impact on water Flashcards
(4 cards)
Aquifer
An area of permeable, sediment or rock that holds significant amounts of water
Sediment
Solid material that is moved, by water, and deposited in a new area.
Human water usage:
Thermoelectric power: 49%
Irrigation of crops: 31%
Public supply: 12%
Industry: 4%
Livestock, mining, and Aquaculture: less than 4%
Water pollution:
Agriculture runoff; contain fertilizers which upsets the balance of nutrients in bodies of water.
Industrial waste; contains toxic chemicals which harms aquatic organisms.
Urban runoff; contains pesticides, fertilizers, oil & gasoline, and bacteria & viruses, all of which can reduce the quality of surface water and groundwater.
Runoff from mines; contains metals which can contaminate surface and groundwater.
Oil spills; expose aquatic life to toxic chemicals and can also reduce the amount of oxygen in the water.
Construction runoff; contains excess sediment, this reduces the amount of light in the water as the rivers and streams become cloudy. This means less photosynthesis can occur.
Ocean Pollution:
Ocean pollution sources;
Runoff from land 44%
Airborne pollutants that originate on land 33%
Spills from shipping 12%
Dumping trash in the ocean 10%
Offshore mining and drilling 1%
Land-based pollution includes garbage, hazardous waste, and fertilizers. Airborne pollution that originates on land includes emissions from power plants or cars.
Ocean Garbage:
Solid waste; plastic bottles and bags, foam, and glass. Animals become entangled in this waste, some even eat it when they mistake it for food. It also enters circular currents and collects in large patches.
Excess sediment; large amounts of land based sediment washes into the oceans. This can clog the filters of filter feeders like clams.
Excess nutrients; from fertilizers that enter land runoff. This can cause too much algae to grow, this causes water to appear green, brown or red and sometimes even glow at night.
Solutions for water pollution:
Management solutions; government legislation to reduce water pollution.
What we can do; take shorter showers, turn the faucet off while you are brushing your teeth, fix leaking faucets, and recycling to prevent trash from entering the oceans.
hi
you done
yay
