2007-02-07 14:33:30 · 6 answers · asked by orangeboy047 2 in Environment
Because human waste is loaded with bacteria which is one of the reasons your body gets rid of it in the first place. It also encourages the growth of certain plants which can choke off other life forms in the water.
2007-02-07 14:39:01 · answer #1 · answered by kevpet2005 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Just think of what we eat on daily basis! Think of all the chemicals; both natural and chemically altered, within our foods!! Our body keeps the "nutritious" particles and gets rid of the rest in form of waste... A natural body of water, such as a reservoir or river, does have an amount of waste within it....yet doesn't have near the amounts of unnatural (or preservatives) that human bodies create. The only way to "nearly" guarantee decontamination is to purify the water either through a filtration facility or attempt to let nature filter the impurities out through the soil. The latter can still be harmful; although remember there are still civilizations out there that are much more in-tune with nature than our present chemically/genetically altered foods used by human race.
Remember what happens upstream affects downstream... And there is always someone UPSTREAM...
2007-02-07 23:01:03 · answer #2 · answered by R G 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would say that human waste would change the ecology of the body of water. If it was not present before, then the introduction of enteric viruses and bacteria, as well as nutrients found in poo, may change the ecology of the system.
Search the web for the low dissolved oxygen problem in Hood Canal, Washington. It's an example of the septic runoff around a large body of water that has a low turnover rate. It's a large problem that's killing many fish/forcing them out of their habitat to really shallow waters so they can get oxygen at the air/water interface. Sad, really, and it's going to cost $$$ to fix the problem.
2007-02-07 22:57:27 · answer #3 · answered by Paul BS 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Because somewhere downstream that water is going to be pulled out and sent to a water treatment plant. If the plant is not careful, it will not remove all of the pathogens, and it will end up sending contaminated water into the distribution system, making thousands of people sick.
2007-02-09 05:21:40 · answer #4 · answered by aqx99 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It spreads bacteria and viruses from people to their water. Then, when people drink or come in contact with the water, they can become ill. Secondary to that is the negative impact on the environment such as bacterial growth and the formation of methane gas, which can hurt plant and animals.
2007-02-07 22:43:51 · answer #5 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Do you want to eat and drink your own waste? Just putting it bluntly.
2007-02-07 22:50:32 · answer #6 · answered by Get Real 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋