Water Hyacinth

This paper is a review of literature of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes); what it is, why it is of scientific importance, problems it causes, how it can be controlled, and how it can be a source of livelihoods. The review has shown that water hyacinth is native to the Amazon Basin and one of the world's most noxious aquatic weed. Lack of natural enemies together with nutrient enriched water bodies facilitate the spread of water hyacinth in temperate, tropical and sub-tropical waters. The weed causes a variety of socio-economic and environmental problems when its rapid mat-like proliferation covers areas of fresh water. With regards to its control, the mechanical method is the most cost-effective, followed by the biological, manual and chemical methods. Regardless of its problems, water hyacinth has been found to be useful for industrial, agricultural, household and environmental purposes.

Health Professionals Can Protect Water Quality

Emerging research shows adverse health outcomes such as diabetes, obesity, cancer, and neurotoxicity from water pollutants such as flame retardants, endocrine disruptors, and pharmaceuticals. Medical waste and energy use affects water quality and quantity. This chapter provides strategies for health professionals to promote water stewardship at personal, organizational and policy levels. Organizations such as Health Care Without Harm, Alliance of Nurses for Healthy Environments and the Ecology Center offer resources for improving education of health professionals and provide allies for change. Individual advocacy through writing op-eds, policy briefs, meeting with legislators and participation in coalitions allows health professionals to interpret the science behind the need for policy changes. Recommendations for health care curricula prepare students to develop sustainable practices through inter-professional collaboration. Environmentalists can use this information to better engage health professionals in promoting change.

Cyanobacterial Toxins in Water Sources and Their Impacts on Human Health

Cyanobacteria are a group of phytoplankton of marine and freshwaters. The accelerated eutrophication of water sources by agricultural and industrial run-off has increased the occurrence and intensity of cyanobacterial blooms. They are of particular concern because of their production for potent hepato-, neuro-, and dermatoxins, being hazardous to human health. Dissemination of knowledge about cyanobacteria and their cyanotoxins assists water supply authorities in developing monitoring and management plans, and provides the public with appropriate information to avoid exposure to these toxins. This chapter provides a broad overview and up-to-date information on cyanobacteria and their toxins in terms of their occurrence, chemical and toxicological characteristics, fate in the environment, guideline limits, and effective treatment techniques to remove these toxins from drinking water. Future research directions were also suggested to fill knowledge and research gaps, and advance the abilities of utilities and water treatment plant designers to deal with these toxins.

A Review of Emerging Contaminants in Water

Contaminants of emerging concern or, simply, emerging contaminants represent a newly discovered group of chemicals present in surface and groundwater. It was only the improvements in analytical instrumentation that allowed for the detection of these contaminants even at trace levels. The continuous detection of new chemicals with time raises questions concerning their source pathways, their fate, transport, transformations and impact on aquatic environments. The scope of this chapter is to present an overview of the contaminants classified as “emerging”, their sources and introduction pathways to the environment and the related risks to human health and aquatic life.

Industrial and Agricultural Sources and Pathways of Aquatic Pollution

This chapter provides an introduction to the topic of aquatic pollution and looks at the major sources and pathways of pollutants to the environment from agriculture and industry. The section on agricultural pollution focuses on the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Industrial pollution covers a large topic and so three groups of pollutants are examined to provide an overview of the key issues faced within this sector.

Issues with Water Quality

Research in how people attend to, process and recall information tells educators that there are better ways to present the case for clean aquatic environments so citizens will understand, appreciate, and care for water resources. Gone are the days of shocking the public with photos of dying fish or burying them in mountains of scientific facts. From creating a story to using tangibles and intangibles to weaving explanatory chains with appropriate metaphors, this chapter presents thirteen components of a well-designed message to present to an audience, a board or a grant provider.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products as Emerging Water Contaminants

With the advent of better detection, more micro-contaminants are being found in water. Many of these micro-contaminants come from medical therapies and personal care products. These chemicals are comprised of a wide-range of substances including pharmaceuticals, dietary supplements, veterinary drugs, fragrances, hair care products, body lotions, oral care, and cosmetics. Many of these products enhance our quality of life and in some cases, provide life-saving therapies. But, they come with an environmental cost. Scientific research has found sub-therapeutic levels of many of these chemicals in our waterways and in our finished drinking water, causing concern about the potential environmental and public health impacts associated with very low, chronic exposure. As tailored therapies and personal care products are developed, it is crucial to consider how to control emerging contaminants from medical therapies and personal care products. Specific actions and policies can be implemented now by adopting upstream approaches to prevent waste and decrease environmental exposures.

Floodplain Infrastructure and the Toxic Tide

The human species is drawn to water. They are attracted by its dynamic flow and the promise of renewal that can lift their spirits up from the mundane. However, there is a growing awareness of how prior and current building practices continue to jeopardize environmentally sensitive wetlands, estuaries, bays, rivers, and coastal sand barriers. Constructing infrastructure in the floodplain causes erosion, pollution, habitat loss, invasive species, and increased vulnerability to hurricanes and other flooding disasters. This chapter will focus primarily on how building infrastructure located in the flood plain can affect the environment under the duress of catastrophic storm events. Reference is made to more far reaching phenomena global issues such as climate change, sea level rise, shifting continental fault lines, and other meteorological and geological changes that appear to be hastening the appearance of major disastrous events.

On-Site Sanitation Systems for Low-Income Countries

On-site sanitation systems, the commonest sanitation technologies in low-income countries, are central to the elimination of open defecation in such countries. Nevertheless, their selection and application in the physical and socio-economic environment of low-income settings could be a complex and challenging task. Poorly designed and constructed facilities could pollute groundwater resources and create nuisances to the user and the general public. Meanwhile, local authorities in these countries often lack the human resource with the requisite technical capacity to analyse situations and recommend appropriate solutions. This calls for guidance in the most crucial technical decisions that affect the safe usage and environmental sustainability of on-site sanitation technologies. This Chapter reviews salient standards and guidelines for the selection of appropriate technologies, prevention of groundwater pollution, control of odor and fly nuisance, structural stability and safety of the latrine user.

Access to Safe Drinking Water

The focus of this chapter is to demonstrate that providing safe drinking water to communities in Majority World countries, specifically Kenya, Africa, is easily accomplished. Any water system, in order to be successfully constructed in impoverished Majority World communities, must be simple and inexpensive and the benefiting community must have a vested interest and ownership for the system to be effective. Establishing a vested interest by water recipients requires that the people providing the water purification technology understand the culture and worldview of the water system recipients. This approach is supported by literature review but more so by empirical evidence gathered by both authors.