Freshwater Pollution

So this week I’m still going to be talking about pollution, but not ocean pollution, more so freshwater pollution. What we’ve been talking about in class this week got me thinking about more close to home effects of water pollution.

Obviously us humans, as well as other animals require water to survive. Pollution and climate change is threatening to make getting clean water very difficult. Some people might argue that with the advancement with technology and factories pollution is something that is going to happen no matter what and we just need to learn how to live with it. While others would say that pollution is something we really need to concern ourselves with and we shouldn’t take it lightly. If I were to take a stance on the issue I would say that it is something that yes, with how much technology it is something that’s going to happen, but we cant take it lightly. We need to figure out how we can make the technology less harmful to the environment. If we continue to push the issue under the rug we are going to get to a point where it is a very real crisis and we might not have the time to come up with a solution to the problem. We need to come up with a solution now before it comes so much of a problem that we literally can’t wait any longer to come up with a solution.

Right now the biggest push for protecting water is the Clean Water Act. This regulates discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States and regulates quality standards for surface waters. Basically what this means is that this act made it illegal to dump any pollutant into navigable waters, unless you have a permit. I think this act is definitely a step in the right direction but so much more needs to be done in regards to the law when it comes to pollution, especially water pollution. It is such an important resource that we need to do more to protect it! I think the only way we are going to see more being done about pollution is to create more awareness about it. Most people aren’t even aware that water pollution is such a big issue. The more people know about it the more likely they are to push for change, and the more people pushing for change the more likely change is going to happen.

http://www2.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-clean-water-act