Water Pollution . . .

Water pollution

Water pollution has become increasingly troubling in the last few decades. Even though many new laws have been enacted to try to protect the water sources there is still much work to be done to keep the water systems of the world clean and pollution free. One way that information can be spread about the problems regarding water pollution is by writing water pollution articles. Water pollution articles are very helpful ways to get out information about the causes of water pollution as well as the devastating affects of it. When water pollution articles are distributed to the general public it raises the awareness of the problem which help to change public opinion. If no one knows that water pollution is a problem than nothing can be done to fix it. By writing informative and well written water pollution articles a lot of good can be done for the environment.

Some water pollution articles highlight the sources of water pollution. Much pollution is dumped into the rivers, lakes, and streams as a result of poor farming practices and poor industrial management. There are not enough checks and balances and many industries are slipping below the radar in regards to waste removal. Water pollution articles that are written to expose the sources of much of the pollution can cause a public outcry and result in a change of policy. Water pollution articles also can tell of the damage that is done by contaminants being dumped into the water. In India millions of children have dies as a result of drinking contaminated water. The polluted waters cause diarrhea which leads to dehydration and eventually causes death. Polluted waters are also breeding grounds for vermin and mosquitoes which carry diseases and cause serious sicknesses. Some waters have an unhealthy level of nitrates in them as a result of large farms and feed lots. Waters that have high levels of nitrates are very dangerous to humans and have been known to cause blue baby syndrome which causes the death of infants.

Water pollution articles that address how to end pollution are especially beneficial. These articles help people make better decisions about how to use the water they have to prevent further pollution. These types of water pollution articles also give practical advice on how to properly dispose of potential pollutants to ensure that they don’t end up in the rivers, lakes and streams. Water pollution articles are imperative to ending the problem of water pollution and helping to educate the public about the crisis so that new laws can be made to better protect the waters for the future.

Most tap water polluted by dirty municipal infrastructure Thursday, January 25, 2007 by: Beau Hodai, citizen journalist

(NaturalNews) As the United States becomes a nation of 300 million, the country’s older cities face the reality of overpopulation, crumbling infrastructures, and the health concerns raised by both, especially those related to the availability of fresh water.

Eric Goldstein, a spokesman for the Natural Resources Defense Council, has stated that the water distribution systems of cities such as Chicago, Denver, Philadelphia and New York are in urgent need of repair.

The antiquated water delivery systems in these cities are comprised of nearly 1 million miles of piping, mostly made of iron. As the iron pipes corrode, clean water flowing through them becomes contaminated with rust. Over time the pipes also rupture, causing not only water loss, but the introduction of pollutants and diseases from the ground.

“Investigations conducted in the last five years suggest that a substantial proportion of waterborne disease outbreaks, both microbial and chemical, are attributable to problems within distribution systems,” said the National Research Council in a report released in December for the Environmental Protection Agency.

There are 170,000 public water distribution systems at work nationwide, and municipalities spend more than $50 million each year to supply clean drinking water in accordance with the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974.

“If you clean up water and then put it into a dirty pipe, there’s not much point,” said Montana State University microbiologist and water research scientist, Timothy Ford. “I consider the distribution system to be the highest risk and the greatest problem we are going to be facing in the future,” said Ford.

Jack Hossbuhr, executive director of the American Water Works Association, estimates that the cost of replacing existing pipelines over the next 20 to 30 years is going to cost water utility companies some $250 to $350 billion.

Some critics of current water delivery techniques feel that replacing the infrastructure is not a total solution.

“I advise everyone to avoid drinking water from the tap, no matter how clean the city claims it to be,” said consumer health advocate Mike Adams. “Even when cities claim their water is clean, they may still add toxic fluoride chemicals and chlorine, which we know promotes bladder cancer. Filtering your water is crucial for protecting your health.”

Paralympic Games

Paralympic Games

Organizations

The Paralympic Games are a major international multi-sport event where athletes with a physical disability compete; this includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and Cerebral Palsy. There are Winter and Summer Paralympic Games, which are held immediately following their respective Olympic Games. All Paralympic Games are governed by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

The Paralympics have grown from a small gathering of British World War II veterans in 1948 to become one of the largest international sport events by the early 21st century. Paralympians strive for equal treatment with able-bodied Olympic athletes, but there is a large funding gap between Olympic and Paralympic athletes. There are also sports, such as track and field athletics, that are resistant to Paralympians who wish to compete equally with able-bodied athletes, though there have been Paralympians who have participated in the Olympic Games.

The Paralympic Games include athletes with physical disabilities, and are run in parallel with the Olympic Games, while the IOC recognized Special Olympics World Games include athletes with intellectual disabilities, and the Deaflympics include deaf athletes.^[1][2]

The present formal explanation for the name "Paralympic" is that it derives from the Greek preposition παρά, pará ("beside" or "alongside") and thus refers to a competition held in parallel with the Olympic Games.^[3] The Summer Games of 1988 held in Seoul was the first time the term "Paralympic" came into official use.

Given the wide variety of disabilities that paralympic athletes have, there are several categories in which the athletes compete. The allowable disabilities are broken down into six broad categories. The categories are amputee, Cerebral Palsy, intellectual disability, wheelchair, visually impaired, and Les Autres (literally "The Others", which are athletes with disabilities that don't fall into the other five categories; these include dwarfism, multiple sclerosis, and congenital deformities). These categories are further broken down into classifications, which vary from sport to sport. The classification system has led to cheating controversies revolving around athletes who over-stated their disabilities in addition to the use of performance-enhancing drugs seen in other events.