The 94,000 square miles filled with 6 quadrillion gallons of water make up the largest fresh water system on earth, known as the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes provide drinking water, as well as fish and other resources, for millions of people (The Great Lakes). We Detroiters have always been told that we have the cleanest drinking water in the country, although hundreds of years of bad behavior has polluted the Great Lakes with hazardous materials that could be potentially disastrous for wildlife and humans.
The polluting of the Great Lakes began during the 18th and 19th centuries because of the misconception that water could dilute any substance. Industries and individuals often used rivers and lakes as garbage cans, dumping raw sewage and animal carcasses into the waterways. This behavior began to change in the 20th century when people became aware of the fact the clean water is important to health. However, as more industries and people began to move into the Great Lakes region, the more the rivers and lakes became polluted. The pollution of the Great Lakes and its connecting rivers gained national exposure after the Cuyahoga River, which flows through Cleveland, on its way to Lake Erie, caught on fire because it was so polluted. The 1969 incident increased water pollution controls, which led to the Great Lakes Water Quality Act and Clean Water Act in the 1970s.
Pollutants enter the Great Lakes in many different ways, but the main three entryways are point source, nonpoint source and atmospheric pollution.
When pollutants enter the waterway through a specific point, as with a drainage pipe that drains directly into a river, it is called point source pollution. Point source pollutants can include many different potentially harmful substances, such as waste and toxic metals. Point source pollution can be traced to a specific discharge point and owner; for that reason, it has been the easiest source of pollution to control and regulate. Since the Clean Water Act of 1972, nearly all of industrial plants use control measures to reduce their toxic discharge. Also, the number of sewage treatment facilities has doubled.
Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution comes from many different sources and is therefore extremely difficult to regulate and control. Because NPS is so difficult to pinpoint many experts feel that it is the top hazard facing the Great Lakes. NPS pollution is mainly caused by runoff. When rain and melting snow move over the land, they pick up pollutants along the way, eventually dumping them into the lakes and rivers. Common NPS pollutants include; pesticides, oil, grease and salt from highways, and animal and human waste.
Atmospheric pollution is another form of nonpoint source pollution, though instead of polluting via runoff, the pollution literally falls from the sky. As water moves through the hydrologic cycle, it falls as rain or snow and then evaporates into the air from land and surface water. Pollutants emitted into the air, such as through smoke stacks, follow the same path, and can be carried through the atmosphere and deposited into waterways. Acid rain is the most common and well-known form of atmospheric pollution. Major sources of atmospheric pollution include coal-burning energy plants and waste incinerators.
Water pollution affects the health of organisms living in and around the Great Lakes, including humans. The deteriorating health of fish and wildlife speaks volumes about the need to clean up the Great Lakes. Heavy metals such as mercury and lead, as well as pesticides, biomagnify as they move up the food chain. Which causes tumors and death for predatory animals, such as trout, herring gulls, and humans, who are at the top of the food chain. Toxic pollutants can also alter genetic makeup, resulting in either death or extreme deformities, such as three-legged frogs (TEACH: Water Pollution in the Great Lakes).
Water pollution can have equally tragic effects for humans. Sheila Kaplan wrote an article that exposes the efforts of the Centers for Disease Control and the International Joint Commission to block the publication of a study called Public Health Implications of Hazardous Substances in the Twenty-Six U.S. Great Lakes Areas of Concern. The CDC’s efforts to prevent the publication of this study is because of the potentially “alarming information” that it contains. The study warns that more than nine million people living in areas such as Chicago, Detroit, and Milwaukee, may face elevated health risks from being exposed to dioxin, PCBs, pesticides, lead, mercury, or six other hazardous pollutants. Researchers found evidence of low birth weights, elevated rates of infant mortality and premature births, and elevated deaths from breast cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer in these areas (Kaplan, The Center For Public Integrity). Humans who are at risk of health problems due to contaminated fish consumption are those with weakened immune systems, including children, pregnant women and the elderly (TEACH: Water Pollution in The Great Lakes).
Pollution of the Great Lakes greatly affects all organisms that inhabit the area. We have to save these truly great lakes, as well ourselves. We have the potential to do so, but it is us who have to take the first step and actually do it.
References:
“Overview.” The Great Lakes. http://www.great-lakes.net/lakes/
“Water Pollution in The Great Lakes.” TEACH: Water Pollution in The Great Lakes. http://www.great-lakes.net/teach/pollution/water/water1.html
“Great Lakes. Danger Zones?” The Center For Public Integrity. Sheila Kaplan. http://projects.publicintegrity.org/GreatLakes/
The polluting of the Great Lakes began during the 18th and 19th centuries because of the misconception that water could dilute any substance. Industries and individuals often used rivers and lakes as garbage cans, dumping raw sewage and animal carcasses into the waterways. This behavior began to change in the 20th century when people became aware of the fact the clean water is important to health. However, as more industries and people began to move into the Great Lakes region, the more the rivers and lakes became polluted. The pollution of the Great Lakes and its connecting rivers gained national exposure after the Cuyahoga River, which flows through Cleveland, on its way to Lake Erie, caught on fire because it was so polluted. The 1969 incident increased water pollution controls, which led to the Great Lakes Water Quality Act and Clean Water Act in the 1970s.
Pollutants enter the Great Lakes in many different ways, but the main three entryways are point source, nonpoint source and atmospheric pollution.
When pollutants enter the waterway through a specific point, as with a drainage pipe that drains directly into a river, it is called point source pollution. Point source pollutants can include many different potentially harmful substances, such as waste and toxic metals. Point source pollution can be traced to a specific discharge point and owner; for that reason, it has been the easiest source of pollution to control and regulate. Since the Clean Water Act of 1972, nearly all of industrial plants use control measures to reduce their toxic discharge. Also, the number of sewage treatment facilities has doubled.
Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution comes from many different sources and is therefore extremely difficult to regulate and control. Because NPS is so difficult to pinpoint many experts feel that it is the top hazard facing the Great Lakes. NPS pollution is mainly caused by runoff. When rain and melting snow move over the land, they pick up pollutants along the way, eventually dumping them into the lakes and rivers. Common NPS pollutants include; pesticides, oil, grease and salt from highways, and animal and human waste.
Atmospheric pollution is another form of nonpoint source pollution, though instead of polluting via runoff, the pollution literally falls from the sky. As water moves through the hydrologic cycle, it falls as rain or snow and then evaporates into the air from land and surface water. Pollutants emitted into the air, such as through smoke stacks, follow the same path, and can be carried through the atmosphere and deposited into waterways. Acid rain is the most common and well-known form of atmospheric pollution. Major sources of atmospheric pollution include coal-burning energy plants and waste incinerators.
Water pollution affects the health of organisms living in and around the Great Lakes, including humans. The deteriorating health of fish and wildlife speaks volumes about the need to clean up the Great Lakes. Heavy metals such as mercury and lead, as well as pesticides, biomagnify as they move up the food chain. Which causes tumors and death for predatory animals, such as trout, herring gulls, and humans, who are at the top of the food chain. Toxic pollutants can also alter genetic makeup, resulting in either death or extreme deformities, such as three-legged frogs (TEACH: Water Pollution in the Great Lakes).
Water pollution can have equally tragic effects for humans. Sheila Kaplan wrote an article that exposes the efforts of the Centers for Disease Control and the International Joint Commission to block the publication of a study called Public Health Implications of Hazardous Substances in the Twenty-Six U.S. Great Lakes Areas of Concern. The CDC’s efforts to prevent the publication of this study is because of the potentially “alarming information” that it contains. The study warns that more than nine million people living in areas such as Chicago, Detroit, and Milwaukee, may face elevated health risks from being exposed to dioxin, PCBs, pesticides, lead, mercury, or six other hazardous pollutants. Researchers found evidence of low birth weights, elevated rates of infant mortality and premature births, and elevated deaths from breast cancer, colon cancer, and lung cancer in these areas (Kaplan, The Center For Public Integrity). Humans who are at risk of health problems due to contaminated fish consumption are those with weakened immune systems, including children, pregnant women and the elderly (TEACH: Water Pollution in The Great Lakes).
Pollution of the Great Lakes greatly affects all organisms that inhabit the area. We have to save these truly great lakes, as well ourselves. We have the potential to do so, but it is us who have to take the first step and actually do it.
References:
“Overview.” The Great Lakes. http://www.great-lakes.net/lakes/
“Water Pollution in The Great Lakes.” TEACH: Water Pollution in The Great Lakes. http://www.great-lakes.net/teach/pollution/water/water1.html
“Great Lakes. Danger Zones?” The Center For Public Integrity. Sheila Kaplan. http://projects.publicintegrity.org/GreatLakes/
