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By: Nicole Neilson
Fresh Water Contamination
Water In British Columbia Without a steady supply
of fresh and clean water, all life would not exist
Water in BC is often taken for granted
Canada contains 1/5 of the world’s fresh water
Average daily use of fresh water in BC is 500 liters per person
Uses of Water in British Columbia
Water has been used since the very beginning
Water is used to power our homes, for drinking, for agriculture, to sustain wildlife, to transport goods, hydro-electric power, fisheries, and for everyday use
Importance of Water Obviously, water is necessary to
survive Water is critical in many other
resources such as fisheries, transportation for lumber, dams in hydro-electric power, water for agriculture, drinking water, etc
Water was how the fur trade was able to happen, as they travelled along rivers to their destinations
As early as 5000 BC irrigation has been used to increase crop production
Importance of Watersheds British Columbia contains one
of the most important fresh watersheds, the Fraser river
There are 291,000 other watersheds in BC including Capilano, Seymour, and Coquitlam reservoirs
Watersheds are areas that store all the water that flows in from the surrounding streams and rivers
Water in the watersheds is used for all of the previously listed things
Water pollution BC contains some of the cleanest water
in the world, but still our everyday life is beginning to affect the quality of water
Water can be contaminated by pollutants such as herbicides, pesticides, oil, and manure from agriculture
Chemicals such as oil, gas and metals are washed into storm drains which drain into streams
Toxic substances are often washed down household drains and feed into streams and marine bays
Untreated sewage is often emptied into lakes
Sources of water pollution Other ways fresh water
can be contaminated are.. Tanks, pipelines or sewer
lines that have leaked Industrial chemical spills Livestock wastes and
municipal landfills Contaminants in the rain,
snow or atmospheric fallout
Water pollution (different side of view)
Although many of these things pollute the water, on the other hand the only positive thing is that these industries provide jobs for people and as well as economic benefits
There is not really a positive side to pollution
Question What effect or effects
is pollution having on our fresh water supply?
Effects of pollution Excess nitrates and
phosphates in the water can cause algae growth to speed up and create algae blooms which kill aquatic plants by preventing them from getting enough sun to survive
Construction/logging in an area can cause erosion which contaminates streams with extra sediment
Effects of pollution in clean water
Extra sediments reduce the effectiveness of water purification so its harder to obtain clean drinking water
Any chemicals in the water kill any fish and also make it unsafe to drink and use for farming to grow crops
Pollution on a global level Most other countries in the
world have a form of pollution in their water, most other countries are much worse compared to Canada
840,000 people die each year from water related diseases
Contaminated water is the world’s biggest health risk and 750 million people lack access to clean water
Some countries with the most polluted water include India, China, Indonesia, Japan, Brazil and the United States
Pollution situations similar to BC A country with similar pollution
situations to BC is France Pollution is a problem due to
accumulation of industrial contaminants, agricultural nitrates, and waste from the nation's cities
France uses 73% of its fresh water for industrial purposes and 12% for farming
Similar to BC, France’s forests are affected by acid rain and other contaminants
France is working on creating protection laws and licensing approved dump spots
How to reduce pollution First possible solution would
be to reduce the amount of waste and chemicals that enters water
This is not always possible, so we should try and treat the waste in treatment plants before it enters the water so it is less harmful
Make sure to follow all rules to do with dumping wastes. For example watershed protection and clean water acts
How to deal with pollution already in water
There are a few methods of removing already existing pollution from water
One method is air stripping Air stripping involves
pumping out the dirty water, heating it up so the contaminants evaporate, and then re-injecting the clean water back into the ground.
Other ways are using granular activated carbon and advanced oxidation
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Sources"Anne Murray: Fresh Water Is B.C.'s Greatest Resource." Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly. 22 Mar. 2013. Web. 21 May 2015.
"Capital Regional District." Our Environment. Web. 22 May 2015.
"Water Crisis." Water. Web. 22 May 2015.
"Living Water Smart." : B.C.'s Water Plan. Web. 21 May 2015.
"Water Pollution Freshwater." Pollution Issues. Web. 21 May 2015.