The Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Samuel Taylor Coleridge
(The following blog is an excerpt from Saving Our Oceans with the publisher's permission)
5.
Fresh Water Has Problems Too
While cleaning the oceans of debris is a major
challenge and task, it’s not the only task on which survival depends. And
frankly, cleaning up the oceans cannot be accomplished without stopping the
fresh water pollution that is the primary cause of ocean pollution. Some say
that as much as 70 to 80 percent of the ocean’s pollutants comes from rivers
and streams.
It’s quite easy to conclude that
fresh water pollution is as serious as ocean pollution when one considers that
the drinking water of about 244 million Americans is compromised and
potentially unsafe to drink. That number represents nearly 2/3 of the American
population. Much of the contamination happened in previous years (although it
seems likely that there’s still some occurring) and just like plastic,
contaminated water doesn’t simply go away. While plastic is a pollution
problem, fresh water issues go far beyond plastic bottles left along the
shoreline.
Lakes, rivers, streams, and
aquifers across the country are home to cancer-causing ingredients from
industrial waste, farm fertilizers, and chemical toxins. Whether one believes
in global warming or not, there’s also the presence of brain and flesh eating
bacteria in the mix that relishes warm waters. There are even more culprits,
but these will suffice to make a point.
Let’s start with lakes first, and
then delve into the serious issues with “potable” water. The EPA, with the
assistance of state and tribal agencies, did water quality assessments for a
large number of lakes. 55 percent of the lake water studied was considered to be
of acceptable quality (whatever that means), but the other 45 percent had
waters “impaired for at least one type of use,” such as drinking water,
recreational fishing, swimming, or aquatic life support. Man-made lakes, often
serving as dams, accounted for 59% that were impaired. (ThoughtCo. “Lake Pollution: Types, Sources, and Solutions.”)
Plastic pollution was not part of this study, unfortunately. When plastic
pollution is assessed in lakes, it appears that 100 per cent of them have some degree
of contamination.
Algae blooms occur in both fresh
water and salt water. These “blooms” are a serious problem that lead to toxin
build-up causing oxygen levels to drop which kills fish and is dangerous for
swimming. In fact, algae can be deadly to both humans and animals.
Some areas studied had nitrogen and
phosphorus pollution which can come from inefficient sewage treatment and
fertilizers. This is a far more serious problem than one may realize. Dead
zones in lakes and the ocean where there are insufficient oxygen levels are
often caused by fertilizer run-off, resulting in death to animals, fish, and
plants that enter these zones.
A combination of fresh and salt
water, the Baltic Sea is the largest man-made dead zone, and the northern Gulf
of Mexico is the second largest and covers over 8700 square miles. Lake Erie (fresh
water) and Chesapeake Bay (a combination of fresh and salt water) also have
large dead zones. According to ThoughtCo,
a 2008 study found over 400 dead zones in lakes and oceans worldwide. “The
underlying cause of any dead zone is eutrophication…which is the enrichment of
water with nitrogen, phosphorus and other nutrients causing algae to grow out
of control or ‘bloom’.” Unfortunately,
some fresh water dead zones are not recognized or identified as such.
“Pollution is the primary human
source of the nutrients that cause eutrophication and dead zones. Fertilizer,
manure, industrial waste and inadequately treated waste water overload aquatic
ecosystems. In addition, air pollution also contributes to eutrophication.” Waste
water is often piped into rivers and coasts.
The study also found that 42
percent of lakes had metal contamination with mercury and lead predominating.
Coal-fired power plants are a leading cause of mercury contamination, and lead
can be caused by fishing tackle dropped in the water (but often the surviving fish
are already inedible due to toxins).
Basically, phosphorous, mercury,
sediment and bacteria and pathogens are the main culprits. Added to this,
however, are deadly microorganisms like lethal brain-eating bacteria. Although
the incidence of people contracting brain-eating bacteria is fairly low, it’s a
ghastly brain infection with very few surviving.
The problem with fresh water
pollution, however, is it goes far, far beyond lakes. While lakes often provide
drinking water, rivers are another very large source of household water. The
list of unscrupulous companies that have contaminated drinking water for
literally millions of people is shocking. It seems there are endless accounts
of “manufacturing, mining and waste disposal companies – and dozens of others –
who are among the country’s worst water polluters.” In all fairness, when some
of these companies were dumping toxic waste, it’s possible they didn’t understand
the ramification of these toxins contaminating groundwater that then causes
cancer and all manner of debilitating diseases. This does not absolve them of
responsibility for the death and destruction they caused, however. As they say,
ignorance of the law is no excuse…neither is ignorance of the ramifications of
one’s actions. Unfortunately, these
rivers carry contaminants to the ocean, adding their toxins to the mix.
“Hundreds of these companies have been
contaminating drinking water throughout the country for decades with everything
from arsenic and lead, to mercury and chromium – most coming from improper
dumping and waste disposal….” (Environment,
“Industrial waste pollutes America’s drinking water.”) “Mining and smelting
operations are responsible for contaminating water with heavy metals in almost
every state in the nation.”
Example: “In Ringwood, New Jersey,
Ford Motor Co. dumped more than 35,000 tons of toxic paint sludge…poisoning
groundwater with arsenic, lead, and other harmful bacteria. Today, more than 43
years after the dumping ended, those toxins are still in the groundwater and
threaten a reservoir providing water to millions of residents in New Jersey.”
Example: “In North Carolina, the
state has told residents living near coal-fired power plants their water
contains elevated levels of chromium-6 and other chemicals.”
Example: Anaconda Aluminum in
Montana produced manufacturing wastes that contaminated local water sources
with lead and chromium. Gulf States Utilities in Louisiana discharged toxins
into marshlands polluting waters with benzene and other chemicals, and the
Conklin Dumps in New York leaked volatile organic chemicals into groundwater.”
Various industries located on or
near the Ohio River which borders six states and provides drinking water to
nearly 3 million people, have dumped over 600 million pounds of toxic
substances into the river.
These toxins cause extraordinary
health problems in people and animals. Dioxins (byproducts of incinerators) are
the most commonly released chemicals. “They are known carcinogens and exposure
has been linked to health effects such as heart disease, diabetes, and
reproductive issues. Almost every living creature on Earth has been exposed to
dioxins, according to the National Institutes of Health.” (“Industrial waste
pollutes America’s drinking water.”) And how much of all these poisons floating
downstream make it out to sea? We already know that fertilizer runoff provides
a lot of contaminants to the Gulf of Mexico helping to create the giant dead
zone there.
While many of these offenses may
have occurred before people understood the severity of the problem that their
illegal dumping was causing – or would cause – that does not appear to be the
case with 3M and their fight to avoid massive pollution and restitution
lawsuits.
“Chemical industry giant 3M is
waging an aggressive campaign to stave off new regulations and potentially
billions of dollars in damages stemming from a contamination crisis that has
fouled tens of millions of Americans’ drinking water.” (Politico.com Energy and Environment)
As expected, the company has
engaged lobbyists to work in Washington ostensibly to woo state attorneys
general to their side as the company faces massive financial liability for
toxic pollution that has been tied to two of its popular products that have
turned up in the water supplies of some 1500 U.S. Communities.
3M argues that the chemicals are
not hazardous according to their
studies, an opinion many independent studies
dispute. The issue that 3M is facing is that there are multiple lawsuits in the
wings including personal injury, class-action, and property damage suits.
“Altogether, industry experts say the company’s liability could reach the tens
of billions of dollars.”
The chemicals known as PFOA and
PFOS have been used for five decades in products like Teflon and Scotch Guard.
They take years to break down and are called “forever chemicals.” They
accumulate in bodies and cause cancers like kidney and testicular cancer,
immune disorders and many other ailments – “and have been found in more than 99
percent of Americans’ blood.”
3M is known to support various
political candidates, including attorney generals in Michigan, California,
Ohio, and Alabama – “all states with major PFAS contamination.”
“In Alabama, where the chemicals
made by 3M’s manufacturing plant in Decatur have contaminated the Tennessee
River, a drinking water source for 4.7 million people…” the newly elected
attorney general will not be joining a water utility’s lawsuit against the company.
Is it possible that the contributions he received persuaded him otherwise? Let’s hope not. But he was not the only
person dissuaded. “The representatives of a collation mainly supported by 3M
(Responsible Science Policy Coalition) have met with congressional officers and
EPA political appointees arguing that the weight of current science evidence
does not show PFOS or PFOA to cause adverse health effects in human at the
current levels of exposure.” This goes entirely against the findings made by leading
independent scientific researchers, the EPA and the CDC. This type of behavior
is extremely disappointing and disturbing. If people are willing to do this to
other people and the planet, it should come as no surprise that they would do
worse to animals. We are all apparently just “collateral damage” – just a
member of the herd – when we die of chemical induced cancers and other
illnesses caused by their toxic products.
The bottom line: “3M’s own
documents handed to the Minnesota attorney general office show that the company
has known since the 1970s that the chemicals in question were toxic.”
With countless numbers of attorneys,
lobbyists and “representatives” involved, the delay tactic for solving this
issue may be even longer than the tobacco industry’s delay in finally coming to
terms with the fact that tobacco causes cancer. How’s your water today? Perhaps
you should have it checked.
Closer to home, “PFAS… have been
found in five Washington drinking-water systems at levels over the
Environmental Protection Agency guidelines, as well as dozens of private
drinking-water wells near firefighting training areas where the foams were
used.” (PFAS are used in fire retardants, such as firefighting foam.) This
discovery contradicts somewhat the 3M disparagement of their products being
deadly even in small doses.
Also troubles still haunt Hanford,
Washington, the site where 56 million gallons of radiative waste are stored.
Although there have been problems with leakage, and threats of leakage, the
waste has probably not made it to the Columbia River or to underground aquifers
(that are known, anyway). However, during the time the nuclear power plant was
in production, water was released into the river; in fact, “Groundwater
contaminated with radioactive waste from the decommissioned Hanford nuclear
facility in Washington state is still ‘flowing freely’ into the Columbia
River…” according to a program manager with the U.S. EPA. This is a river
regularly used for fishing, swimming and boating activities. How much is
withdrawn for irrigation? How many cancers have resulted from exposure to this
freely flowing contaminated groundwater? Are the fish safe to eat?
It seems state leaders are becoming
seriously galvanized to take a better look at the quality of water their
constituents drink. Like plastic, PFOS and PFAS are ubiquitous. Partly this increased
interest in local water safety may have been prompted by the “lead” scandal in
the water supply of Detroit, Michigan’s residents, another debacle that exposed
citizens, especially vulnerable children, to life-long debilitating toxins.
Thus most toxins in the water are
the result of farming, mining, industry and activities of this nature. Some,
however, are deadly pathogens of nature. Brain-eating bacteria (amoeba)
officially known as Naegleria fowleri may be the worst. The infections occur
when contaminated water gets in the nose. The amoeba travels up the nose and
into the brain which it destroys. The disease itself is known as PAM (primary
amoebic meningoencephalitis). This disease is almost always fatal (97 percent).
The bacteria have been reported
worldwide and live primarily in warm water, but can live in colder water for a
length of time. In the United States the bacteria is most commonly found in
warm lakes or rivers in the south, and even in water parks and pools. Some
estimate that about 8 people a year die from this infection, mostly young
males, but these estimates vary depending on the source. The exact number is
unknown because PAN is difficult to diagnose in its early stage where it might
be cured. It’s sometimes mistaken for bacterial meningitis. Likely climate
change will contribute to this infection if temperatures continue to warm.
Unfortunately, the bacteria can
also be found in drinking water – and that was the situation in 2017 in
Louisiana. Health officials reassured people that contaminated tap water would
not lead to an infection, “but using it for nasal irrigation or accidentally
getting it into your nose can.” (“Brain-Eating Amoeba Found in Louisiana Tap
Water, People Warned to Avoid Water in Nose.”) Residents were given a list of
things to do to avoid contracting the bacteria, such as flushing out pipes by
running showers and water hoses for a full five minutes before use, and also
they could boil their water or use distilled or sterile water for washing and
making nasal rinses. Yet another warning about the presence of the amoeba in
drinking water was issued by the New York Post in June of 2018.
At the risk of being morbid, I will
only briefly mention flesh eating bacteria – known as necrotizing fasciitis – a
rare condition, but not as rare as brain-eating bacteria. There have been
between 600 and 1200 cases of this disease every
year since 2010. This is not necessarily
a water-born disease, although it can be. The water version is from an
ocean-dwelling bacterium called vibrio
vulnificus. The bacteria can be found in warm coastal waters during the
summer months. People can develop this infection by going into the water with
an open wound and having the bad luck of coming into contact with the Vibrio. One can also become infected
from eating contaminated seafood.
It might be worthwhile to consider
using a water filter for all potable water, particularly water from private
wells. (City water sources are likely tested more often than private wells
although many people find the taste of treated water to be repugnant, but water
filters may help with that.) These filters do not need to be elaborate systems.
Some refrigerator filters work fine for filtering drinking water. There are
many relatively inexpensive filtration products available. Using one of these
for drinking water is not being paranoid. Doing so is completely understandable
and justifiable considering the chemicals and toxins dumped in the water
supply.
