Download Health Project - chogan5

Environmental Health
Water Pollution
• Water pollution is a major global problem. It has been
suggested that it is the leading worldwide cause of deaths and
diseases, and that it accounts for the deaths of more than 14,000
people daily.
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There are 3 classes of water pollutants:
– Disease-causing agents-bacteria, viruses, protozoa and parasitic
worms that enter sewage systems and untreated waste.
– Oxygen-demanding wastes- wastes that can be decomposed by
oxygen-requiring bacteria. Large populations of decomposing
bacteria converts waste and depletes oxygen levels in the water.
Cause s organisms in the water, such as fish, to die.
– Water-Soluble Inorganic Pollutants-such as acids, salts and
toxic metals. Large quantities will make water unfit to drink and
will cause the death of aquatic lif
Water Pollution
Littering causes the death of aquatic animals because it takes too
long for the waste to degrade.
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Foams take fifty years before it eventually degrade
Aluminum takes two hundred years before it totally degrade
Plastic packaging takes four hundred years before it totally degrade
Newspaper and cardboard takes two to six weeks before it finally degrades
Water Pollution
• People who regularly consume a lot of fish will have larger
levels of toxic chemicals and studies show that toxic chemical
can lead to reproductive problems, cancer, and neurological
disorders
• The world's six billion people are appropriating 54 percent of
all the accessible freshwater contained in rivers, lakes and
underground aquifers.
o Recycling is the process of re-forming or
breaking down a waste product so that it can
be used again.
o The internationally recognized symbol for
recycling includes three arrows moving in a
triangle. Each arrow represents a different
part of the recycling process, from collection
to re-manufacture to resale.
o A used aluminum can is recycled and back on the grocery
shelf as a new can, in as little as 60 days.
o Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to run a TV
for three hours -- or the equivalent of a half a gallon of
gasoline.
o To produce each week's Sunday newspapers, 500,000 trees
must be cut down.
o The average American uses seven trees a year in paper, wood,
and other products made from trees. This amounts to about
2,000,000,000 trees per year!
o Americans use 2,500,000 plastic bottles every hour! Most of
them are thrown away!
o A modern glass bottle would take 4000 years or more to
decompose -- and even longer if it's in the landfill.
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Here is a list of things you can
recycle and reuse!
Acid Batteries
Aluminum Cans
Building Materials
Cardboard
Chemicals
Electronic equipment
Glass (particularly bottles
and jars)
Lead
Magazines
Metal
Newspaper
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Oil
Paint
Paper
Plastic Bags
Plastic Bottles
Steel Cans
Tires
White Goods (Appliances)
Wood
Writing/Copy Paper
Yard Waste
Bad Gases that are released into the air
• Carbon monoxide- mainly released by cars and
other vehicles
• Nitrogen oxides- released into the air from car,
trucks, and power stations
• Hydrocarbons- produced when gasoline is not
fully burnt
• Particulates- small particles, like soot, dust and
fumes caused by vehicles, factories and smoke
from burning coal
• Smoking cigarettes
• Poison in the air can cause heart problems,
lung cancer and other lung diseases
• If a women is pregnant her baby might be
smaller of become ill
• Fresh Paint
• The fumes from painting inside can become
hazardous if not well ventilating
• Burning of coal and gas
• Coal and gas are sometimes used in heaters,
stoves and ovens.
• Cars and trucks releases petrol(gasoline) and
diesel
• Petrol and diesel are bad gases and poison the
air
• A way to help pollution caused by vehicles is to
car pool, walk, or ride a bike whenever possible