Water Pollution, a real view to please

Water is the main component for life as we know it. We all need this fluid to function and live a full life. When we go for a day out for fun in the sun, there is usually water involved.
SO WHY IS IT THAT WE POLLUTE THIS RECOURSE?

When you go to your local lake for a day of fishing or boating, the least thought about issue on your mind is the containers that you bring your drinks or food in and what will happen to them once you emptied the content. Where will you discard your waste after your day of fun. Your last worry is cleaning your boat or your fishing tackle of the dirty water that the equipment came in contact with.

But you did place those empty containers in a bin that are provided, yes? But those bins were so full that people started putting their waste next to the bin hoping that somebody else would clear the waste away. But instead, the wind blew some of the waste into the water due to the fact that the waste was not contained for collection.

 Wast from weekends n the sun that get into the waterways collect in the water and those that do not sink out of sight is at the mercy of the prevailing wind. At some place on the waters edge all the floating debris collect and make for an unsightly scene.

Now this becomes every bodies problem. The water is becoming foul from the residue left in the containers.

 If nobody decide to take action and help to clean up other peoples messes, the waste start to break down in the water due to the chemical reaction of the container material with the water helped by the sun shining down. Unwanted chemicals get released into the water that can adversely affect the lives of the marine fauna and flora.

Animal life is effected greatly by the changes in the chemical composition in the water. In many cases the chemicals released by these containers are toxic to the fish and when concentrations are high enough, will kill most of the fish in the water.

Other forms of pollution also reach dams and lakes. These pollutants are brought from up-stream with the rivers and streams that feed the dam or lake. Most of these pollutants are manufacturing discharge, some are from the agricultural sector and do not forget the discharge from sewage plants.

These sewage plants treat the water before it gets discharged back into the environment, but in some cases the treatment process eliminate some bacteria but introduce other harmful chemicals.

I have seen cases where a plant has been so overwhelmed by the amount of sewage directed at it from a nearby city, that some of the waste gets dumped directly untreated into a local river.

The discharge directly into the river caused the deaths of a lot of fish and pollution from other things that people flush down their toilets that should not be there.

Then there are the agricultural contribution to the pollution. Most commercial farmers use chemicals to accelerate growth of their crops and to keep pests away. These chemicals are usually full of nitrates that accelerate the growth af toxic algae in the dams. Usually these toxic algae is kept under control in a natural way, but with the introduction of these extra nitrates in the water, the growth can not be curbed and it grows out of control suffocating the animal and plant life that exist.

Think before polluting.

About the environment in Schools

Education is key for the future generations to enable them to progress forward in life. They learn mathematics, science, history ECT. at school, but there are very little education on the intricate workings of nature.

I know that the curriculum touch on some aspects of the natural workings within nature, but too little to have a lasting impression on the youth of today.

The interactions between the environment and the living organisms in nature are so much more than mere words on paper that the children learn. When there is a chance then field trips should be arranged to do more investigation by the children about these interactions and the effects when these interactions are interrupted.

The mere fact that there is a lack of environmental education at our schools results in the destruction of the environment and the animals that live in it. The interaction of humans with nature is that of destruction and a limited future for us all.

Examples of lack of education and research into the effects on nature: On an Island there were a plague of rats that were brought there by sailors unwittingly. The rats started to feast on the breeding sea bird population’s eggs and thus reducing the sea bird population drastically. The government of the Island decided to bring in outside help to deal with the rat plague. Without doing proper research, feral cats were brought onto the island to deal with the rat problem.

Because of the abundance of food in the form of rats, the feral cats bred to increase their numbers to deal with the abundance of food. A few hundred cats over time became a few hundred thousand cats. The rat population was decimated and the rat problem kind off solved. But now there was a new problem. Because the rats became scarce and the amount of cats was more than the food supply, the cats started looking for other food sources. As we all know, cats catch birds and the cycle of reduction in the sea bird colony increased.

A single problem was resolved but another problem was created by the lack of knowledge and research. Now millions of feral cats are being killed in attempts to resolve the second problem.

When education is done properly, this problem of the rats could have been resolved in a different way, possibly. Lives are being lost on a daily basis due to our interference in nature and the balance that exist. When are we going to put the education system in such a state that we learn before doing? It is only through education and awareness that the environment and all its inhabitants will be able to survive into the next couple of centuries. Teach our children to respect nature and all that live in it. Teach them that every action, like the introduction of the cats, have consequences, not only on one part of nature, but on the bigger picture.