Report On

Water
Pollution

Prepared by
Yash Tyagi
150207
Civil

Greater Noida Institute Of

Technology

Report On
Water
Pollution
Submitted
Submitted
Yash Tyagi
Dr.Ritu
Sharma
150207
Civil
Greater noida institute of technology

By
to

Acknowledge
ment
I have taken efforts in this project. However, it would
not have been possible without the kind support and
help of many individuals and organizations. I would
like to extend my sincere thanks to all of them.

I am highly indebted to (Dr.Ritu Sharma) for their

guidance and constant supervision as well as for
providing necessary information regarding the
project & also for their support in completing the
project.
I would like to express my gratitude towards my
parents & member of (Greater Noida Institute of
Information And Technology)for their kind cooperation and encouragement which help me in
completion of this project.

I would like to express my special gratitude and

thanks to institute persons for giving me such
attention and time.
My thanks and appreciations also go to my colleague
in developing the project and people who have
willingly helped me out with their abilities.

Abstract
Background
The study conducts statistical and spatial analyses to investigate amounts and types of permitted surface
water pollution discharges in relation to population mortality rates for cancer and non-cancer causes
nationwide and by urban-rural setting. Data from the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) Discharge
Monitoring Report (DMR) were used to measure the location, type, and quantity of a selected set of 38
discharge chemicals for 10,395 facilities across the contiguous US. Exposures were refined by weighting
amounts of chemical discharges by their estimated toxicity to human health, and by estimating the
discharges that occur not only in a local county, but area-weighted discharges occurring upstream in the
same watershed. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) mortality files were used to measure
age-adjusted population mortality rates for cancer, kidney disease, and total non-cancer causes. Analysis
included multiple linear regressions to adjust for population health risk covariates. Spatial analyses were
conducted by applying geographically weighted regression to examine the geographic relationships
between releases and mortality.

Results
Greater non-carcinogenic chemical discharge quantities were associated with significantly higher noncancer mortality rates, regardless of toxicity weighting or upstream discharge weighting. Cancer mortality
was higher in association with carcinogenic discharges only after applying toxicity weights. Kidney disease
mortality was related to higher non-carcinogenic discharges only when both applying toxicity weights and
including upstream discharges. Effects for kidney mortality and total non-cancer mortality were stronger in
rural areas than urban areas. Spatial results show correlations between non-carcinogenic discharges and

cancer mortality for much of the contiguous United States, suggesting that chemicals not currently
recognized as carcinogens may contribute to cancer mortality risk. The geographically weighted regression
results suggest spatial variability in effects, and also indicate that some rural communities may be
impacted by upstream urban discharges.

Conclusions
There is evidence that permitted surface water chemical discharges are related to population mortality.
Toxicity weights and upstream discharges are important for understanding some mortality effects.
Chemicals not currently recognized as carcinogens may nevertheless play a role in contributing to cancer
mortality risk. Spatial models allow for the examination of geographic variability not captured through the
regression models.

Table of Content
1.
Introduct
ion
2.
Categori
es
3.
Causes

4.
5.
6.

7.

Effect
Measure
ment
Control
of
Pollution
Referenc
e

Introduction
Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies
(e.g. lakes,rivers, oceans, aquifers and groundwater). This form of environmental degradation occurs

when pollutants are directly or indirectly discharged into water bodies without adequate treatment to
remove harmful compounds.
Water pollution affects the entire biosphere plants and organisms living in these bodies of water. In
almost all cases the effect is damaging not only to individual species and population, but also to the
natural biological communities.

Water pollution is a major global problem which requires ongoing evaluation and revision of water
resource policy at all levels (international down to individual aquifers and wells). It has been
suggested that water pollution is the leading worldwide cause of deaths and diseases, and that it
accounts for the deaths of more than 14,000 people daily. An estimated 580 people in India die of
water pollution related illness every day. About 90 percent of the water in the cities of China is
polluted. As of 2007, half a billion Chinese had no access to safe drinking water. In addition to the
acute problems of water pollution in developing countries,developed countries also continue to
struggle with pollution problems. For example, in the most recent national report on water quality in
the United States, 45 percent of assessed stream miles, 47% of assessed lake acres, and 32 percent
of assessedbays and estuarine square miles were classified as polluted. The head of China's national
development agency said in 2007 that one quarter the length of China's seven main rivers were so
poisoned the water harmed the skin.

Water is typically referred to as polluted when it is impaired by anthropogeniccontaminants and either

does not support a human use, such as drinking water, or undergoes a marked shift in its ability to
support its constituent biotic communities, such as fish. Natural phenomena such as volcanoes, algae
blooms, storms, and earthquakes also cause major changes in water quality and the ecological status
of water.

Categories

Although interrelated, surface water and groundwater have often been studied and managed as
separate resources. Surface water seeps through the soil and becomes groundwater. Conversely,
groundwater can also feed surface water sources. Sources of surface water pollution are generally
grouped into two categories based on their origin.

Point sources
Point source water pollution refers to contaminants that enter a waterway from a single, identifiable
source, such as a pipe or ditch. Examples of sources in this category include discharges from
a sewage treatment plant, a factory, or a citystorm drain. The U.S. Clean Water Act (CWA) defines
point source for regulatoryenforcement purposes. The CWA definition of point source was amended
in 1987 to include municipal storm sewer systems, as well as industrial storm water, such as from
construction sites.

Non Point Source

Nonpoint source pollution refers to diffuse contamination that does not originate from a single discrete
source. NPS pollution is often the cumulative effect of small amounts of contaminants gathered from
a large area. A common example is the leaching out of nitrogen compounds from fertilized agricultural
lands. Nutrient runoff in storm water from "sheet flow" over an agricultural field or a forest are also
cited as examples of NPS pollution.
Contaminated storm water washed off of parking lots, roads and highways, called urban runoff, is
sometimes included under the category of NPS pollution. However, because this runoff is typically
channeled into storm drain systems and discharged through pipes to local surface waters, it becomes
a point source.

Groundwater Pollution
Interactions between groundwater and surface water are complex. Consequently, groundwater
pollution, also referred to as groundwater contamination, is not as easily classified as surface water
pollution. By its very nature, groundwater aquifer sare susceptible to contamination from sources that
may not directly affect surface water bodies, and the distinction of point vs. non-point source may be
irrelevant. A spill or ongoing release of chemical or radionuclide contaminants into soil (located away
from a surface water body) may not create point or non-point source pollution but can contaminate
the aquifer below, creating a toxic plume. The movement of the plume, called a plume front, may be
analyzed through a hydrological transport model or groundwater model. Analysis of groundwater
contamination may focus on soil characteristics and site geology,hydrogeology, hydrology, and the
nature of the contaminants.

Thermal Pollution

Thermal pollution is the rise or fall in the temperature of a natural body of water caused by human
influence. Thermal pollution, unlike chemical pollution, results in a change in the physical properties
of water. A common cause of thermal pollution is the use of water as a coolant by power plants and
industrial manufacturers. Elevated water temperatures decrease oxygen levels, which can kill fish and
alter food composition, reduce species biodiversity, and foster invasion by newthermophilic species.
[19][20][21]
Urban runoff may also elevate temperature in surface waters.
Thermal pollution can also be caused by the release of very cold water from the base of reservoirs
into warmer rivers.

Causes
The specific contaminants leading to pollution in water include a wide spectrum
of chemicals, pathogens, and physical changes such as elevated temperature and discoloration.
While many of the chemicals and substances that are regulated may be naturally occurring
(calcium, sodium, iron, manganese, etc.) the concentration is often the key in determining what is a
natural component of water and what is a contaminant. High concentrations of naturally occurring
substances can have negative impacts on aquatic flora and fauna.
Oxygen-depleting substances may be natural materials such as plant matter (e.g. leaves and grass)
as well as man-made chemicals. Other natural and anthropogenic substances may
cause turbidity (cloudiness) which blocks light and disrupts plant growth, and clogs the gills of some
fish species.
Many of the chemical substances are toxic. Pathogens can produce waterborne diseases in either
human or animal hosts.[12] Alteration of water's physical chemistry includes acidity (change
in pH), electrical conductivity, temperature, andeutrophication. Eutrophication is an increase in the
concentration of chemical nutrients in an ecosystem to an extent that increases in the primary
productivity of the ecosystem. Depending on the degree of eutrophication, subsequent negative
environmental effects such as anoxia (oxygen depletion) and severe reductions in water quality may
occur, affecting fish and other animal populations.

Pathogens
Disease-causing microorganisms are referred to as pathogens. Although the vast majority of bacteria
are either harmless or beneficial, a few pathogenic bacteria can cause disease. Coli form bacteria,
which are not an actual cause of disease, are commonly used as a bacterial indicator of water
pollution. Other microorganisms sometimes found in surface waters that have caused human health
problems include:

Burkholderia pseudomallei

Cryptosporidium parvum

Giardia lamblia

Salmonella

High levels of pathogens may result from on-site sanitation systems (tanks, pit) or inadequately
treated sewage discharges. This can be caused by a sewage plant designed with less
than secondary treatment (more typical in less-developed countries). In developed countries, older
cities with aging infrastructure may have leaky sewage collection systems (pipes, pumps, valves),
which can cause sanitary. Some cities also have combined sewers, which may discharge untreated
sewage during rain storms.

Effects Of Water
Pollution
Human Health
We all drink water that comes from a source: this may be a lake or local river. In countries that have
poor screening and purification practices, people often get water-borne disease outbreaks such as
cholera and tuberculosis. Every year, there are an estimated 35 million cholera cases and 100,000
120,000 deaths due to cholera. (WHO estimates that only 510% of cases are officially reported.)
In developed countries, even where there are better purification methods, people still suffer from the
health effects of water pollution. Take toxins emitted by algae growth for instance: this can cause
stomach aches and rashes. Excess nitrogen in drinking water also poses serious risks to infants.
EPAs 2010 National Lakes Assessment found that almost 20 percent of the nations lakes
have high levels of nitrogen and phosphorus pollution. The report also showed that poor lake
conditions related to nitrogen or phosphorus pollution doubled the likelihood of poor
ecosystem health

Ecosystem
Nutrient pollution from upstream (creeks and streams) often flow downhill and even travel miles into
other larger water bodies. The effect is that, it breeds algae growth and causes the growth of many
more water organism. This algae attack affects fish and other aquatic animals by absorbing and
reducing their oxygen supply. Algae growth also clogs fish gills. Naturally, the orders of ecosystems in
that water are affected negatively, as the destruction or introduction of any foreign organism alter the
entire food chain in there.

Death of Animals
Animals, including water animals die when water is poisoned for various reasons. Other animals are
stressed and their populations are endangered. In a classic case of marine pollution in recent time,
16000 miles of a US coastline was affected by an oil spill. That water pollution caused a lot of
damage and deaths of many animals.
Over 8,000 animals (birds, turtles, mammals) were reported dead just 6 months after the spill,
including many that are already on the endangered species list. Immediate impact on the
wildlife includes oil-coated birds and sea turtles, mammal ingestion of oil, and dead or dying
deep sea coral.
Animals are also affected by solid waste thrown into water bodies, as they harm them in many ways.

Measurement
Water pollution may be analyzed through several broad categories of methods: physical, chemical
and biological. Most involve collection of samples, followed by specialized analytical tests. Some
methods may be conducted insitu, without sampling, such as temperature. Government agencies and
research organizations have published standardized, validated analytical test methods to facilitate the
comparability of results from disparate testing events.

Sampling
Sampling of water for physical or chemical testing can be done by several methods, depending on the
accuracy needed and the characteristics of the contaminant. Many contamination events are sharply
restricted in time, most commonly in association with rain events. For this reason "grab" samples are
often inadequate for fully quantifying contaminant levels. Scientists gathering this type of data often
employ auto-sampler devices that pump increments of water at either time or discharge intervals.
Sampling for biological testing involves collection of plants and/or animals from the surface water
body. Depending on the type of assessment, the organisms may be identified
for biosurveys (population counts) and returned to the water body, or they may be dissected
for bioassays to determine toxicity.

Physical Testing
Common physical tests of water include temperature, solids concentrations (e.g., total suspended
solids (TSS)) and turbidity.

Chemical Testing
Water samples may be examined using the principles of analytical chemistry. Many published test
methods are available for both organic and inorganic compounds. Frequently used methods
include pH, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), nutrients
(nitrate and phosphorus compounds), metals (including copper, zinc, cadmium, lead and mercury), oil
and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH), and pesticides

Biological Testing
Biological testing involves the use of plant, animal, and/or microbial indicators to monitor the health of
an aquatic ecosystem. They are any biological species or group of species whose function,
population, or status can reveal what degree of ecosystem or environmental integrity is present. One
example of a group of bio-indicators are the copepods and other small water crustaceans that are
present in many water bodies. Such organisms can be monitored for changes (biochemical,
physiological, or behavioral) that may indicate a problem within their ecosystem.

Control of Pollution
Decisions on the type and degree of treatment and control of wastes, and the disposal and use of
adequately treated wastewater, must be based on a consideration all the technical factors of each
drainage basin, in order to prevent any further contamination or harm to the environment.

Sewage Treatment
In urban areas of developed countries, domestic sewage is typically treated by centralized sewage
treatment plants. Well-designed and operated systems (i.e., secondary treatment or better) can
remove 90 percent or more of the pollutant load in sewage. Some plants have additional systems to
remove nutrients and pathogens.
Cities with sanitary sewer overflows or combined sewer overflows employ one or
more engineering approaches to reduce discharges of untreated sewage, including:

utilizing a green infrastructure approach to improve storm water management capacity

throughout the system, and reduce the hydraulic overloading of the treatment plant
repair and replacement of leaking and malfunctioning equipment

Increasing overall hydraulic capacity of the sewage collection system (often a very expensive
option).

A household or business not served by a municipal treatment plant may have an individual septic
tank, which pre-treats the wastewater on site and infiltrates it into the soil.

Industrial Wastewater Management

Some industrial facilities generate ordinary domestic sewage that can be treated by municipal
facilities. Industries that generate wastewater with high concentrations of conventional pollutants (e.g.
oil and grease), toxic pollutants (e.g. heavy metals, volatile organic compounds) or other nonconventional pollutants such as ammonia, need specialized treatment systems. Some of these
facilities can install a pre-treatment system to remove the toxic components, and then send the
partially treated wastewater to the municipal system. Industries generating large volumes of
wastewater typically operate their own complete on-site treatment systems. Some industries have
been successful at redesigning their manufacturing processes to reduce or eliminate pollutants,
through a process called pollution prevention.

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