INTRODUCTION

According to Chris Woodford (March, 2019) Over two thirds of Earth's surface is
covered by water, less than a third is taken up by land. As Earth's population continues
to grow, people are putting ever increasing pressure on the planet's water resources.
In a sense, our oceans, rivers, and other inland waters are being "squeezed" by human
activities but so their quality is reduced. Poorer water quality means water pollution.
We know that pollution is a human problem because it is a relatively recent
development in the planet's history. Before the 19th century Industrial Revolution,
people lived more in harmony with their immediate environment. As industrialization
has spread around the globe, so the problem of pollution has spread with it. When
Earth's population was much smaller, no one believed pollution would ever present a
serious problem. It was once popularly believed that the oceans were far too big to
pollute. Today, with around 7 billion people on the planet, it has become apparent that
there are limits. Pollution is one of the signs that humans have exceeded those limits.
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies, usually as a result of human
activities. Water bodies include for example lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers and
groundwater. Water pollution results when contaminants are introduced into the
natural environment. For example, releasing inadequately treated wastewater into
natural water bodies can lead to degradation of aquatic ecosystems. In turn, this can
lead to public health problems for people living downstream. They may use the same
polluted river water for drinking or bathing or irrigation. Water pollution is the leading
worldwide cause of death and disease, e.g. due to water-borne diseases. Water
pollution can be grouped into surface water pollution. Marine pollution and nutrient
pollution are subsets of water pollution. Sources of water pollution are either point-
sources and non-point sources. Point sources have one identifiable cause of the
pollution, such as a storm drain, wastewater treatment plant or stream. Non-
pointsources are more diffuse, such as agricultural runoff. Pollution is the result of the
cumulative effect over time. All plants and organisms living in or being exposed to
polluted water bodies can be impacted. The effects can damage individual species
and impact the natural biological communities they are part of.
Causes of Water Pollution
Sewage from domestic households, factories and commercial buildings Sewage that
is treated in water treatment plants is often disposed into the sea. Sewage can be
more problematic when people flush chemicals and pharmaceutical substances down
the toilet. Dumping solid wastes and littering by humans in rivers, lakes and oceans.
Littering items include cardboard, Styrofoam, aluminium, plastic and glass. Industrial
waste from factories, which use freshwater to carry waste from the plant into rivers,
contaminates waters with pollutants such as asbestos, lead, mercury and
petrochemicals. Oil Pollution caused by oil spills from tankers and oil from ship travel.
Oil does not dissolve in water and forms a thick sludge. Burning fossil fuels into the air
causes the formation of acidic particles in the atmosphere. When these particles mix
with water vapor, the result is acid rain. An increase in water temperature is caused
by global warming and thermal plants that use lakes and rivers to cool down
mechanical equipment.
Effects of Water Pollution
Groundwater contamination from pesticides causes reproductive damage within
wildlife in ecosystems. Sewage, fertilizer, and agricultural run-off contain organic
materials that when discharged into waters, increase the growth of algae, which
causes the depletion of oxygen. The low oxygen levels are not able to support most
indigenous organisms in the area and therefore upset the natural ecological balance
in rivers and lakes. Swimming in and drinking contaminated water causes skin rashes
and health problems like cancer, reproductive problems, typhoid fever and stomach
sickness in humans. Which is why it’s very important to make sure that your water is
clean and safe to drink. Industrial chemicals and agricultural pesticides that end up in
aquatic environments can accumulate in fish that are later eaten by humans. Fish are
easily poisoned with metals that are also later consumed by humans. Mercury is
particularly poisonous to small children and women. Mercury has been found to
interfere with the development of the nervous system in fetuses and young children.
Ecosystems are destroyed by the rising temperature in the water, as coral reefs are
affected by the bleaching effect due to warmer temperatures. Additionally, the warm
water forces indigenous water species to seek cooler water in other areas, causing an
ecological damaging shift of the affected area. Human-produced litter of items such as
plastic bags and 6-pack rings can get aquatic animals caught and killed from
suffocation. Water pollution causes flooding due to the accumulation of solid waste
and soil erosion in streams and rivers. Oil spills in the water causes animal to die when
they ingest it or encounter it. Oil does not dissolve in water so it causes suffocation in
fish and birds.
Mitigation measures of Water Pollution
There are many approaches that could be adopted in water pollution control and
management. It could be through prevention, practice efforts or join a project/program,
regulation and monitoring or engaging in control measures by reducing or minimizing
waste. Prevention of water pollution in an individual position according to Wikipedia
includes washing one’s car far away from any storm water drains. Not throwing throw
trash, chemicals or solvents into sewer drains and inspecting one’s septic system
every 3 to 5 years. One should also avoid using pesticides and fertilizers that can run
off into water systems. There are many mitigation measures that can be taken to
prevent and manage water pollution.
Another way is to join or get involved with pollution prevention is to practice efforts on
your own or join projects or programme. Some of these are available with the
Environmental Protection Agency website (EPA). Regulation and monitoring is an
effective way of pollution management. Many nations worldwide have enacted
legislation to regulate various types of pollution as well as to mitigate the adverse
effects of pollution. Pollution control means to control the emissions and effluents into
the air, water and land or soil. Without pollution control, the waster products from
consumptions, heating, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, transportation and other
human activities, whether they accumulate or disperse, will degrade the environment.
Pollution prevention and waste minimization are more desirable than pollution control.
However, pollution could be minimized by recycling, reusing, waste minimization,
mitigating, preventing and by compost. Apart from all these mentioned above, you can
also use pollution control devices which include Dust collection system e.g. bag
houses, cyclones, electrostatic precipitators, scrubbers e.g. baffle spray scrubber,
ejector venture scrubber, mechanically aided scrubbers, spray tower, wet scrubber,
sewage treatment e.g. sedimentation (primary treatment), activated sludge bio filters
(secondary treatment, also used for industrial waste water), aerated lagoons,
constructed wetlands (also used in urban runoff); industrial wastewater treatment e.g.
ultra filtration, API oil-water separators, bio filters, dissolved air flotation (DAF),
powdered activated carbon treatment. The last but not the least are vapour recovery
system and phytoremediation.
Conclusion
Water pollution is an environmental problem that is of major concern to us in South
Africa and the world at large. Human contribution to water pollution is enormous by
way of defecation, dumping of refuse, industrial wastes and washing of clothes etc.
(De Walde, 1998) apparently, environmental education is of immense importance to
use particularly in schools and should have a place in the school curriculum.
In this way they will be less inclined to pollute our waters. It is pertinent that
environmental education is introduced in schools and be made compulsory. Federal,
State and Local Government should establish agencies to monitor our environment
and equally to be sure that our environment is kept clean and free from refuge dumps.
Industrial homes or family should equally inculcate a hygienic environment particularly
in their vicinity, according to be adage that says charity beings at home. Our industries
should go advance in trying to recycle these wastes instead of dumping them for rain
water to sweep these refuses into our rivers and streams making them undrinkable.
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