Current topic but its better bc its Maddie's notes

point source

any single identifiable source of pollution from which pollutants are discharged, such as a pipe, ditch, ship or factory smokestack.

industrial facilities

Factories, oil refineries, and paper mills can discharge heated water, chemicals, heavy metals, and other toxins through pipes or smokestacks.

wasterwater treatment

Release treated or untreated sewage, which can contain nutrients, bacteria, and other pollutants, directly into rivers or coastal waters.

CAFO

concentrated animal feeding opertions:

CAFO

Can release bacteria and nutrients into water.

CWA

Protects American water quality from point-source pollutants, but non-point sources like groundwater are much harder to trace to one specific origin

CWA

Also regulates sewer and drainage systems

directly

to qualify for the CWA the polluted waterbody must ____ connect to large rivers, lakes, and oceans used for shipping and commerce

NPDES

program under the Clean Water Act that requires a permit for any facility that discharges wastewater, setting limits on the quantity and quality of pollutants that can be released.

WQS

water quality standard developed by state and federal agencies

impaired

Waters that don’t meet water quality standards are designated as ______ and subject to additional protections

TMDL

• NPDES calculates a daily maximum water pollution from all sources of pollution that can enter a body of water and still meet Water Quality Standards

Wetland Dredge or Fill permit

requires a permit before dredged or fill material may be discharged into waters of the United States (dredging is removing sediment from the bottom of water)

Agriculture

Excessive nutrients from fertilizers and manures(Nitrogen, Phosphorus)

• Toxins like pesticides can also enter groundwater and degrade sources of drinking water (rivers and such)

agriculture

• Soil disturbing activities

• Sediment pollution: can overwhelm aquatic ecosystems, smother breeding areas, and degrade coastal and marine ecosystems—including coral reefs

• Pesticides (kill non-target species)

• Herbicides

hydromotification

include channelization and channel modification, dams, and streambank and shoreline erosion

hydromodification

This can  diminish suitability of instream and streamside habitat for fish and wildlife

hydromodification

• Increases runoff

• Can alter instream patterns of water temperature and sediment type

hydromofication

Changes the rates and paths of sediment erosion, transport and deposition

hydromodification

the alteration of natural watershed hydrology and stream channel morphology due to land-use changes, urbanization, and water engineering

mines

Abandoned mine drainage is water that is polluted from contact with mining activity, and normally associated with coal mining

acid mine drainage

the formation of highly acidic water rich in heavy metals, caused by the chemical reaction of surface or groundwater with sulfur-bearing minerals (harmful when it mixes with other water sources/groundwater)

stream banks

streamside vegetation  stabilizes:

road construction

• pushes sediment into waterways which can increase turbidity and reduce the ability of aquatic organisms to successfully live, forage, and spawn

timber harvesting

• can reduce the streambank shading that regulates water temperature and by removing vegetation that stabilizes the streambanks. ​​These changes can harm aquatic life by limiting sources of food, shade and shelter, as well as decreasing areas suitable for species intolerant of warmer temperatures. 

roads

 sediment from construction of roads can make its way into waterways

urban areas

• the ubiquity of concrete doesn’t allow for any water to be absorbed into the ground. Pollutants from cities include:

  • Sediment

  • Oil, grease, and toxic chemicals from cars

  • Pesticides and nutrients from gardens 

  • Viruses and bacteria from failing septic systems

  • Road salts

  • Heavy metals

  • Thermal pollution from impervious surfaces

sedimentary pollution

• can smother submerged aquatic vegetation, cover shellfish beds and tidal flats, fill in riffle pools, and contribute to increased levels of turbidity and nutrients

turbidity

• Can clog gills of aquatic organisms

• Reduce organisms’ resistance to disease

• Limit ability to hunt/see

• Hinder growth (no light means no photosynthesis)

• When particles settle on the bottom, they can smother fish eggs

• Can also increase water temperature because rocks trap heat

• Heat dissolves oxygen

• Can build up stream beds

dead zone

•  an area of hypoxia (low to no oxygen) in the water

• Can kill fish and marine life who need Oxygen to live

gulf hypoxia program

• established by the EPA to help solve the hypoxia problem in the Gulf of Mexico by reducing nutrient runoff

red tides

A harmful algal bloom, where lots of toxin-producing grow due to excessive nutrients (N and P)

karneia brevis

One common harmful algae is the _______, which produces brevotoxins and causes red tides in the Gulf of Mexico

respiratory

People near a red tide can inhale sea spray in the air, which causes _____ problems

fish

Can’t eat_____ in an area during a red tide

green infrastructure

• Can also lower air temperatures (urban heat problem in many American cities)

• Economical solutions to cities’ flooding problems, as opposed to replacing or adding to sewers/pipes

green infrastructure

____ methods are various ways of reducing runoff, mitigating flooding, and treating rainwater (mimicking the water system)

green roofs

roofs covered in vegetation to absorb rainwater, reducing runoff

rain gardens

planted areas designed to collect and absorb rainwater from rooftops, driveways, and lawns, allowing it to filter into the ground

bioswales

vegetated channels or depressions that guide stormwater runoff as it travels across a landscape, and the soil filters it

permeable pavements

porous paving materials used in parking lots, sidewalks, and alleys that allow rainwater to soak into the ground rather than running off

rainwater harvesting

collecting rainwater and using it later

trees

Planting _____ and such to intercept rainfall (evergreens and conifers found to intercept 35% of water that falls on them)