The Negative Effects of Water Pollution on Ecosystems and Human Health

Risks

Hayam Mahmoud-Ahmed
May 13th, 2013
Mr. B. Dalzell
Science Pre-IB 10
Word Count: 1,626

The world as we know it is changing, but the majority of people do not

notice these changes. The changes are occurring in our environment; the
vast majority of these changes are not very good. One of these major
changes is something that is known today as water pollution. Water pollution
is playing a very large role in the world today because 75% of the world is
water but only 2.5% of that water is fresh water, the other 72.5% is too salty
to drink. Water pollution is the addition of harmful
chemicals to natural water. Sources of water pollution include
industrial waste and run-off from fields treated with chemical fertilizers.
People today do not realise the consequences of their actions; the
consequences are extremely great, it is affecting everyone. Water pollution
has a very negative effect on not only the health of marine animals but is
also very harmful to humans. If this problem is not fixed now or soon then it
may be too late; future generations will pay the price for our mistreatment to
the environment.
Water pollution is the contamination of water sources. This
contamination happens when pollutants are released into the water without
sufficient treatment of the pollutants to make sure that the water is safe.
This affects plants and the wild life living in or around these bodies of water.
The main causes for this problem are from deposal waste, chemical fertilizer
and pesticides, oil, and human waste products. From runoff water on the
streets to sewage leak to oil spills. Contamination is always getting into our
water systems which are not healthy for us or the environment. If our
environments are not kept healthy then we will be greatly affected. We will
pay the price. We are only able to survive because our ecosystems have
been able to adapt to their surroundings. If we do not watch what we pour
down the drain then the fish and other animals will pay the price for our
mistakes. If we do not have a clean healthy ecosystem then future
generations, and the generations after them will also pay the price for our
mistakes. The negative effect of water pollution is very harmful, such as
Hayam Mahmoud-Ahmed

contaminated drinking water, high mercury levels, and health effects of toxic
runoff water.
Water pollution will cause not only problems for our wildlife but mostly
for us because in the end we are the ones who clean it up because we
caused so we have to fix. Animals will not be able to because well they are
animals, they did not make this mess but they are paying for our mistakes.
We believe that our government is watching out for us, which is true
but sometimes the government does not care enough, or the place is to
insignificant. This is the case for places like Africa, the people are already
having a hard enough time finding water, but when they do it may not be
clean or safe to drink from. Not only does Africa have this problem but also in
places where there is a good government watching over the people but the
places are too insignificant such as Cape Breton. We have the Tar Ponds to
prove this. It took years for the government to finally give up some money to
clean up the disaster. With that much pollution it takes years to clean up. At
the moment everyone is focused on the Tar Ponds. The Tar Ponds were
ignored, in just a few more years; there will be more places in the world that
will be having the same problem if they do not already have that problem
because they are being ignored or because people take little notice of them.
The people of Cape Breton are mostly outdoor people. Many residents
enjoy activities such as swimming and fishing. These citizens believe that the
government is taking care of our waters, and while that is true, it may take
the government years to notice the slight changes in our water systems. The
government takes little notice of Cape Breton because, well, it is a small
island, not important enough to worry about. But it is extremely important
for the inhabitants of Cape Breton, as polluted water can cause many health
risks. It may take years, decades even for the other bodies of water to
become another Tar Pond, but why wait? Why not solve the problem now,
rather than waiting until it is too late again in the future? We should make
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sure that the aquatic ecosystems in our area are protected from the negative
effects of pollution, along with the residents of the island. The Tar Ponds were
once known to be one the most polluted water sources in Canada because of
its contaminated past, Sydney Steel. Yes the company did make lots of
money and bring people to this beautiful island but they also brought with
them many problems. One of which was unacceptable waste disposal, they
were dumping their contaminated into the water. After years and years of
pollution build up, it made it extremely difficult to clean up.
Water pollution will cause not only environmental problems but also
health risks for us. Water is definitely the source of life and is essential for
human existence. Contamination or pollution of water affects human health
in many ways. If you drink unclean water it causes problems such as
diarrhoea, stomach infections, etc. These unclean waters are perfect
breeding grounds for insects. Mosquitoes and other pests live in these waters
and bite people and spread harmful diseases such as malaria, dengue,
filariasis, and chikungunya. Water contamination affects the health of fish.
When we eat these ill fish, the contamination is passed and can take more
serious form in the human body. Fish is not the only sea creature that will
harm us but any plant or animal that lived in these waters can do some
serious damage to humans, we are bound to fall ill and our health will suffer.
Water pollution also leads to unsanitary and unhygienic condition. If
someone used this polluted water for cleaning, they would be doing more
harm than good. The water is unable to eliminate the germs and it in turn
affects human health leading to diseases. Water pollution especially hits the
less fortunate the most. The middle and upper classes mostly have access to
clean drinking water. But those who do not have this clean drinking water
must find alternatives, because water is essential to human survival, thus,
diseases affect them more. This is demonstrated in the case of India where
nearly 40% of the population does not have enough good quality water.
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There are countless deaths in India due to unclean drinking water sources.
Water pollution affects human health in devastating ways. Today there are
many organisations constantly trying to clean polluted bodies water to
decrease the amount of deaths and limit the spread of diseases. On Earth,
even thought 75% of it is covered with water, we only have a limited supply
of water, if we continue to pollute available water, then we are most
definitely going down a path that leads to disease and death.
If we do not stop for a few moments in our busy lives, and observe our
waters, then it may be too late to fix this mess. It may take a few years,
decades, centuries even for this to happen but if it is not fixed now or soon
then our future generations and the generations after them will suffer
because of our unacceptable actions. They will be the ones trying to fix the
mess that the previous generation left behind. It will eventually get to the
point where it may be even impossible to fix because of the years and years
of contaminate build up.
Or maybe in the near future we are able to fix this; we might be able to
save the next generation from suffering the consequences. They will be able
to live in a place where they do not have to worry if the fish they are eating
was infected, or the dishes they are eating from has been washed with clean
water, or the beaches they are swimming at are safe.
There is no one solution to fix all of problems, to be honest, there is no
clear solution. We could reduce our use of chemical fertilizers, dispose of
our wastewater in a more appropriate manner other than sending it out to
sea; we could even open up more waste management facilities. Build water
purification facilities, or even have wells that pump clean water in places
such as the developing countries in the sub-Saharan Africa. There are about
884 million people in the world who do not have access to clean drinking
water, 37% of these people are found in Africa. Another possibility would be
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to have more of the waters tested worldwide to ensure it is safe to drink or

for any general use. However, the two most important components of all this
is time and money. We cannot achieve any of this over night, and obviously
not without a price.
All and all water pollution is not good for anyone. It is not healthy for
animals, plants much less us. If we allow this to continue on, then there soon
will not be a suitable place to find clean, uncontaminated water to drink,
much less clean with. Not only will the animals living in these waters suffer
from our carelessness, but so will we, we will catch disease, become ill from
contaminated foods, or from swimming in polluted waters. And the future
generations will also go through what we did because we did not pay enough
attention to our environment.

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Hayam Mahmoud-Ahmed