Profile
Settings
Refer your friends
Sign out
Water is not only a necessity for our bodies, but it is also a resource that we use on a daily basis. It’s used for cooking, cleaning, showering, and flushing at home. Water is used in the creation of our food, clothing, mobile phones, automobiles, and publications. Water is used to construct our homes, schools, and roads, as well as to heat and cool power plants. We light our towns and houses with the power generated by its movement. To cool off on a hot summer day, we dive into the sea or take a walk beside a lake.
Water can also be used to link people and commodities. It provides a global natural transportation network that connects not only coastal cities but also inland cities along navigable rivers, allowing global trade to take place. Ships may convey our T-shirts, laptop, or coffee beans produced in the Americas, Africa, or Asia to Europe. Water, in other words, is present in all aspects of our life.
Unfortunately, the way we utilise and treat this valuable resource has an influence not only on our health, but also on all life that depends on it. Water quality and availability are being harmed by pollution, over-exploitation, physical changes to water ecosystems, and climate change.
Effects of Water
On human life
Life follows a cycle, and humanity’s irresponsible behaviour frequently reappears. Adding toxins to water bodies has had a variety of consequences on the human family. According to a report published by the World Health Organization in 2017, 2.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water. It was reported in 2019 that 785 million people lacked access to safe drinking water.
Disease is one of the main consequences of this. The World Health Organization estimates that 120,000 people die each year from cholera. In addition, the Fukushima disaster raised the prevalence of thyroid cancer in exposed infants by 70%.
On aquatic life and ecosystem
Polluted water has the greatest impact on plants and animals that rely on it for survival. The repercussions of the Deep Horizon disaster, according to statistics from the Center for Biological Diversity, provide a good peek into the impact of pollution on aquatic life. The 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil leak killed around 82,000 birds, 25,900 marine mammals, 6165 sea turtles, and an unknown number of fish and invertebrates, according to the report. The introduction or removal of some microbes causes ecological disruption. Nutrient pollution, for example, promotes the growth of algae, which depletes oxygen levels in the water, resulting in the death of fish and other aquatic life.
Biological Effects of Water
Living organisms are or were biological contaminants. They contribute to poor indoor air quality and are a leading source of missed work or school days, as well as doctor and hospital visits. Some of them can even damage your home’s inside and exterior surfaces. Biological contaminants have the ability to spread via air and are frequently undetectable. To enable biological growth, two factors are required: moisture and nutrients. Damp or flooded basements, bathrooms, wet appliances (such as air or humidifiers conditioners), and even some rugs and furniture can all be sources of these situations.
Different modern materials and construction techniques may restrict the amount of outside air carried into buildings, resulting in excessive amounts of moisture within. Humidifiers, unvented heaters, and air conditioners have increased the likelihood of moisture accumulating on interior surfaces in our homes. Certain biological contaminants thrive in this environment.
Conclusion
When drinking water has a large level of contaminants, the effects of water pollution can manifest shortly after exposure and can be more or less aggressive. The impacts, on the other hand, may take some time to manifest with repeated contact to water contaminated with lesser levels of contaminants. Drinking contaminated water can cause everything from mild drunkenness and stomach-aches to severe infections and sudden death. When drinking water contains unsafe amounts of pollutants, it can induce gastrointestinal ailments, neurological system or reproductive consequences, as well as chronic diseases like cancer. The type of pollutant, its concentration in the water, individual sensitivity, the amount of water drunk, and the duration of exposure are all factors that can impact whether a contaminant causes health problems.
