Here you will find the best samples paragraph on Water Pollution, written in easy and simple words for class 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10 school students.
Short Paragraph on Water Pollution – 150 Words
When toxic substances are dumped into the water and get mixed with it, it leads to the contamination of water. This is known as water pollution. Water pollution can be caused both by natural and human-made reasons. Natural causes like volcanic eruptions and earthquakes affect the quality of water. However, people are more than responsible for damage to water quality.
Discharge from industries, factories, sewage treatment plants causes water to get dirty and contaminated with chemicals affecting the life of water-dwelling creatures. A large scale of pesticides and fertilizers washed out from agricultural fields also cause water pollution. Water contamination can also be caused by chemicals found in cosmetics, detergents and chloroform, which is used to disinfect drinking water.
Water pollution can lead to severe diseases in water-dwelling creatures and also other animal species. To prevent water pollution, urban areas must be installed with centralised sewage treatment plants. Construction sites should implement methods like mulching and hydro-seeding to prevent the erosion of toxic substances from the site.
Proper implementation of practices like sedimentation, filtration, and sterilization must be done in order to avoid the pollution of water so that people don’t have to deal with repercussions of contaminating the water and live with clean water forever.
Paragraph on Water Pollution – 300 Words
One of the essential things for the existence of humanity and all other species is water. Without water, life on earth would cease to exist. In simple words, water is the elixir of life. But it is being contaminated every day. Without even blinking an eye, people litter the roads with plastics and papers which eventually get carried by wind only to land in the water. This contamination of water is known as water pollution.
Although water pollution is caused by natural causes like earthquakes, storms, and algae blooms, manmade causes are the major reasons behind water pollution. One of the significant causes of water pollution is agriculture. Reports state that approximately 2 million tonnes of pesticides were used in 2019, and it is expected to rise to 3.5 million tonnes in 2020. The use of pesticides, insecticides, and chemical fertilizers result in their draining with the residual water from the irrigation fields into rivers and nearby water bodies.
In addition to plastics and microfiber materials dumped into the water, water contamination is also caused by petroleum, motor oil, and other hydrocarbons being carried into water bodies by storm-water runoff that is the flowing of rainwater on the surface level. Rainwater containing contaminants are also absorbed into the soil, causing groundwater pollution.
If water pollution is not controlled, water-borne diseases like typhoid, cholera, hepatitis will be on the rise. These are caused by disease-causing micro-organisms or pathogens present in the water. Urban areas should implement a ‘green infrastructure’ where more trees should be planted.
This will help in managing the storm-water runoff. Industries should install septic tanks to reduce the pollutants in the water before discharging it. Households should implement a better waste management system by separating the wet and dry wastes. Farmers should follow integrated pest management to reduce using chemicals so that the quality of water is not affected.
If all of this is not done, quality of water will be on a rapid decline, and essentially the 1% of drinkable water that earth has will be exhausted leaving the entire population on earth high and dry.
Long Paragraph on Water Pollution – 500 Words
After the industrial revolution, earth saw a significant increase in toxic components. These components not only affect the natural environment but also change the day to day lives of people. One of the most dangerous results of human advancement is water pollution. It is the mixing of anthropogenic contaminants with pure and natural water. Anthropogenic contaminants are brought about by a disruption in the earth’s ecosystem and biodiversity, usually by actions of man.
Causes of Water Pollution
Water is known as the ‘universal solvent’. It dissolves almost all kinds of toxins. Some of the major causes of Water pollution are listed below:
Internal factors – Household activities generate sewage or municipal wastewater which usually contains urine, faeces, and other chemical wastes. These wastes are a breeding ground for waterborne disease-causing pathogens, and also contain quantities of phosphorus and nitrates. These, when drained out into the water bodies, cause water pollution.
Agricultural factors – Vast amounts of chemical fertilizers, insecticides, and pesticides used in the farming fields run off with the excess water and drain into nearby water bodies. The nutrients in the fertilizers cause eutrophication and nitrate toxicity in surface water and groundwater, respectively.
Industrial factors – Industries like iron and steel industries, chemical industries, and radioactive waste industries generate industrial wastewater. This water is high in hazardous substances like carcinogenic chemicals, heavy metals, and other organic and inorganic contaminants. Wastewater containing these toxic substances often go untreated or undertreated before its discharge, hence causing water pollution.
Environmental factors – Global warming causes an increase in the overall temperature of the earth. This increase in temperature, in turn, creates a rise in the temperature of water resulting in the disruption of aquatic habitats and the extinction of marine animals.
Effects of Water Pollution
As said by the NRDC “more than 80 percent of the world’s wastewater flows back into the environment without being treated or reused, according to the United Nations; in some least-developed countries, the figure tops 95 percent.”. No species is an exception when it comes to being affected by water pollution. Contamination of water has significant impacts on the human body. Many waterborne diseases are spread due to water pollution.
Untreated waste products result in a breeding ground for microbes like virus and bacteria, also known as pathogens. They cause diseases like typhoid, cholera, diarrhoea, and Hepatitis A. Studies have shown that waterborne diseases are the second most significant cause of death in children below the age of five years.
Apart from pathogens, toxic substances like heavy metal and chemicals are leading causes of reproductive failure and acute diseases like cancer and abnormalities during birth.
Nutrients from fertilizers cause an escalation in the growth of aquatic plants. Their growth requires an increased oxygen supply hence reducing the percentage of oxygen needed for marine animals to survive. This is known as Eutrophication which ultimately leads to the death of aquatic animals and causes a decline in the aesthetic quality of water.
Preventive Measures
Preventive measures need to be taken to curb the effects of water pollution.
- Prevention of water pollution should start from homes. Water filters should be installed in every household to ensure that people are drinking contamination-free water.
- People must opt for a better waste management system and take care of their hygiene and sanitation.
- People should use environment-friendly detergents and refrain from washing clothes and taking baths in lakes and ponds.
- Urban areas should be installed with well-developed centralised sewage treatment plants which are known to remove almost 90% of pollutants from water.
- Farmers should implement erosion controlling methods like contour ploughing, crop rotation, and crop mulching. They should opt for using organic fertilizers instead of chemical ones.
- Methods like sedimentation, filtration, and sterilization should be implemented.
Conclusion
Water breaks down some of its pollutants if given enough time. This capacity of water is known as the assimilative capacity. But with the rate of increase in pollution, it is evident that assimilative capacity is not much of a use. That is why the prevention of water pollution is so essential.
Almost 70% of earth is made with water, and only 1% is available for domestic and industrial use. If people keep on polluting water, it is natural that water resources for use will run out, which will eventually result in a catastrophe.
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