Water Pollution

Amount of water in Ocean (salt)

• 70%

• 80%

• 97%

• 90%

Nutrient Pollution

• Excess Nitrogen and Phosphorus (usually from fertilizer or animal waste).

• High levels of Carbon Dioxide from industrial emissions.

• Increased levels of heavy metals from mining activities.

• Excessive water usage in agriculture.

Amount of water in glaciers/ice caps.

• 79% of freshwater or 2% total

• 50% of freshwater or 1% total

• 30% of freshwater or 0.5% total

• 90% of freshwater or 3% total

Thermal Pollution

• A sudden increase in water temperature, often from power plant cooling systems.

• A decrease in water temperature due to excessive rainfall.

• The introduction of harmful chemicals into water bodies.

• A natural process of water heating during summer months.

• A leaking pipe from a factory or a sewage treatment plant discharging into a river.

• Point or Nonpoint?

• Point-Source Pollution

• Nonpoint-Source Pollution

• Surface Water Pollution

• Groundwater Pollution

Plastic Pollution

• Natural materials that decompose easily.

• Synthetic materials (example: bottles/bags) that do not biodegrade.

• Organic waste that can be composted.

• Recyclable materials that can be reused indefinitely.

• Oil from city streets, fertilizer from thousands of lawns, or salt from winter roads.

• Point or Non-point?

• Point-Source Pollution

• Nonpoint-Source Pollution

• Industrial Pollution

• Agricultural Runoff

Why is Plastic Pollution bad?

• Animals often mistake them for food, leading to starvation or choking.

• It helps in the decomposition of organic materials.

• It provides a habitat for marine life.

• It reduces the need for recycling.

Biological/Microbial Pollution

• Pathogens like bacteria, viruses, or protozoa (often from raw sewage).

• Chemical contaminants from industrial waste.

• Heavy metals from mining activities.

• Nutrient runoff from agricultural fields.

Point-Source Pollution

• Pollution that comes from a single, specific location that you can point to.

• Pollution that is spread over a large area and cannot be traced to a single source.

• Pollution that comes from multiple sources and is difficult to identify.

• Pollution that occurs naturally and is not caused by human activity.