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Water Pollution
Reviewed by Medicinsk Expert•Last updated: 2026-10-22•Poisoning Toxicology Environmental Health

Water Pollution

Clean water is essential for human survival, agriculture, and wildlife, yet it faces significant threats from soil, nutrients, and bacteria.

Overview

People rely on clean water to grow crops, operate factories, and for drinking and recreation. Similarly, fish and wildlife depend on it to survive. However, many different pollutants can harm rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans.

Common Pollutants

The three most common pollutants affecting water bodies are soil, nutrients, and bacteria.

  • Soil: Rain washes soil into streams and rivers. This sediment can kill tiny animals and fish eggs, clog the gills of fish, and block light, causing plants to die.
  • Nutrients: Often originating from fertilizers, nutrients cause problems in lakes, ponds, and reservoirs. Nitrogen and phosphorus promote algae growth, which can turn water green.
  • Bacteria: Often resulting from sewage spills, bacteria can pollute both fresh and salt water.

Protecting Your Water Supply

Individuals can help protect the water supply by taking the following precautions:

  • Do not pour household products such as cleansers, beauty products, medicines, auto fluids, paint, and lawn care products down the drain. Instead, take them to a hazardous waste collection site.
  • Dispose of excess household grease (meat fats, lard, cooking oil, shortening, butter, margarine, etc.), diapers, condoms, and personal hygiene products in the garbage can.
  • Clean up after pets, as pet waste contains nutrients and germs.

Source: Environmental Protection Agency

Frequently Asked Questions

Harmful algal blooms produce potent cyanotoxins, such as microcystins, when water is overloaded with agricultural nitrogen and phosphorus. Recreational exposure or accidental swallowing can cause acute skin irritation, conjunctivitis, severe gastrointestinal illness, and elevated liver enzymes. Inhaling aerosolized toxins near affected lakes can trigger bronchospasms, sore throat, and flu-like symptoms.
Individuals who are immunocompromised, elderly, or caring for infants should strictly avoid tap water for drinking, brushing teeth, making ice, or food prep. Water should be brought to a full rolling boil for at least one minute (three minutes at altitudes above 6,500 feet) and cooled before use, or commercially sealed bottled water should be used exclusively until municipal authorities declare the water safe.
Municipal wastewater treatment plants and septic systems cannot effectively filter out pharmaceutical compounds. Flushed antibiotics, hormones, and psychiatric medications pass into local waterways and groundwater, contributing to antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains and contaminating aquatic ecosystems. Unused medications should be disposed of via community take-back kiosks or mixed with undesirable waste like used coffee grounds and placed in household trash.
Contaminated water containing bacteria like E. coli, Salmonella, or Campylobacter typically causes acute gastroenteritis characterized by watery or bloody diarrhea, severe abdominal cramping, nausea, vomiting, and low-grade fever. Immediate medical care is needed if you experience bloody stools, inability to keep fluids down for more than 24 hours, signs of dehydration (such as dizziness or dark urine), or a high fever above 102 degrees Fahrenheit.
Source: MedlinePlus, National Library of Medicine

MedlinePlus brings together authoritative health information from the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and other government agencies and health-related organizations.

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