pesticides, the disposal of animal carcasses, etc. Other things that are considered good practice are: reducing plowing in autumn, reducing the amount of fertilizers, and careful management of disposal of farm waste.
Domestic preventative measures
To begin, toxic products such as paint, automobile oil, polishes, and cleaning products should be stored and disposed of correctly. To clean the house, non-toxic products should be used. Dispose all trash in a proper manner and try to incorporate recycling into everyday life. Non-degradable products like tampons and sanitary napkins should not be flushed down the toilet, for these usually end up as litter on beaches. Refrain from throwing litter in streams, lakes, rivers, or seas. Try to use environmentally safe household products and natural fertilizers and pesticides. Lastly, conserve water by doing such things as turning off the tap when you don’t need running water, such as while brushing teeth.
Industrial Preventative measures
In the United States, the industries contribute to more than half of all water pollution. The cause of such drastic pollution is that many countries don’t treat the used water adequately before discharging it into local rivers and lakes. The harmful pollutants can then cause any of a list of grave diseases, such as diarrhea, cholera, hepatitis, dysentery, and salmonellosis. To prevent these harmful diseases from reaching people through polluted water, industries need to clean and treat water more effectively before releasing it.

Methods of detection, cause, and effect
Domestic Water Pollution
Run-off water carries dirt and silt that settle into bodies of water. These sediments prevent sunlight from reaching the aquatic plants below, and as a result, they perish. The sediment also smothers the marine life along the bottom, and clogs fishes’ gills. The cause of this is sewage is dumped into lakes and rivers without being properly treated.
Industrial Water Pollution
When released into drinking water, causes diseases such as diarrhea, cholrea, hepatitis, dysentery, and salmonellosis. The cause of this is industries dumping used water that is not treated correctly or enough.
Agricultural Water Pollution
Agricultural water pollution can cause such diseases as methemoglobinemia, or “blue baby syndrome,” where blood cannot deliver enough oxygen to the body. This disease is caused by the nitrate used as fertilizer to enhance the growth of crops, sometimes using animal wastes (also filled with nitrate) as well.

Proactive Measures
We can cut down on water pollution by taking just a few simple measures everyday. We can start by properly storing and disposing of toxic paints, automobile oil, cleaning chemicals, and polishes- and never throwing them out in the garbage can or pouring them down the sink. In fact, it is better to just use non-toxic or eco-friendly products as much as possible.
Also, trash should be disposed of properly, and incorporate recycling as a habit as much as possible. Refrain from littering, and dispose of non-degradable products properly.
Another proactive measure to preventing water pollution is to keep your car well maintained. Re-use automobile oil as much as you can, and check up on your car to make sure toxic chemicals, such as anti-freeze, are not leaking.
One of the ways to prevent water pollution is to not waste tap water. Turn off the sink as while you brush your teeth, and shorten your showers. This not only prevents water pollution, but it also lessens the amount of water that needs to be treated.

Cultural Beliefs and Facts
Asian rivers are the most polluted in the world. They have three times as many bacteria from human waste as the global average and 20 times more lead than rivers in industrialized countries. Thirty percent of Ireland's rivers are polluted with sewage or fertilizer. The King River is Australia's most polluted river, suffering from a severe acidic condition related to mining operations.100, 000 marine mammals, 1 million sea birds and other aquatic lives are killed due to plastic waste in water and coastal area. Bangladesh has some of the most polluted groundwater in the world. In this case, the contaminant is arsenic, which occurs naturally in the sediments. Around 85% of the total area of the country has contaminated groundwater, with at least 1.2 million Bangladeshis exposed to arsenic poisoning and with millions more at risk. Pollution of freshwater (drinking water) is a problem for about half of the world's population. Each year there are about 250 million cases of water-related diseases, with roughly 5 to 10 million deaths.

With over 70 percent of the planet covered by oceans, people have long acted as if these very bodies of water could serve as a limitless dumping ground for wastes. Raw sewage, garbage, and oil spills have begun to overwhelm the diluting capabilities of the oceans, and most coastal waters are now polluted. Beaches around the world are closed regularly, often because of high amounts of bacteria from sewage disposal, and marine wildlife is beginning to suffer. Water! From drinking a glass of cold water to power generation, water has so much utilitarian value that perhaps it would not be an understatement to say that when God thought about life probably he thought of water first. If we do not pay attention to these facts about water pollution, time is not far when from "blue planet" our earth will become "dirty blue planet."

Socioeconomic Considerations
Agricultural:
Agricultural waste can either hurt or help a society and the economy of a society. Without causing wastes, farmers could potentially lose their farms. The crops location and method of harvesting must be chosen properly and performed with perfection.
Industrial:
Small scale oilseed processing technology is used with many common foods such as pultry. It is sometimes costly to clean it completely.
Oil spills can pollute water and anything surrounding the spill. The oil loss must be reimbursed, and whatever is polluted must be cleaned or removed, using more money.


Domestic:
Waste management can be costly. Many people are needed to manage it. Running water for toilets is a basic economic problem for removing domestic waste. It costs money every flush of a toilet.


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