Question

What are the causes of water pollution?

Answer 1

Water pollution is caused due to several reasons. Here are the few major causes of water pollution:

(1) Discharge of sewage and waste water:

• Sewage, garbage and liquid waste of households, agricultural runoff, and effluents from factories are discharged into lakes and rivers.
• These wastes contain harmful chemicals and toxins which make the water poisonous for aquatic animals and plants.

(2) Dumping of solid wastes:

• The dumping of solid wastes and litter in water bodies cause huge problems.

(3) Discharge of industrial wastes:

• Industrial waste contains pollutants like asbestos, lead, mercury, grease oil and petrochemicals, which are extremely harmful to both people and environment.

(4) Oil Spill:

• Seawater gets polluted due to oil spilled from ships and tankers while traveling.
• The spilled oil does not dissolve in water and forms a thick sludge polluting the water.

(5) Acid rain:

• Acid rain is the pollution of water caused by air pollution.
• When the acidic particles caused by air pollution in the atmosphere mix with water vapor, it results in acid rain.

(6) Global warming:

• Due to global warming, there is an increase in water temperature as a result aquatic plants and animals are affected.

(7) Eutrophication:

• Eutrophication is an increased level of nutrients in water bodies.
• This results in the bloom of algae in the water.
• It also depletes the oxygen in the water which negatively affects fish and other aquatic animal populations.