Water Pollution Impacts on the Environment

Friday, 11 April 2014

Vredefort Dam

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The Vredefort Dome case study focuses on a number of different factors that affect the environment. Vredefort Dome is situated on both sides of the Vaal River. Water pollution is Vredefort Dome’s biggest threat. The pollution is caused by the mining industries that release chemical waste products, higher up the river at Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging. The industries are located on/near the river banks. This affects the fragile bio-diversity in the river. Chemical mixtures and other water contaminants cause aquatic animals problems with breathing while on the other hand these chemicals can also be quite toxic for land animals once they drink this polluted water. The stench is a major turn off for visitors and residents that live in and around the area. We claim to have an issue but no one is “aware of it”.

This densely inhabited region impacts negatively on the river’s water quality. The quality of the river is a good sign of how life within the community treats it. It is a pointer of the socio-economic conditions and environmental awareness and attitude of its users. Everything that happens in an area is reflected in the quality of the water that flows through it, because the results of human activity and lifestyle ultimately end up in rivers, through runoff. The water we drink and use is taken from the Vaal Dam.

We are often told that the water in the Vaal River is of a good quality by international standards. From the Vaal Dam the water is transported via canals and pipelines to a water purification station. Rand water has two water purification stations in Vereeniging. When the water passes through the water purification process all the dirt particles are taken out of the water and all the germs are killed by disinfectant, chlorine. Once clean, the water is pumped into reservoirs and then it flows into our taps. It is there that you receive enough clean water.

But how sure are we that the water from the Vaal River that then flows into the Vaal Dam is 100% clean? When chemical toxins and waste materials are released into our main water source? When we buy seafood, how sure are we that the seafood hasn’t got a disease from the toxins or pieces of plastic particles in it? Research has shown that with all the chemicals used in purifying water, it will have a negative impact on the human body over time i.e. triggers cancer.

WWF: Pollution the Number One Killer

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WWF’s and Greenpeace campaigns have always been relevant. They always strike a nerve in whatever environmental issue they focus on. The adverts I will be focusing on are the WWF stopping water pollution “A tin single of paint can pollute millions of water” and Greenpeace “The greatest wonder of the sea that is still alive”. Firstly the WWF advert is very effective. The visual is massive paint bucket, bigger than a building placed/Photo shopped in a city’s river with paint gushing out into the river. It is an effective advert because it speaks the truth. This is what the human race is doing; directly and indirectly. We may think that chemicals, harmful substances and other types of unwanted materials are the only things that pollute our waters. But they are not. We are indirectly destroying our most precious asset but yet we are quick to complain how filthy it is. I personally feel that there aren’t enough awareness campaigns. The campaigns that are out there are not being shown/advertised in most developing countries i.e. India. If India was aware of the social campaigns I am sure there would have been progress. There aren’t enough media articles that stress the issue/problem. Herbert Blumer argues that “ostensibly harmful conditions are not recognised as such by the public and thus are ignored by sociologists’. In this case water pollution is made a public issue but some countries are not aware of it and thus ignored unintentionally (1971, 298).

GreenPeace Advert

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The Greenpeace advert focuses on the fact that sooner or later we won’t have any sea life that will be alive. Not just in the oceans but in our rivers, dams and lakes. In fact the species will be extinct. All that would be left would be the solid waste materials and a mixture of poisonous chemicals as our “ocean”. What would we use to quench our thirst? It is sad how the media points out these issues but people still choose to ignore them or find them relevant. The truth is, if people continue to litter and pollute our water we will end up with oceans and rivers without and marine life and just the pollutants.

Wednesday, 9 April 2014

Taking The Environment For Granted

Water pollution is the uncleanness of water i.e. oceans, dams, lakes, rivers, aquifers and groundwater. Water pollution arises when contaminants are directly or indirectly discharged into water bodies without adequate management to remove harmful complexes. Solid wastes are dumped into these water bodies throughout the world. Water pollution distresses plants and living organisms, living in these bodies of water. In nearly all cases the result is unsafe not only to individual species and populations.

The root cause of pollution is agricultural development, population growth, urbanization and industrialization. It has been advocated that it is the top worldwide reason of major deaths and diseases. It accounts for the deaths of 14,000+ deaths day-to-day. In most regions it is not the lack of regulations but their weak enforcement that hinders progress. In this essay I will be discussing and unpacking water pollution as an environmental issue which has always been highlighted in the media.

The eco system cannot cope with the increasing levels of water pollution caused by different chemicals and other types of waste. The substances that cause water pollution can be divided into two main groups- germs and chemicals. Germs are micro-organisms that cause illnesses such as cholera, malaria and bilharzia mixed with poisons which are mainly produced and released by industrial sectors. Humans are using more and more materials that are polluting the water sources that we drink from.

Water pollution is a major global problematic issue which requires on-going evaluation and revision of water resource policy at all levels. Dirty water is the world's leading health hazard and continues to threaten both quality life and public well-being. The issue with water pollution is the fact that in numerous countries, great industries still pursue to dump different sorts of waste into streams. Litter in nearby streams ultimately ends up in the local rivers. The growth is due to lack of environmental awareness. Every day, two million tons of sewage excess is discharged into the world’s water. It is equivalent of the weight of the entire human population. There has been a formation of an environmental monitoring programme that includes the following [World Water Day]: