Water contamination occurs when pollutants contaminate water sources and render the water unfit for use in drinking, cooking, cleaning, swimming, and other activities. Chemicals, garbage, bacteria, and parasites are examples of pollutants. Water is eventually contaminated by all types of pollution.
1. Dispose of Toxic Chemicals Properly
Pesticides, cleansers, and household chemicals might not seem like such a big deal. But numerous chemicals, including bleach, paint, paint thinner, ammonia, and others, are becoming a significant issue. The impacts build up if you add up millions of people flushing or dumping harmful chemicals down the toilet each month. Because of this, proper disposal is crucial. Many chemicals used in the home can be recycled. It’s possible that your neighbourhood has a recycling facility where you may recycle old paint, used motor oil, and other chemicals. There are also drop-off locations and community collection centres in some places. There may even be a hazardous waste collection day in your neighbourhood where you can drop off those dangerous old chemicals for proper disposal.
2. Do Not Pour Fat and Grease Down the Drain
Used cooking oil, grease, and other solid waste should be disposed away with normal trash or preserved in a “fat jar.” It’s possible for your pipes to clog, causing sewer lines to back up into basements and yards. Local bodies of water are also contaminated by the pollution.
3. Check Your Sump Pump or Cellar Drain
These devices occasionally discharge into the town’s sanitary sewer lines. Through this connection, the system is flooded with biological wastes, heavy metals, cleaning agents, and more. Asking the city’s pollution control department should help you find out if you have a sump pump or cellar drain and are unsure of where they discharge to.
4. Eat More Organic Food
Organic foods can be treated with chemicals, but they are typically manufactured using few synthetic chemicals. Organic food consumption lowers the amount of chemical pollution that enters the water supply. Due to the chemicals used in food production, the fuel used to transport the crops, and the fuel used to run farm machinery on industrial farms, the food we choose to eat has a significant impact on environmental quality.
5. Support Environmental Charities
There are charities focusing on topics like watershed protection, water pollution cleaning, and similar ones no matter where you live in the nation. Find a local organisation that is active and donate to it annually. Your assistance might potentially result in more anti-pollution efforts.
6. Shop with Water Pollution in Mind
By initially refraining from purchasing goods that include hazardous and persistent chemicals, you can avoid problems with household chemicals and pesticides. Non-toxic, biodegradable cleansers and insecticides are now widely available from numerous businesses. By paying a little more for certain items, water pollution is automatically reduced.
7. Use Phosphate-Free Detergent and Dish Cleaner
By using only the necessary amount of these cleansers to complete the task, you may reduce water pollution even further. There are other dangerous compounds in cleaners than phosphorus. Phosphates decrease the amount of oxygen in the water, which kills fish and other aquatic species and causes algal blooms.
8. Dispose of Medical Waste Properly
Never dispose of medications in the nearby pond or creek, and never flush them down the toilet. Drugs have a tendency to build up in the water, as well as in fish and other species. Hormones and other substances wind up contaminating human and livestock drinking water as well as generating a variety of health issues in fish and birds.
9. Report Water Polluters
Unreported and frequently uncleaned up occurrences of illicit trash disposal and other types of water pollution are common. Report those who dump oil down storm drains, throw garbage bags into streams, etc.
10. Cut Down on Meat Consumption
It requires a lot of water to raise animals for meat, both to keep them alive and to provide them with the grains and other meals they require. Additionally, both solid waste and antibiotics frequently find their way into rivers and groundwater.