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Nonpoint source pollution

 

 
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Nonpoint source pollution
 
 
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Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is water pollution
Water pollution

Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies such as lakes, rivers, oceans, and groundwater caused by human activities, which can be harmful to organisms and plants that live in these water bodies....
 affecting a water body from diffuse sources, such as polluted runoff
Surface runoff

Surface runoff is the water flow which occurs when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land....
 from agricultural areas draining into a river, or wind borne debris blowing out to sea. Nonpoint source pollution can be contrasted with point source
Point source (pollution)

A point source of pollution is a single identifiable localized source of Air pollution, Water pollution, Thermal pollution, Noise pollution or Light pollution pollution....
 pollution, where discharges occur to a water body at a single location, such as discharges from a chemical factory, or from ships at sea.

NPS may derive from many different sources with no specific solution to rectify the problem, making it difficult to regulate.






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Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution is water pollution
Water pollution

Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies such as lakes, rivers, oceans, and groundwater caused by human activities, which can be harmful to organisms and plants that live in these water bodies....
 affecting a water body from diffuse sources, such as polluted runoff
Surface runoff

Surface runoff is the water flow which occurs when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land....
 from agricultural areas draining into a river, or wind borne debris blowing out to sea. Nonpoint source pollution can be contrasted with point source
Point source (pollution)

A point source of pollution is a single identifiable localized source of Air pollution, Water pollution, Thermal pollution, Noise pollution or Light pollution pollution....
 pollution, where discharges occur to a water body at a single location, such as discharges from a chemical factory, or from ships at sea.

NPS may derive from many different sources with no specific solution to rectify the problem, making it difficult to regulate. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
United States Environmental Protection Agency

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is an List of United States federal agencies of the federal government of the United States charged to Regulation of chemicals and protect human health by safeguarding the natural environment: air, water, and land....
 (EPA), nonpoint source pollution is the leading cause of water pollution in the United States
United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
 today, with polluted runoff from agriculture the primary cause.

Other significant sources of runoff include hydrological and habitat modification, stormwater
Stormwater

Stormwater is a term used to describe water that originates during precipitation events. It may also be used to apply to water that originates with snowmelt or runoff water from overwatering that enters the stormwater system....
 runoff, and silviculture
Silviculture

Silviculture is the art and science of controlling the establishment, growth, composition, health, and quality of forests to meet diverse needs and values of the many landowners, societies and cultures over the parts of the globe that are covered by dry land....
 (forestry). Another important cause of NPS pollution is urban runoff of items like oil, fertilizers, and lawn chemicals. As rainfall or snowmelt moves over and through the ground, it picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants. These pollutants are eventually deposited into bodies of water, such as lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and underground sources of drinking water
Drinking water

Drinking water is water that is of sufficiently high quality so that it can be consumed or utilized without risk of immediate or long term harm....
.

Examples of Nonpoint source pollution


Sediment

Sediment
Sediment

Sediment is any particulate matter that can be sediment transport by fluid dynamics, and which eventually is deposited.Sediments are most often transported by water transported by wind and glaciers....
 includes silt
Silt

Silt is soil or Rock derived granular material of a Particle size between sand and clay. Silt may occur as a soil or as suspended sediment in a surface water body....
 and suspended solids
Suspended solids

Suspended solids refers to small solid particles which remain in Suspension in water as a colloid or due to the motion of the water. It is used as one indicator of water quality....
. The sediment can come from improperly managed construction
Construction

In the fields of architecture and civil engineering, construction is a process that consists of the building or assembling of infrastructure. Far from being a single activity, large scale construction is a feat of multitasking....
 sites, eroding stream banks, and improper plant cover on urban and rural land.

Phosphorus

Phosphorus
Phosphorus

Phosphorus is the chemical element that has the symbol P and atomic number 15. The name comes from the and . A Valency nonmetal of the nitrogen group, phosphorus is commonly found in inorganic phosphate minerals....
 is a nutrient that occurs in many forms that are bioavailable. It is a pollutant in freshwater systems where phosphorus is normally a limiting nutrient. Excess amounts of phosphorus in these systems lead to algae
Algae

Algae are a large and diverse group of simple, typically autotrophic organisms, ranging from unicellular to multicellular forms. The largest and most complex marine forms are called seaweeds....
 blooms and consequently hypoxia
Hypoxia (environmental)

Hypoxia or oxygen depletion is a phenomenon that occurs in aquatic environments as oxygen becomes reduced in concentration to a point detrimental to aquatic organisms living in the system....
. This is also known as eutrophication
Eutrophication

Eutrophication is an increase in chemical nutrients — compounds containing nitrogen or phosphorus — in an ecosystem, and may occur on land or in water....
. Phosphorus is most often transported to water bodies via soil erosion since the various forms of phosphorus tend to be adsorbed
Adsorption

Adsorption is a process that occurs when a gas or liquid solute accumulates on the surface of a solid or a liquid , forming a film of molecules or atoms ....
 to soil particles.

Nitrogen

It becomes a pollutant in saltwater systems where nitrogen is a limiting nutrient. Excess amounts of bioavailable nitrogen in these systems lead to a boom of algae and diatoms. When the excessively large population of autotrophs reach the end of their life cycles, the process of decomposition
Decomposition

Decomposition refers to the process by which tissues of dead organisms break down into simpler forms of matter. Such a breakdown of dead organisms is essential for new growth and development of living organisms because it recycles the finite chemical constituents and frees up the limited physical space in the biome....
 consumes oxygen. The result is very suppressed levels of dissolved oxygen in the water, otherwise known as hypoxia
Hypoxia (environmental)

Hypoxia or oxygen depletion is a phenomenon that occurs in aquatic environments as oxygen becomes reduced in concentration to a point detrimental to aquatic organisms living in the system....
.

Nitrogen is most often transported by water as nitrate
Nitrate

In inorganic chemistry, a nitrate is a salt of nitric acid with an ion composed of one nitrogen and three oxygen atoms . In organic chemistry the esters of nitric acid and various alcohols are called nitrates....
 (NO3). The nitrogen is usually added to a watershed as organic-N or ammonia
Ammonia

Ammonia is a chemical compound with the chemical formula nitrogenhydrogen. It is normally encountered as a gas with a characteristic pungent odor....
 (NH3), so nitrogen stays attached to the soil until oxidation converts it into nitrate. Since the nitrate is generally already incorporated into the soil, the water traveling through the soil is the most likely to transport it. Instead of surface runoff being the primary transporter, interflow
Interflow

In hydrology, interflow is the name given to the lateral movement of water in the vadose zone, the name given to the area between the soil water which is above and the ground water underneath....
 and tile drainage
Tile drainage

Tile drainage is a practice for removing excess water from the subsurface of soil intended for agriculture. Whereas irrigation is the practice of adding additional water when the soil is naturally too dry, drainage brings soil moisture levels down for optimal crop growth....
.

Bacteria

Bacteria
Bacteria

The Bacteria are a large group of unicellular microorganisms. Typically a few micrometres in length, bacteria have a wide range of shapes, ranging from spheres to rods and spirals....
 from livestock
Livestock

Livestock is the term used to refer to a domesticated animal intentionally reared in an agricultural setting to produce things such as food or fibre, or for its labour....
 operations, faulty septic systems, and pet waste can be sources of pollution.

See also

  • Water pollution
    Water pollution

    Water pollution is the contamination of water bodies such as lakes, rivers, oceans, and groundwater caused by human activities, which can be harmful to organisms and plants that live in these water bodies....
  • Marine pollution
    Marine pollution

    Marine pollution occurs when harmful effects, or potentially harmful effects, can result from the entry into the ocean of chemicals, particle , industrial, agricultural and residential waste, or the spread of invasive organisms....
  • Stormwater
    Stormwater

    Stormwater is a term used to describe water that originates during precipitation events. It may also be used to apply to water that originates with snowmelt or runoff water from overwatering that enters the stormwater system....
  • Surface runoff
    Surface runoff

    Surface runoff is the water flow which occurs when soil is infiltrated to full capacity and excess water, from rain, snowmelt, or other sources flows over the land....
  • Trophic state index
    Trophic state index

    The quantities of nitrogen, phosphorus, and other biologically useful nutrients are theprimary determinants of a lake's trophic state index . Nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus...
  • Water quality
    Water quality

    Water quality is the physical, chemical and biological characteristics of water. It is most frequently used by reference to a set of standards against which compliance can be assessed....
  • Sediment control
    Sediment control

    A sediment control is a practice or device designed to keep erosion soil on a construction site, so that it does not wash off and cause water pollution to a nearby stream, river, lake, or bay....
  • Erosion control
    Erosion control

    Erosion control is the practice of preventing or controlling wind or water erosion in agriculture, land development and construction. This usually involves the creation of some sort of physical barrier, such as vegetation or rock, to absorb some of the energy of the wind or water that is causing the erosion....
  • CPESC
    CPESC

    Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control is a qualification indicating the holder has educational training, expertise and experience in controlling erosion and sedimentation, and met certification standards....
     – Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control


External links

  • - U.S. Department of Agriculture
  • - Onondaga County Government, Syracuse, NY