Download Water Quality Factors

Water Quality Indicators
TEMPERATURE
TURBIDITY
DISSOLVED
OXYGEN (DO)
PHOSPHATES
BIOINDICATORS
pH
NITROGEN
For each
indicator, write
only what is
underlined.
TEMPERATURE
•Thermal pollution = adding warm water to
cold water.
CAUSES OF THERMAL POLLUTION:
•Industry (nuclear power plants, paper mills)
•Urban Development (storm water runoff,
construction, soil erosion)
*When temperature of water increases, it
does not have the same properties!
DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)
ORANGE =
Oxygen
MICKEY
MOUSE =
Water
Fish need
Oxygen
Less Oxygen =
Less fish
DISSOLVED OXYGEN (DO)
TO INCREASE DO:
• Much of DO comes from atmosphere
• Some of DO comes from photosynthesis
TO DECREASE DO:
• Add pollution
• Add organic waste
pH
•pH = measure of concentration of
hydrogen ions in a substance
•Tells whether substance is:
ACID
BASE
NEUTRAL
pH
Measured on scale from 0 to 14
0 = highly acidic (HCl)
7 = neutral (pure water)
14 = highly basic (bleach)
Average pH of ocean water = 7.8
pH of natural water = 6.5 – 8.5
Optimal range for life = 6.5 – 8.2
pH
pH
SOURCES OF LOW pH IN WATER:
•Acid rain is cause of acid in thousands of
lakes
•Burning fossil fuels has increased acid rain
EFFECTS OF LOW pH IN WATER:
•Low pH directly kills fish
•pH < 5, most fish eggs die
TURBIDITY
•Measures clearness of
water
•Murky water = greater
turbidity
•Caused by solids
blocking sunlight
•Measured using a
Secchi disk or turbidity
meter
TURBIDITY
EFFECTS:
Clogs fish gills
Smothers eggs
Makes water unlivable
BIO-INDICATORS
•Bio-indicators = organisms
that help determine health of
water.
•Presence or absence tells
something about the water.
BIO-INDICATORS
HOW HUMANS AFFECT BIOINDICATORS:
Over-fishing
Industrial pollution
Poor farming practices
Adding foreign species