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water pollution
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Written by Jerry A. Nathanson
Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Last Updated: Mar 26, 2025 • Article History
toc Table of Contents
groundwater pollution Groundwater
pollution caused by metals and industrial
production waste.
Top Questions
What is water pollution?
expand_more Key People: Henry Edward
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What human activities cause water pollution? Armstrong • Sir Edward Frankland
Related Topics: oil spill • slick •
How does water pollution affect aquatic wildlife?
expand_more dispersed-source pollutant • thermal
pollution • point-source pollutant
Is red tide caused by water pollution?
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News • Sutang river: Once a lifeline, now a toxic stream • Mar. 23, 2025, 5:58 AM ET (Daily Star)
water pollution, the release of substances into subsurface groundwater or into lakes,
streams, rivers, estuaries, and oceans to the point that the substances interfere with beneficial
use of the water or with the natural functioning of ecosystems. In addition to the release of
substances, such as chemicals, trash, or microorganisms, water pollution may include the
release of energy, in the form of radioactivity or heat, into bodies of water.
Types and sources of water pollutants
Water bodies can be polluted by a wide variety of
substances, including pathogenic microorganisms,
putrescible organic waste, fertilizers and plant
play_arrow
nutrients, toxic chemicals, sediments, heat, petroleum
(oil), and radioactive substances. Several types of water
pollutants are considered below. (For a discussion of
the handling of sewage and other forms of waste Gitanjali Rao explains the fight for clean
drinking water Learn more about the
produced by human activities, see waste disposal and importance of clean drinking water in ...(more)
this…
solid-waste management.) See all videos for this article
Water pollutants come from either point sources or
dispersed sources. A point source is a pipe or channel, zoom_in
such as those used for discharge from an industrial
facility or a city sewerage system. A dispersed (or
nonpoint) source is a very broad unconfined area from
which a variety of pollutants enter the water body, such
as the runoff from an agricultural area. Point sources of
water pollution are easier to control than dispersed
sources, because the contaminated water has been water pollution point source Industrial
collected and conveyed to one single point where it can wastewater gushing from a pipe into a
wetland.
be treated. Pollution from dispersed sources is difficult
to control, and, despite much progress in the building of
modern sewage-treatment plants, dispersed sources continue to cause a large fraction of water
pollution problems.
More From Britannica
hydrologic sciences: Water quality
Domestic sewage
Domestic sewage is the primary source of pathogens
(disease-causing microorganisms) and putrescible zoom_in
organic substances. Because pathogens are excreted in
feces, all sewage from cities and towns is likely to
contain pathogens of some type, potentially presenting
a direct threat to public health. Putrescible organic
matter presents a different sort of threat to water
quality. As organics are decomposed naturally in the sewage pollution Sewage pouring from
sewer pipes into a river in Turkey.
sewage by bacteria and other microorganisms, the
dissolved oxygen content of the water is depleted. This
endangers the quality of lakes and streams, where high levels of oxygen are required for fish
and other aquatic organisms to survive. In addition, domestic sewage commonly contains
active pharmaceutical ingredients, which can harm aquatic organisms and may facilitate
antibiotic resistance. Sewage-treatment processes reduce the levels of pathogens and organics
in wastewater, but they do not eliminate them completely (see also wastewater treatment).
Domestic sewage is also a major source of plant 1 of 2
nutrients, mainly nitrates and phosphates. Excess
nitrates and phosphates in water promote the growth
play_arrow
of algae, sometimes causing unusually dense and
rapid growths known as algal blooms. When the
algae die, oxygen dissolved in the water declines keyboard_arrow_right
What causes algae blooms? Algae
because microorganisms use oxygen to digest algae blooms can make lakes and oceans look
during the process of decomposition (see also like abstract paintings.
See all videos for this article
biochemical oxygen demand). Anaerobic organisms
(organisms that do not require oxygen to live) then
metabolize the organic wastes, releasing gases such as methane and hydrogen sulfide, which
are harmful to the aerobic (oxygen-requiring) forms of life. The process by which a lake
changes from a clean, clear condition—with a relatively low concentration of dissolved
nutrients and a balanced aquatic community—to a nutrient-rich, algae-filled state and thence
to an oxygen-deficient, waste-filled condition is called eutrophication. Eutrophication is a
naturally occurring, slow, and inevitable process. However, when it is accelerated by human
activity and water pollution (a phenomenon called cultural eutrophication), it can lead to the
premature aging and death of a body of water.
Solid waste
The improper disposal of solid waste is a major 1 of 2
source of water pollution. Solid waste includes
garbage, rubbish, electronic waste, trash, and
play_arrow
construction and demolition waste, all of which are
generated by individual, residential, commercial,
institutional, and industrial activities. The problem is keyboard_arrow_right
How to clean up Earth's oceans The
especially acute in developing countries that may lack Ocean Cleanup wants to rid the world's
oceans of plastic.
infrastructure to properly dispose of solid waste or
See all videos for this article
that may have inadequate resources or regulation to
limit improper disposal. In some places solid waste is
intentionally dumped into bodies of water. Land pollution can also become water pollution if
the trash or other debris is carried by animals, wind, or rainfall to bodies of water. Significant
amounts of solid waste pollution in inland bodies of water can also eventually make their way
to the ocean. Solid waste pollution is unsightly and damaging to the health of aquatic
ecosystems and can harm wildlife directly. Many solid wastes, such as plastics and electronic
waste, break down and leach harmful chemicals into the water, making them a source of toxic
or hazardous waste.
Of growing concern for aquatic environments is
zoom_in
1 of 2
plastic pollution. Since the ocean is downstream from
nearly every terrestrial location, it is the receiving
body for much of the plastic waste generated on land.
Several million tons of debris end up in the world’s
oceans every year, and much of it is improperly
discarded plastic litter. Plastic pollution can be
broken down by waves and ultraviolet radiation into
smaller pieces known as microplastics, which are less
than 5 mm (0.2 inch) in length and are not keyboard_arrow_right
biodegradable. Primary microplastics, such as
microbeads in personal care products and plastic
fibers in synthetic textiles (e.g., nylon), also enter the
environment directly, through any of various
channels—for example, from wastewater treatment
plastic pollution breakdown into
systems, from household laundry, or from microplastics Breakdown of plastic
unintentional spills during manufacturing or pollution in ocean waters. Sunlight...(more)
and…
transport. Alarmingly, a number of studies of both
freshwater and marine locations have found microplastics in every aquatic organism tested.
These tiny plastics are suspected of working their way up the marine food chains, from
zooplankton and small fish to large marine predators, and have been found in seafood.
Microplastics have also been detected in drinking water. Their health effects are unknown.
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Toxic waste
Waste is considered toxic if it is poisonous, radioactive,
explosive, carcinogenic (causing cancer), mutagenic
(causing damage to chromosomes), teratogenic
play_arrow
(causing birth defects), or bioaccumulative (that is,
increasing in concentration at the higher ends of food
chains). Sources of toxic chemicals include improperly
disposed wastewater from industrial plants and Can reed beds clean contaminated
groundwater? Learn about experiments
chemical process facilities (lead, mercury, chromium) that use plants, notably reeds, to filter…
...(more)
as well as surface runoff containing pesticides used on See all videos for this article
agricultural areas and suburban lawns (chlordane,
dieldrin, heptachlor). (For a more-detailed treatment of
toxic chemicals, see poison and toxic waste.)
Sediment
Sediment (e.g., silt) resulting from soil erosion or construction activity can be carried into
water bodies by surface runoff. Suspended sediment interferes with the penetration of sunlight
and upsets the ecological balance of a body of water. Also, it can disrupt the reproductive cycles
of fish and other forms of life, and when it settles out of suspension it can smother bottom-
dwelling organisms.
Thermal pollution
Heat is considered to be a water pollutant because it decreases the capacity of water to hold
dissolved oxygen in solution, and it increases the rate of metabolism of fish. Valuable species of
game fish (e.g., trout) cannot survive in water with very low levels of dissolved oxygen. A major
source of heat is the practice of discharging cooling water from power plants into rivers; the
discharged water may be as much as 15 °C (27 °F) warmer than the naturally occurring water.
The rise in water temperatures because of global warming can also be considered a form of
thermal pollution.
Petroleum (oil) pollution
Petroleum (oil) pollution occurs when oil from roads
and parking lots is carried in surface runoff into water zoom_in
bodies. Accidental oil spills are also a source of oil
pollution—as in the devastating spills from the tanker
Exxon Valdez (which released more than 260,000
barrels in Alaska’s Prince William Sound in 1989) and
from the Deepwater Horizon oil rig (which released
more than 4 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of oil pollution Oil spill in a pond.
Mexico in 2010). Oil slicks eventually move toward
shore, harming aquatic life and damaging recreation areas.
Effects of water pollution on groundwater and oceans
Groundwater—water contained in underground
geologic formations called aquifers—is a source of zoom_in
drinking water for many people. For example, about
half the people in the United States depend on
groundwater for their domestic water supply. Although
groundwater may appear crystal clear (due to the
natural filtration that occurs as it flows slowly through
layers of soil), it may still be polluted by dissolved aquifer The process of saltwater intrusion
into a coastal aquifer depends on how much
chemicals and by bacteria and viruses. Sources of water has been removed from the freshwat…
...(more)
chemical contaminants include poorly designed or
poorly maintained subsurface sewage-disposal systems
(e.g., septic tanks), industrial wastes disposed of in improperly lined or unlined landfills or
lagoons, leachates from unlined municipal refuse landfills, mining and petroleum production,
and leaking underground storage tanks below gasoline service stations. In coastal areas,
increasing withdrawal of groundwater (due to urbanization and industrialization) can cause
saltwater intrusion: as the water table drops, seawater is drawn into wells.
Although estuaries and oceans contain vast volumes of
water, their natural capacity to absorb pollutants is
limited. Contamination from sewage outfall pipes, from
play_arrow
dumping of sludge or other wastes, and from oil spills
can harm marine life, especially microscopic
phytoplankton that serve as food for larger aquatic
organisms. Sometimes, unsightly and dangerous waste The impact of plastic waste on marine
life Learn how plastic debris affects the
materials can be washed back to shore, littering beaches Pacific Ocean.
with hazardous debris. In oceans alone, annual See all videos for this article
pollution from all types of plastics was estimated to be
between 4.8 million and 12.7 million tonnes (between
5.3 million and 14 million tons) in the early 21st century, and floating plastic waste had
accumulated in Earth’s five subtropical gyres, which cover 40 percent of the world’s oceans.
Another ocean pollution problem is the seasonal 1 of 2
formation of “dead zones” (i.e., hypoxic areas, where
dissolved oxygen levels drop so low that most higher
play_arrow
forms of aquatic life vanish) in certain coastal areas.
The cause is nutrient enrichment from dispersed
agricultural runoff and concomitant algal blooms. keyboard_arrow_right
How invasive mussels threaten the
Dead zones occur worldwide; one of the largest of Great Lakes Clean water can be a bad
thing.
these (sometimes as large as 22,730 square km
See all videos for this article
[8,776 square miles]) forms annually in the Gulf of
Mexico, beginning at the Mississippi River delta.
Water quality standards
Although pure water is rarely found in nature (because of the strong tendency of water to
dissolve other substances), the characterization of water quality (i.e., clean or polluted) is a
function of the intended use of the water. For example, water that is clean enough for
swimming and fishing may not be clean enough for drinking and cooking. Water quality
standards (limits on the amount of impurities allowed in water intended for a particular use)
provide a legal framework for the prevention of water pollution of all types.
There are several types of water quality standards.
Stream standards are those that classify streams, rivers,
and lakes on the basis of their maximum beneficial use;
they set allowable levels of specific substances or play_arrow
qualities (e.g., dissolved oxygen, turbidity, pH) allowed
in those bodies of water, based on their given
classification. Effluent (water outflow) standards set
Why the Chicago River was reversed It
specific limits on the levels of contaminants (e.g., used to be treated more like a sewer than an
biochemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, ecosystem.
nitrogen) allowed in the final discharges from See all videos for this article
wastewater-treatment plants. Drinking-water standards
include limits on the levels of specific contaminants allowed in potable water delivered to
homes for domestic use. In the United States, the Clean Water Act and its amendments
regulate water quality and set minimum standards for waste discharges for each industry as
well as regulations for specific problems such as toxic chemicals and oil spills. In the European
Union, water quality is governed by the Water Framework Directive, the Drinking Water
Directive, and other laws. (See also wastewater treatment.)
Jerry A. Nathanson
Science keyboard_arrow_right Environment
plastic pollution
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Written by Charles Moore
Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History
toc Table of Contents
plastic pollution Plastic bags and bottles
littering a beach.
News • Invite-Only Norway Meeting Restarts Failed Plastic Treaty
Talks • Mar. 19, 2025, 5:54 AM ET (Bloomberg.com) ...(Show more) Related Topics: plastic • Single-Use
Plastics • biodegradability •
microplastics • Study Found a Spoo…
...(Show more)
plastic pollution, accumulation in the environment of See all related content
synthetic plastic products to the point that they create
problems for wildlife and their habitats as well as for
human populations. In 1907 the invention of Bakelite brought about a revolution in materials
by introducing truly synthetic plastic resins into world commerce. By the end of the 20th
century, plastics had been found to be persistent polluters of many environmental niches, from
Mount Everest to the bottom of the sea. Whether being mistaken for food by animals, flooding
low-lying areas by clogging drainage systems, or simply causing significant aesthetic blight,
plastics have attracted increasing attention as a large-scale pollutant.
The problem of plastics
Plastic is a polymeric material—that is, a material
whose molecules are very large, often resembling long zoom_in
chains made up of a seemingly endless series of
interconnected links. Natural polymers such as rubber
and silk exist in abundance, but nature’s “plastics” have
not been implicated in environmental pollution,
because they do not persist in the environment. Today,
however, the average consumer comes into daily plastic pollution Plastic bottles and other
garbage in a lake.
contact with all kinds of plastic materials that have been
developed specifically to defeat natural decay processes
—materials derived mainly from petroleum that can be molded, cast, spun, or applied as a
coating. Since synthetic plastics are largely nonbiodegradable, they tend to persist in natural
environments. Moreover, many lightweight single-use plastic products and packaging
materials, which account for approximately 50 percent of all plastics produced, are not
deposited in containers for subsequent removal to landfills, recycling centres, or incinerators.
Instead, they are improperly disposed of at or near the location where they end their usefulness
to the consumer. Dropped on the ground, thrown out of a car window, heaped onto an already
full trash bin, or inadvertently carried off by a gust of wind, they immediately begin to pollute
the environment. Indeed, landscapes littered by plastic packaging have become common in
many parts of the world. (Illegal dumping of plastic and overflowing of containment structures
also play a role.) Studies from around the world have not shown any particular country or
demographic group to be most responsible, though population centres generate the most litter.
The causes and effects of plastic pollution are truly worldwide.
According to the trade association PlasticsEurope,
worldwide plastic production grew from some 1.5 zoom_in
million metric tons (about 1.7 million short tons) per
year in 1950 to an estimated 275 million metric tons
(about 303 million short tons) by 2010 and 359 million
metric tons (nearly 396 million short tons) by 2018;
between 4.8 million and 12.7 million metric tons (5.3
million and 14 million short tons) are discarded into the recycling bins Recycling bins set side by
side with trash bins.
oceans annually by countries with ocean coastlines.
Compared with materials in common use in the first half of the 20th century, such as glass,
paper, iron, and aluminum, plastics have a low recovery rate. That is, they are relatively
inefficient to reuse as recycled scrap in the manufacturing process, because of significant
processing difficulties such as a low melting point, which prevents contaminants from being
driven off during heating and reprocessing. Most recycled plastics are subsidized below the
cost of raw materials by various deposit schemes, or their recycling is simply mandated by
government regulations. Recycling rates vary dramatically from country to country, and only
northern European countries obtain rates greater than 50 percent. In any case, recycling does
not really address plastic pollution, since recycled plastic is “properly” disposed of, whereas
plastic pollution comes from improper disposal.
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