Waste products from factories Waste from sewage systems Waste from power plants Waste form underground coalmines Waste from oil wells NON-POINT SOURCES – are ambiguously defined and harder to control Runoff of fertilizers Air pollutants washed or deposited to earth Water drainage
TYPES OF WATER POLLUTION
Infectious agents – untreated and improperly treated human waste
Organic materials Plant nutrients Metals – such as mercury and lead, highly toxic and persistent and tend to bioaccumulate in food chains Non-metallic salts Acids and bases – often released as by-product of industrial processes Organic chemicals – used to make pesticides, plastics, pharmaceuticals, etc. Sediments Thermal pollution