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1 THERMAL POLLUTION

Thermal pollution is the degradation of water in levels of DO can harm aquatic animals such as
quality by any process that changes ambient water fish, amphibians and copepods. Thermal pollution
temperature. A common cause of thermal may also increase the metabolic rate of aquatic
pollution is the use of water as a coolant by power animals, as enzyme activity, resulting in these
plants and industrial manufacturers. When water organisms consuming more food in a shorter time
used as a coolant is returned to the natural than if their environment were not changed. An
environment at a higher temperature, the change increased metabolic rate may result in food source
in temperature impacts organisms by (a) shortages, causing a sharp decrease in a
decreasing oxygen supply, and (b) affecting population. Changes in the environment may also
ecosystem composition. Urban runoff--stormwater result in a migration of organisms to another,
discharged to surface waters from roads and more suitable environment, and to in-migration of
parking lots--can also be a source of elevated fishes that normally only live in warmer waters
water temperatures. Humans are a major cause of elsewhere. This leads to competition for fewer
this. resources; the more adapted organisms moving in
may have an advantage over organisms that are
not used to the warmer temperature. As a result
one has the problem of compromising food chains
of the old and new environments. Biodiversity can
be decreased as a result.

It is known that temperature changes of even one


to two degrees Celsius can cause significant
changes in organism metabolism and other
adverse cellular biology effects. Principal adverse
changes can include rendering cell walls less
permeable to necessary osmosis, coagulation of
cell proteins, and alteration of enzyme
metabolism. These cellular level effects can
adversely affect mortality and reproduction.

Primary producers are affected by warm water


When a power plant first opens or shuts down for because higher water temperature increases plant
repair or other causes, fish and other organisms growth rates, resulting in a shorter lifespan and
adapted to particular temperature range can be species overpopulation. This can cause an algae
killed by the abrupt rise in water temperature bloom which reduces the oxygen levels in the
known as 'thermal shock'. water. The higher plant density leads to an
increased plant respiration rate because the
Thermal pollution can also be caused by the reduced light intensity decreases photosynthesis.
release of very cold water from the base of This is similar to the eutrophication that occurs
reservoirs into warmer rivers. This affects fish when watercourses are polluted with leached
(particularly their eggs and larvae), agricultural inorganic fertilizers.
macroinvertebrates and river productivity.
A large increase in temperature can lead to the
Ecological effects — warm denaturing of life-supporting enzymes by breaking
down hydrogen- and disulphide bonds within the
water quaternary structure of the enzymes. Decreased
enzyme activity in aquatic organisms can cause
Elevated temperature typically decreases the level problems such as the inability to break down
of dissolved oxygen (DO) in water. The decrease lipids, which leads to malnutrition.
2 THERMAL POLLUTION

In limited cases, warm water has little deleterious  cooling ponds, man-made bodies of water
effect and may even lead to improved function of designed for cooling by evaporation,
the receiving aquatic ecosystem. This convection, and radiation
phenomenon is seen especially in seasonal waters  cooling towers, which transfer waste heat
and is known as thermal enrichment. An to the atmosphere through evaporation
extreme case is derived from the aggregational and/or heat transfer
habits of the manatee, which often uses power  cogeneration, a process where waste heat
plant discharge sites during winter. Projections is recycled for domestic and/or industrial
suggest that manatee populations would decline heating purposes.[4]
upon the removal of these discharges.
Some facilities use once-through cooling (OTC)
The temperature can be as high as 70° Fahrenheit systems which do not reduce temperature as
for freshwater, 80° F for saltwater, and 85° F for effectively as the above systems. For example, the
tropical fish.[clarification needed] Potrero Generating Station in San Francisco,
which uses OTC, discharges water to San
Ecological effects — cold water Francisco Bay approximately 10° C (20° F) above
the ambient bay temperature.[5]
Releases of unnaturally cold water from reservoirs
can dramatically change the fish and
Urbanrunoff
macroinvertebrate fauna of rivers, and reduce
During warm weather, urban runoff can have
river productivity. In Australia, where many rivers
significant thermal impacts on small streams, as
have warmer temperature regimes, native fish
stormwater passes over hot parking lots, roads and
species have been eliminated, and
sidewalks. Stormwater management facilities that
macroinvertebrate fauna have been drastically
absorb runoff or direct it into groundwater, such
altered and impoverished. The temperatures for
as bioretention systems and infiltration basins, can
freshwater fish can be as low as 50° F, saltwater
reduce these thermal effects. Retention basins tend
75° F, and tropical 80° F.
to be less effective at reducing temperature, as the
water may be heated by the sun before being
Control of thermal pollution discharged to a receiving stream.[6]...

Cooling tower at Gustav Knepper Power Station,


Dortmund, Germany

Industrialwastewater
In the United States, thermal pollution from
industrial sources is generated mostly by power
plants, petroleum refineries, pulp and paper mills,
chemical plants, steel mills and smelters.[2] [3]
Heated water from these sources may be
controlled with:

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