CHAPTER 1

1.1 GROUND WATER POLLUTION

Ground water pollution is a type of pollution which occurs when groundwater becomes contaminated. Around the world, groundwater pollution is a very serious and costly problem and many governments have started to take aggressive actions to address it. Once contaminated, groundwater is very expensive to clean up and make usable again and in some cases, an aquifer may be so contaminated that it has to be abandoned, which can put tremendous pressure on a community as it attempts to find a new supply of water.

1.2

ABOUT POLLUTION

For the most part, it is aimed at companies involved in polluting industries, such as oil refineries, although pollution insurance for contractors and more ordinary business people are also available. Pollution can be extremely costly. Growing environmental regulation concerns about pollution in the late 20th century led to an increased interest in pollution insurance coverage among companies which could potentially be liable for large payouts to deal with environmental problems, ranging from companies which exercised poor site control and allowed pollutants to escape to companies which used industry wide practices which were later revealed harmful.

Whether it is in the home or at a government level, every person is important and has the ability to make a difference and to stop pollution.

1.3

GROUNDWATER POLLUTION

The water may also be unsafe for use in agriculture or manufacturing and it can cause issues for local wildlife and flora exposed to the contaminated water. People usually identify groundwater pollution when people start getting sick or when routine testing of water supplies reveal contamination.

This type of groundwater study can provide information as to how fast different types of groundwater pollution spread and how long it stays in the system. However, pollution is just one of the issues of concern.

1.4

CHEMICAL PARAMETERS OF GOOD WATER QUALITY

Alkalinity is one of the first considerations when it comes to the chemical quality of source water. Alkalinity is not a pollutant. It is the total measure of the substances in water that have acid-neutralizing ability. Dont confuse alkalinity with pH!!! pH measures the strength of an acid or base; alkalinity indicates a solutions power to keep its pH from changing. To illustrate we will compare samples of pure and buffered water. Absolutely pure water has a pH of exactly 7.0. It contains no acids, no bases and no (zero) alkalinity. The buffered water with a pH of exactly 6.0, can have high alkalinity. If you add a small amount of weak acid to both water sample, the pH of the pure water will change instantly(becomes more acidic). But, the buffered waters pH wont change easily because the Alka-Seltzer like buffers absorbs the acid and keeps it from expressing itself. Alkalinity is important for fishing and aquatic life because it protects of buffers against pH changing (keeps the pH fairly constant) and makes water less vulnerable to acid rain. The main sources of acid alkalinity are rocks which contain carbonate , bi-carbonate and hydroxide compounds. Borates, silicates and phosphates may also contribute to alkalinity. Limestone is rich in carbonates, so water flowing through limestone regions has generally alkalinity-hence its good buffering capacity. Conversely, granite does not have minerals that contribute to alkalinity. Therefore, areas rich in granite have low alkalinity and poor buffering capacity.

Chlorine is a greenish-yellow gas that dissolves easily in water. It has a pungent noxious odour that some people can smell it at concentrations above 0.3 parts per million. As chlorine is an excellent disinfectant, it is commonly added to most drinking water supplies in the US. In the parts of the world where chlorine is not added to drinking water, thousands of people die each day due to water borne diseases like typhoid and cholera. Chlorine is also used as a disinfectant in wastewater treatment plants and swimming pools. It is widely used as a bleaching agent in textile factories and paper mills and it is an important ingredient in many laundry bleaches. Free chlorine (chlorine gas dissolved in water) is toxic to fish and aquatic organisms, even if in small amounts.

However, its dangers are relatively short-lived compared to the dangers of most other highly poisonous substances. That is because chlorine reacts quickly with other substances in water ( and forms combined chlorine) or dissipates as a gas into the atmosphere. The free chlorine test measures only the amount of free or dissolved chlorine in water. The total chlorine test measures both free and combined forms of chlorine. If water contains a lot of decaying materials, free chlorine can combine with them and form compounds called trihalomethanes of THMs. Some 2

THMs in high concentrations are carcinogenic to people. Unlike free chlorine, THMs are persistent and can pose a health threat to living things for a long time.

People who are adding chlorine to water for disinfectant must be careful for two reasons: 1) Chlorine gas even at low concentrations can irritate eyes, nasal passages and lungs; it can even kill in a few breathes and 2) The formation of THM compounds must be minimized because of the long term health effects. Less than one-half (0.5) mg/L of free chlorine is needed to kill bacteria without causing water to smell or taste unpleasant. Most people cant detect the presence of chlorine in water at double (1.0) mg/L that amount. Although (1.0) mg/L chlorine is not harmful to people, it does cause many problems for fish if they are exposed to it for a long period of time.

Nitrite and Nitrate are forms of the element nitrogen, which makes up about 80 % of the air we breathe. As an essential component of life, nitrogen is recycled continually by plants and animals and is found in the cells of all living things. Organic nitrogen( nitrogen combined with carbon) is found in proteins and other compounds. Inorganic nitrogen may exist in free state as a gas, as ammonia (when combined with hydrogen), or as nitrate or nitrite ( when combined with oxygen). Nitrites and nitrates are produced naturally as a part of the nitrogen cycle when the bacterias production line breaks down toxic ammonia wastes first into nitrite and then into nitrate. Sources of nitrites and nitrates: Nitrites are relatively short-lived because they are quickly converted into nitrates by bacteria. Nitrites produce a serious illness (brown blood disease) in fish, even though they dont exist for a long time in environment. Nitrites also react directly with hemoglobin in human blood to produce methemoglobin, which destroys the ability of blood cells to transport oxygen. This condition is especially serious in babies under three months of age as it causes a condition known as methomoglobinemia or blue baby disease. Water with nitrite levels exceeding 1.0 mg/L should not be given to babies. Nitrite concentrations in drinking water seldom 0.1 mg/L. nitrate is one of the major ingredients of farm fertilizer and is necessary for crop production. When it rains, varying nitrate amounts wash from farmlands into nearby water ways. Nitrite also gets into waterways from long fertilizer run off, leaking septic tanks and cess pools. Nitrates stimulate the growth of plankton and water weeds that provide food for fish. This may increase the fish population. However, if algae grow too widely, oxygen levels still be reduced and fish dies. Nitrate can reduce too toxic nitrite in the human intestine and many babies have been seriously poisoned by well water containing high level of nitrite. The health service has established that 10 mg/L of nitrite-nitrogen has maximum contamination level allowed in public drinking water. Effects of nitrates and nitrites on fish and aquatic life below 90 mg/L and nitrite level below 0.5 mg/L seem to have no effect on water, but some cold water are more sensitive. The recommended nitrite of minimum is 0.06 mg/L.

Fish and aquatic animals cannot split oxygen from water or contaminating compounds. Only green plants and some bacteria can do photosynthesis under similar process. Virtually all oxygen is manufactured by green plants. A total of th of earth oxygen supply is produced by phytoplanktons in the ocean. If water is too warm, there may be not enough oxygen in it. When there are too many bacteria or aquatic animals in the area, there may be over pollute using dissolved oxygen in great amount. Oxygen level can also be reduced through fertilization of water plants by run off from farm fields containing phosphates and nitrates. Under these conditions the number and size of the water plants increase in great deal. Then, if the weather becomes cloudy for several days, respiring plants will use much of available dissolved oxygen. When these plants die, they become food for bacteria which in turn multiplies and use large amount of oxygen. How much dissolved oxygen has an aquatic organization depends upon the species and the physical state of water temperature. Consequently, its impossible to accurately predict minimum dissolved oxygen level for specific fish and aquatic animals. Degradation of wastewater sub streams become tanning and wet process and application of oxidative treatment by ozone, followed by second state that the contaminated waste water effective by BOD and COD and ammonia limits for directing discharge of this special industrial waste water. The waste water produced after the oxidation of sulphide compound containing ammonium of 550 mg/L respectively. The MSBR was operated for a period of 150 days with no sludge removal during the whole period of operation. The biomass concentration inside the reactor varied considerably with maximum of 10 L at the end of the operation. Low biomass yield values are achieved probably due to important accumulation of organic matter in the reactor. Although, effluent was not affected due to membrane removal of 100% in ammonia and 90% in COD and total nitrogen removal from 60% to 90%. The treatment of tannery waste water followed by degaradation of leather industries and flocculation of alkaline tannery waste water can increase the removal efficiency of organic compounds such as colloids, colours and other dissolved organic compounds. Flocculation using primary treatment in the tannery waste water treatment in the sea water plant. The pH adjustment of effluent waste water and other operational parameters to enhance the removal of COD in activated sludge process.

CHAPTER 2
2.1 QUALITY OF GROUND WATER

The chemical and biological character of ground water is acceptable for more uses. The quality of ground water in some parts of the country