What Are the Causes of Water Pollution?

Water is uniquely vulnerable to pollution. Known as a “universal solvent,” water is able to dissolve
more substances than any other liquid on earth. It’s the reason we have Kool-Aid and brilliant blue
waterfalls. It’s also why water is so easily polluted. Toxic substances from farms, towns, and factories
readily dissolve into and mix with it, causing water pollution.

Here are some of the major sources of water pollution worldwide:

Agricultural

Toxic green algae in Copco Reservoir, northern CaliforniaCredit:Aurora Photos/Alamy

Not only is the agricultural sector the biggest consumer of global freshwater resources, with farming
and livestock production using about 70 percent of the earth’s surface water supplies, but it’s also a
serious water polluter. Around the world, agriculture is the leading cause of water degradation. In
the United States, agricultural pollution is the top source of contamination in rivers and streams, the
second-biggest source in wetlands, and the third main source in lakes. It’s also a major contributor of
contamination to estuaries and groundwater. Every time it rains, fertilizers, pesticides, and animal
waste from farms and livestock operations wash nutrients and pathogens—such bacteria and viruses
—into our waterways. Nutrient pollution, caused by excess nitrogen and phosphorus in water or air,
is the number-one threat to water quality worldwide and can cause algal blooms, a toxic soup of
blue-green algae that can be harmful to people and wildlife.

Sewage and wastewater

Used water is wastewater. It comes from our sinks, showers, and toilets (think sewage) and from
commercial, industrial, and agricultural activities (think metals, solvents, and toxic sludge). The term
also includes stormwater runoff, which occurs when rainfall carries road salts, oil, grease, chemicals,
and debris from impermeable surfaces into our waterways

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. In the United States, wastewater treatment facilities process about 34 billion gallons
of wastewater per day. These facilities reduce the amount of pollutants such as pathogens,
phosphorus, and nitrogen in sewage, as well as heavy metals and toxic chemicals in industrial waste,
before discharging the treated waters back into waterways. That’s when all goes well. But according
to EPA estimates, our nation’s aging and easily overwhelmed sewage treatment systems also release
more than 850 billion gallons of untreated wastewater each year.
Oil pollution

Big spills may dominate headlines, but consumers account for the vast majority of oil pollution in our
seas, including oil and gasoline that drips from millions of cars and trucks every day. Moreover, nearly
half of the estimated 1 million tons of oil that makes its way into marine environments each year
comes not from tanker spills but from land-based sources such as factories, farms, and cities. At sea,
tanker spills account for about 10 percent of the oil in waters around the world, while regular
operations of the shipping industry—through both legal and illegal discharges—contribute about
one-third. Oil is also naturally released from under the ocean floor through fractures known as seeps.

Radioactive substances

Radioactive waste is any pollution that emits radiation beyond what is naturally released by the
environment. It’s generated by uranium mining, nuclear power plants, and the production and
testing of military weapons, as well as by universities and hospitals that use radioactive materials for
research and medicine. Radioactive waste can persist in the environment for thousands of years,
making disposal a major challenge. Consider the decommissioned Hanford nuclear weapons
production site in Washington, where the cleanup of 56 million gallons of radioactive waste is
expected to cost more than $100 billion and last through 2060. Accidentally released or improperly
disposed of contaminants threaten groundwater, surface water, and marine resources.

What Can You Do to Prevent Water Pollution?

With your actions

We’re all accountable to some degree for today’s water pollution problem. Fortunately, there are
some simple ways you can prevent water contamination or at least limit your contribution to it:

 Learn about the unique qualities of water where you live. Where does your water come
from? Is the wastewater from your home treated? Where does stormwater flow to? Is your
area in a drought? Start building a picture of the situation so you can discover where your
actions will have the most impact—and see if your neighbors would be interested in joining
in!
 Reduce your plastic consumption and reuse or recycle plastic when you can.
 Properly dispose of chemical cleaners, oils, and nonbiodegradable items to keep them from
going down the drain.
 Maintain your car so it doesn’t leak oil, antifreeze, or coolant.
 If you have a yard, consider landscaping that reduces runoff and avoid applying pesticides
and herbicides.
 Don’t flush your old medications! Dispose of them in the trash to prevent them from
entering local waterways.
 Be mindful of anything you pour into storm sewers, since that waste often won’t be treated
before being released into local waterways. If you notice a storm sewer blocked by litter,
 clean it up to keep that trash out of the water. (You’ll also help prevent troublesome street
floods in a heavy storm.)
 If you have a pup, be sure to pick up its poop.

With your voice

One of the most effective ways to stand up for our waters is to speak out in support of the Clean
Water Act, which has helped hold polluters accountable for five decades—despite attempts by
destructive industries to gut its authority. But we also need regulations that keep pace with modern-
day challenges, including microplastics, PFAS, pharmaceuticals, and other contaminants our
wastewater treatment plants weren’t built to handle, not to mention polluted water that’s dumped
untreated.

Tell the federal government, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and your local elected officials that
you support water protections and investments in infrastructure, like wastewater treatment, lead-
pipe removal programs, and stormwater-abating green infrastructure. Also, learn how you and those
around you can get involved in the policymaking process. Our public waterways serve every one of
us. We should all have a say in how they’re protected.