WATER POLLUTION

In some countries water is scarce because of the toxins that are in the water. These toxins not only make the water undrinkable, but also harm marine life. Water pollution is caused by plastics in the water from littering and oil spills from oil factories. According to the NRDC, "This widespread problem of water pollution is jeopardizing our health. Unsafe water kills more people each year than war and all other forms of violence combined. Meanwhile, our drinkable water sources are finite: Less than 1 percent of the earth’s freshwater is actually accessible to us. Without action, the challenges will only increase by 2050, when global demand for freshwater is expected to be one-third greater than it is now." Thus water pollution harms us all. If we do not do anything about this ongoing issue, it will only get worse and even more species will be harmed. Not only has drinkable water been limited, but marine species have been injured because of pollution. Turtles, dolphins and other animals get caught in nets and die from eating plastic that we throw into the water. We cannot do this anymore in order to save the species that help keep our environment stable.

SOLUTIONS

There are multiple ways to help stop these species from being endangered. There are multiple volunteer groups that help clean up beaches so that the water will not drag the trash from the beaches into the sea. As for oil factories, spills are uncommon, yet something that we cannot fix as easily. We can limit our plastic intake and try to limit our oil intake as well.

FACTS

"Nearly 40 percent of Americans rely on groundwater, pumped to the earth’s surface, for drinking water. For some folks in rural areas, it’s their only freshwater source. Groundwater gets polluted when contaminants—from pesticides and fertilizers to waste leached from landfills and septic systems—make their way into an aquifer, rendering it unsafe for human use. " (NRDC)
"Water pollution can be caused in a number of ways, one of the most polluting being city sewage and industrial waste discharge. Indirect sources of water pollution include contaminants that enter the water supply from soils or groundwater systems and from the atmosphere via rain." (WWF)