list 5 negative ways humans impact groundwater?

Answer 1

There are a lot more than five!
Here's a randomly generated list (out of the head of a conservatioist and hiking guide who's been asked about these problems a lot):

1. By taking water from underground aquifers for irrigation (and mining in particular), we lower the water table. This means it's harder to get to the water in subsequent years;

2. When such used water eventually percolates back into the aquifer, it's riddled with the chemicals we've added to it while irrigating, thereby poisoning the entire aquifer;

3. The water that we use to wash our clothes is polluted with a range of pretty nasty chemicals. Simply using "phosphate-free" detergents ain't gunna cut the mustard. That's just one chemical and the way I understand it is that what they were replaced with are even worse. Anyway, the polluted water eventually gets back into the aquifers / groundwater, once more laden with toxics.

4. Exhaust from motor vehicles doesn't just get into the atmosphere - when it rains, the chemicals and particulate matter are brought back down to earth. Some of the same polluted water eventually ends up underground;

5. Another effect of using groundwater for irrigation is salinification. This is when the irrigation of an area actually brings the water table closer to the surface (rather than the situation described in no. 1 and 2 above). When it gets closer, it brings with it a load of naturally occuring salts (not just good ol' NaCl - sodium chloride or table salt - that's just one of a whole swag of things chemistry refers to as a "salt"). These then work their way to the layer in which plants tap into for water and nutrients. Most can't utilise such "infected" soil due to it's increased salt load so they die. I'm not sure where you're from, but if you do a search on "dryland salinity" in Australia, you'll see what kind of massive effect this problem's having on our country. There ARE solutions, however - we need to reduce our reliance on irrigated crops (like cotton) and we need to re-examine where such crops are grown. There are also a suite of species which are more salt-tolerant and such plants can be used to regenerate areas of saline-affected soils. Again, I'd suggest searching for "Landcare". They're the body responsible for education and rehabilitation in Australia - there are doubtless groups of a similar nature all over the world.

Hope this helps!

Love and Light,

Jarrah

Answer 2

Yes, industry and human activity impact groundwater as described above. But, you have to remember that there are naturally occuring chemicals and minerals that are also in groundwater (like arsenic).

In addition, not every groundwater aquifer is a drinking water aquifer nor fit for human consumtion.

Answer 3

1) fertilizer run off from yards and farms

2) overpopulation stresses water supply

3) farming uses water that it takes from the ground and depletes the water table until it travels back to the groundwater level

4) septic systems leak sewage into rivers

5) Factories drain their cooling waters mixed with contaminants, right back into the lakes and rivers and streams

6) Hog farms build up MASSIVE sewage lagoons and leak large amounts of nitrates back into the ground and water

Answer 4

Surface sources: 1.) landfills, 2.)dumps and 3.)surface impoundings for wastewater. Ground sources: 5.)flaws in petrol storage tanks and 6.)wastewater (sewer) system
Other sources:7.) pesticides used in agriculture and 8.)runoff from paved areas (interception loss)

Answer 5

Big businesses pumping phosphate sludge in to aquifers.
coal fired plants make acid rain,it washes heavy metals out of the soil in to aquifers.
Road oils wash off in to aquifers.
Big businesses dumping chemicals in to rivers that replenish aquifers.
Waste management sites not contained,leaching toxins in to aquifers.