By, Nurul Fatihah Mohd Nazar
Water pollution is one of the main environmental issues that humans is facing and dealing with for thousands of years. Water pollution occurs when harmful substances contaminate bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, and groundwater. However, water pollution not only caused by the disposal of dangerous chemical, but there are also lots of reports regarding garbage disposal. Most people are aware of this mistake, but they keep blaming each other and blaming factories, and act innocent.
In fact, 97 percent of the earth’s water is found in the oceans-too salty for drinking, growing crops, and most industrial uses except cooling and only 3 percent of the earth’s water is fresh.
As the problem of waste disposal of plastics into the river gradually increases, Malaysia had made the first move to protect its rivers by banning the import of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) since 1995. PCBs are synthetic organochlorine chemicals that were useful industrial products in the past, but their production ended because they persist in both the environment and living organisms.
PCBs are fat-soluble substances to which everyone is exposed through ingesting animal fats, inhalation, or dermal contact. Exposure to PCBs suppresses the immune system, thereby increasing the risk of acquiring several human diseases. Yet still the waste of plastic leads to water pollution.
However, there are still lots of human activities that contribute to water pollution, such as industrial waste, sewage and wastewater, oil spills, and more. Have you ever thought the effects of these activities on our surroundings? Polluted water probably can cause humans to fall sick. For example, cholera, typhoid, diarrhea, hepatitis A, lead poisoning, malaria, polio, and intestinal worms. This had happened five years ago, through the Kim Kim River water pollution incident that occurred on 7 March 2019 caused by illegal chemical waste dumping at the Kim Kim River in Pasir Gudang of Johor in Malaysia. The illegal dumping released toxic fumes, affected 6,000 people and hospitalised 2,775 of them.
Furthermore, water pollution causes physical harm to fish. Contaminants like heavy metals, oil spills, and pesticides can directly harm fish and other aquatic organisms. Fish can ingest these toxic substances, which can cause deformities to them like gill damage, fin and tail rot, reproductive problems, and even death.
By addressing these problems caused of water pollution, initiative steps should be taken. The best way to protect streams from water pollution is to prevent at the source. Pick up litter and throw it away in a garbage can, turn it to mulch or compost grass or yard waste, and do not pour motor oil down storm drains, and many more.
There are countless reasons to keep water clean because it is essential for all living beings to survive. If humans do not prioritize keeping water clean, we jeopardize the future of both humans and the environment. The earth does not have lots of fresh water as humans expect, if the earth runs out of fresh water, what do you think will happen to this world? Take action for future generations.***
