The amount of contaminated water It multiplies day by day. Garbage of all kinds that ends up in the waters of rivers, oceans and seas. Industrial waste that is dumped without any decontamination process into the first stream available. Highly toxic pesticides that are used with impunity and whose residues end up in the groundwater or directly in nearby waters. Elimination of gases from the atmosphere that end up in acid rain. These and many more can be the causes of life becoming extinct due to lack of drinking water.
Las contaminated water They are a real problem that few governments in the world put a stop to. The problem is that nature itself is rebelling against the attacks it suffers at the hands of humans, due to their selfishness and apathy.
The horror of contaminated water
In many places on Earth, the amount of trash that is thrown away ends up accumulating in rivers and streams. Not only contaminating them, but making the lives of those who depend on their health to survive practically impossible. People, plants and animals die every day because of contaminated water.
Beaches
The beaches promptly receive their daily dose of garbage that is deposited by the tides on their shores. If we add to this the apathy of many visitors who are not able to throw their waste where it belongs or take it with them and dispose of it in the correct way. These summer resorts and the habitat of fish, birds, turtles, crustaceans and hundreds of other species, which depend on the balance of said sea, have little future. ecosystem and who suffer the scourge of contaminated water.
Rivers and lakes
The sources of drinking water used to be rivers, lakes and lagoons close to towns, but because most of these have ended up with levels of pollution alarming, other methods have had to be resorted to purifying the waters. This makes them more expensive and means that many people cannot access it.
The dumping of sulfides (and many other chemicals) directly into the water changes its composition, making it unhealthy and toxic. Furthermore, it affects the entire Environment, since the contaminated water They provide lethal substances that accumulate in the soil and are absorbed by plants or drunk by animals, which endangers their survival.
And the most worrying thing about the problem of contaminated water is that a large number of these illegal discharges are done in front of everyone’s sight. Many times protected by governments that look the other way. For many inhabitants of the places who fear for the jobs that these industries provide. They either simply don’t care or are unaware of the magnitude of these pollutants. Except for a handful of people who fight to reverse the situations and achieve the application of effective measures that attack the causes, not just the consequences.
Bad examples
It seems unbelievable that fish behave in a way that seems to be more intelligent than humans. In the image above you can see how they try to jump out of a contaminated pool trying to escape certain death.
To give an example: the Santiago River in Mexico is so polluted that it is even dangerous to breathe the vapors it emits. The fish have been conspicuous by their absence for years now. And on the surface of the water you can only see a layer of foam produced by the chemicals that are dumped to this day with complete impunity.
The dumping of chemicals and fertilizers directly into water currents has caused a natural phenomenon called eutrophication, contributing to the putrefaction of waters. Algae and aquatic plants proliferate uncontrollably and when they die, they fall to the bottom, decomposing and releasing methane gas that further contaminates the water and the environment. Environment.
The damn oil
Through carelessness, error or accident, the truth is that thousands of liters of oil end up in the waters and produce the so-called oil spills that endanger the entire ecological chain of the spill site. Removing this fossil fuel from waters is an arduous, expensive and time-consuming task until more or less acceptable results are achieved.
But not only is it a lot of work to remove the oil from the contaminated water, But if the necessary measures are not taken, the cleaning process can cost the workers employed for it serious health problems.
Or we stop or we all die
If water pollution is not stopped once and for all, living species are condemned to perish from poisoning or thirst. And that is a task that concerns everyone. To the rulers who must ensure compliance with the laws. To industries in general that have to become aware of the environmental damage they cause when economic interests are their only priority. And to ordinary citizens, who can make a personal and collective effort to not contribute to worsening the already serious situation.
Every abandoned container, every bag thrown into the sea, every can left in a forest, is a personal contribution to making this enormous problem of contaminated water that affects all living beings becomes worse. And there will come a time when it will be impossible to reverse its consequences. And at that moment it will be of no use to say that we are sorry. There will be no more water to drink.
And although it may sound alarmist, that turning point is just around the corner. At the rate we are going, in a few years there will be nothing more than contaminated water. And the costs of making it healthy will increase to such an extent that drinking a glass of pure water will be a privilege for few. So water could be the next reason for new and bloodier armed conflicts.