SlideShare a Scribd company logo

Water Pollution -Part 4.pptx

•Download as PPTX, PDF•
•
D
DrSafiurRahman

Water has the chemical formula H2O, making it an inorganic substance. It is the primary chemical component of the Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living things (in which it serves as a solvent[1]). It is transparent, flavorless, odorless, and almost colorless. In spite of not providing food, energy, or organic micronutrients, it is essential for all known forms of life. Its molecules are made up of two hydrogen atoms joined by covalent bonds and have the chemical formula H2O.

1 of 20
Download to read offline
WATER POLLUTION –Part 4
OCEAN POLLUTION • Harmful algal blooms (HAB) are caused by explosive growth of harmful algae from sewage and agricultural runoff. Figure 21-11
Ocean Pollution
Ocean Garbage Patches • Form in ocean gyres • Have high concentration of plastic pelagic garbage in upper water columns • The plastics break down to molecular sizes and get into the food chain • For more information: Photo courtesy of AP / Scripps Institution of Oceanography / Mario Aguilera en:Image:Oceanic gyres.png. Marine Debris Program - Marine Debris Info
Oxygen Depletion in the Northern Gulf of Mexico • A large zone of oxygen-depleted water forms for half of the year in the Gulf of Mexico as a result of HAB. This is called the “Dead Zone.” Figure 21-A
Has anything been done? • 50 countries with at least 80% of the world’s merchant fleet have agreed not to dump sewage and garbage at sea, but this agreement is difficult to enforce and is often violated • London Dumping Convention of 1972- 100 countries agreed not to dump highly toxic pollutants and high-level radioactive wastes in the open sea beyond the boundaries of their national jurisdictions.
OCEAN OIL POLLUTION • Most ocean oil pollution comes from human activities on land. – Studies have shown it takes about 3 years for many forms of marine life to recover from large amounts of crude oil (oil directly from ground). – Recovery from exposure to refined oil (fuel oil, gasoline, etc…) can take 10-20 years for marine life to recover.
OCEAN OIL POLLUTION • Tanker accidents and blowouts at offshore drilling rigs can be extremely devastating to marine life (especially diving birds, left). Figure 21-13
Oil and the Ocean cont. • The effects of oil on ocean ecosystems depend on a number of factors: type of oil, amount released, distance of release from shore, time of year, weather conditions, average water temperature, and ocean currents. • Spills can result in the death of numerous aquatic organisms.
Cleaning Up Oil Spills • Mechanical Methods: – Floating booms to contain the oil spills or keep it from reaching sensitive areas – Skimmer boats to vacuum up some of the oil into collection barges – Absorbent pads or large feather-filled pillows to soak up oil on beaches or in shallow water.
Cleaning Up Oil Spills cont. • Chemical Methods: – Coagulating agents to cause floating oil to clump together for easier pickup or sink to the bottom where it will do less harm – Dispersing agents to break up oil slicks
Cleaning Up Oil Spills cont. • Fire can burn off floating oil, but this method causes more harm than good (air pollution). • Natural Action: – Wind and waves will mix oil with water – Bacteria will biodegrade some of the oil
Gulf Oil Spill Deepwater Horizon rig in flames, last April. Burning off surface oil Seabird caught in the oil slick on a beach on Louisiana's East Grand Terre Island
http://nanopatentsandinnovations.blogspot.com/2010/06/gulf-oil-spill-transcript-national.html Graphic shows efforts to reduce effects of oil spill
Oil Pollution Act • It has strengthened the government’s ability to prevent and respond to catastrophic oil spills. • It provides the money and resources necessary to respond to oil spills. A trust fund financed by a tax on oil is available to clean up spills when the responsible party is incapable or unwilling to do so (the largest source of income for the fund is from the 5-cents-per-barrel tax on imported and domestic oil). • Requires oil storage facilities and vessels to submit to the federal government plans detailing how they will respond to large discharges. • The OPA also requires the development of Area Contingency Plans to prepare and plan for oil spill response on a regional scale. • The Oil Pollution Act caused a major restructuring of the oil industry
Fig. 21-14, p. 509 Reduce input of toxic pollutants Solutions Coastal Water Pollution Prevention Cleanup Use wetlands, solar-aquatic, or other methods to treat sewage Require at least secondary treatment of coastal sewage Sprinkle nanoparticles over an oil or sewage spill to dissolve the oil or sewage without creating harmful by-products (still under development) Improve oil-spill cleanup capabilities Recycle used oil Regulate coastal development Protect sensitive areas from development, oil drilling, and oil shipping Ban ocean dumping of sludge and hazardous dredged material Ban dumping of wastes and sewage by maritime and cruise ships in coastal waters Separate sewage and storm lines Require double hulls for oil tankers
PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION: The Clean Water Act • Reduces direct pollutant discharges into waterways • Finances municipal wastewater treatment facilities • Manages polluted runoff – Goal is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters • Originally focused on regulating discharges from point source facilities and not non-point sources
PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION: The Clean Water Act • Starting in the late 1980s, efforts to address polluted runoff have increased significantly. • Evolution of CWA programs has also included shift from a program-by-program, source-by-source, pollutant-by- pollutant approach to more holistic watershed-based strategies. • Emphasis now on protecting healthy waters and restoring impaired ones. http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/wacademy/acad2000/cwa/
PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION • The key to reducing nonpoint pollution – most of it from agriculture – is to prevent it from reaching bodies of water. – Farmers can reduce runoff by planting buffers and locating feedlots away from steeply sloped land, flood zones, and surface water.
The Nitrogen Cycle: Bacteria in Action Figure 3-29 http://www.epa.gov/maia/html/nitrogen.ht ml

More Related Content

Water Pollution -Part 4.pptx

  • 2. OCEAN POLLUTION • Harmful algal blooms (HAB) are caused by explosive growth of harmful algae from sewage and agricultural runoff. Figure 21-11
  • 4. Ocean Garbage Patches • Form in ocean gyres • Have high concentration of plastic pelagic garbage in upper water columns • The plastics break down to molecular sizes and get into the food chain • For more information: Photo courtesy of AP / Scripps Institution of Oceanography / Mario Aguilera en:Image:Oceanic gyres.png. Marine Debris Program - Marine Debris Info
  • 5. Oxygen Depletion in the Northern Gulf of Mexico • A large zone of oxygen-depleted water forms for half of the year in the Gulf of Mexico as a result of HAB. This is called the “Dead Zone.” Figure 21-A
  • 6. Has anything been done? • 50 countries with at least 80% of the world’s merchant fleet have agreed not to dump sewage and garbage at sea, but this agreement is difficult to enforce and is often violated • London Dumping Convention of 1972- 100 countries agreed not to dump highly toxic pollutants and high-level radioactive wastes in the open sea beyond the boundaries of their national jurisdictions.
  • 7. OCEAN OIL POLLUTION • Most ocean oil pollution comes from human activities on land. – Studies have shown it takes about 3 years for many forms of marine life to recover from large amounts of crude oil (oil directly from ground). – Recovery from exposure to refined oil (fuel oil, gasoline, etc…) can take 10-20 years for marine life to recover.
  • 8. OCEAN OIL POLLUTION • Tanker accidents and blowouts at offshore drilling rigs can be extremely devastating to marine life (especially diving birds, left). Figure 21-13
  • 9. Oil and the Ocean cont. • The effects of oil on ocean ecosystems depend on a number of factors: type of oil, amount released, distance of release from shore, time of year, weather conditions, average water temperature, and ocean currents. • Spills can result in the death of numerous aquatic organisms.
  • 10. Cleaning Up Oil Spills • Mechanical Methods: – Floating booms to contain the oil spills or keep it from reaching sensitive areas – Skimmer boats to vacuum up some of the oil into collection barges – Absorbent pads or large feather-filled pillows to soak up oil on beaches or in shallow water.
  • 11. Cleaning Up Oil Spills cont. • Chemical Methods: – Coagulating agents to cause floating oil to clump together for easier pickup or sink to the bottom where it will do less harm – Dispersing agents to break up oil slicks
  • 12. Cleaning Up Oil Spills cont. • Fire can burn off floating oil, but this method causes more harm than good (air pollution). • Natural Action: – Wind and waves will mix oil with water – Bacteria will biodegrade some of the oil
  • 13. Gulf Oil Spill Deepwater Horizon rig in flames, last April. Burning off surface oil Seabird caught in the oil slick on a beach on Louisiana's East Grand Terre Island
  • 15. Oil Pollution Act • It has strengthened the government’s ability to prevent and respond to catastrophic oil spills. • It provides the money and resources necessary to respond to oil spills. A trust fund financed by a tax on oil is available to clean up spills when the responsible party is incapable or unwilling to do so (the largest source of income for the fund is from the 5-cents-per-barrel tax on imported and domestic oil). • Requires oil storage facilities and vessels to submit to the federal government plans detailing how they will respond to large discharges. • The OPA also requires the development of Area Contingency Plans to prepare and plan for oil spill response on a regional scale. • The Oil Pollution Act caused a major restructuring of the oil industry
  • 16. Fig. 21-14, p. 509 Reduce input of toxic pollutants Solutions Coastal Water Pollution Prevention Cleanup Use wetlands, solar-aquatic, or other methods to treat sewage Require at least secondary treatment of coastal sewage Sprinkle nanoparticles over an oil or sewage spill to dissolve the oil or sewage without creating harmful by-products (still under development) Improve oil-spill cleanup capabilities Recycle used oil Regulate coastal development Protect sensitive areas from development, oil drilling, and oil shipping Ban ocean dumping of sludge and hazardous dredged material Ban dumping of wastes and sewage by maritime and cruise ships in coastal waters Separate sewage and storm lines Require double hulls for oil tankers
  • 17. PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION: The Clean Water Act • Reduces direct pollutant discharges into waterways • Finances municipal wastewater treatment facilities • Manages polluted runoff – Goal is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters • Originally focused on regulating discharges from point source facilities and not non-point sources
  • 18. PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION: The Clean Water Act • Starting in the late 1980s, efforts to address polluted runoff have increased significantly. • Evolution of CWA programs has also included shift from a program-by-program, source-by-source, pollutant-by- pollutant approach to more holistic watershed-based strategies. • Emphasis now on protecting healthy waters and restoring impaired ones. http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/wacademy/acad2000/cwa/
  • 19. PREVENTING AND REDUCING SURFACE WATER POLLUTION • The key to reducing nonpoint pollution – most of it from agriculture – is to prevent it from reaching bodies of water. – Farmers can reduce runoff by planting buffers and locating feedlots away from steeply sloped land, flood zones, and surface water.
  • 20. The Nitrogen Cycle: Bacteria in Action Figure 3-29 http://www.epa.gov/maia/html/nitrogen.ht ml