Water is the main source of human and animal life survival and is dependant on a source of clean drinkable water. People can survive for weeks without food, but even one day without water can cause dehydration and even death. Optimum health requires a human body to consume two quarts of clean water per day which is lost by just normal breathing or sweating, and more is required during higher physical daily activities.
Our whole world evolves around a watershed which means our lands drain to the lowest point usually a stream, or lake and oceans. Water pollution occurs when untreated waste from contaminants infiltrates our streams, and water sources. You are sitting in a water shed this very instant and farms, forests, towns, cities all make up our watersheds. A creek draining into a river makes up part of a watershed and everyone impacts and produces a potent source of pollution.
Pollution in your drinking water comes from many sources including your neighbor washing his car. It comes from chemicals and pesticides, fertilizers which make their way to your local streams and rivers. Oil or chemicals from cars, waste from farms, with live harmful bacteria also kills fish, and marine life and is added to the watershed system.
Litter or garbage thrown on the ground ends up in our water as well as untreated sewage disposal is presenting a great danger to human and our natural world. The trash that you throw out today, ends up in someone’s drinking water tomorrow. The idea that we all live downstream from each other and when others pollute, we may be the recipient of that pollution in our drinking water and land.
A recent study of drinking water in the United States revealed a great amount of pharmaceutical drugs are in our drinking water which is not removed during water purification processes. The increase in drug usage today requires further studies in the residual of prescription drugs passing through the filtration system of cites in the United States.
The reasons for keeping our watershed pristine and water management must meet higher standards for public health. The Federal Safe Drinking Water Act is the standard used by the US Environmental Protection Agency to establish national standards for drinking water. The EPA uses two standards for drinking water which are a primary standard which protects your health and a secondary standard involves the aesthetic and flavor factor of drinking water.
The problem is that due to increased pollution our watersheds require more chlorine added to purify our water, which adds harmful chlorine dioxide to our drinking water. Higher levels of carcinogenic chlorine is used each year to kill greater amounts of bacteria, organisms and germs before drinking water reaches your home. Modern methods of water purification are advancing towards ozone treatments which removed disinfection chlorine byproducts while removing microscopic particles of pesticides and pharmaceutical drugs.
Ozone which is used in Germany is proving to be far less damaging to human health than the outdated chlorine methods of disinfection and removes the remaining organic matter from chlorinated water. Ozone is actually an oxygen treatment which removes the bacteria, viruses, drugs, pesticides and ugly taste of chlorinated water. Oxygenated drinking water actually improves human health by producing more oxygen in the body.
While our global consciousness of water pollution is leading towards advancements we as individuals can all reduce the pollution which affects our planetary survival.
