Explore the causes and effects of water contamination, including microplastics, chemicals, and stormwater runoff. Learn how to protect lakes, rivers, and freshwater resources.
Sometimes an idea makes perfect sense with the information available at the time. In 1994, researchers published the results of an experiment in concrete-lined canals in California and Arizona. Lining the canals helped conserve water, but it also eliminated habitat used by fish and other aquatic organisms. Their solution was innovative: build artificial habitat from
With limited land available for traditional waste disposal, Singapore developed an unusual solution: an offshore landfill built in the sea. Semakau Landfill, which opened in 1999, receives ash and non-incinerable waste after most of the country’s solid waste is processed at waste-to-energy plants. Incineration reduces the volume of the waste by as much as 90
Drought has become widespread across much of the United States this summer. By late July, about 48% of the Lower 48 was experiencing drought, affecting roughly 113 million people. Conditions have worsened across portions of the Northern Plains and Upper Midwest, while the Southwest continues to struggle with the effects of a drought that has
Residents around Indian Lake in Worcester, Massachusetts, are raising concerns after a spike in fish deaths following the recent application of aquatic herbicides. These chemicals, intended to control the spread of invasive weeds, work by killing the plants outright. But once the plants die, they begin to decompose in the water—a process that consumes dissolved
Following a chemical treatment aimed at controlling aquatic vegetation in Port St. Lucie’s Elkhorn Canal, residents reported what they called the “worst smell in the entire world” as countless fish perished on the canal’s surface. Water tests revealed that dissolved oxygen levels plunged to levels unsustainable for aquatic life—an unintended but severe consequence of the
In June 2024, a chemical herbicide application in Florida’s Elkcam Waterway resulted in a catastrophic fish kill. Within 24 hours, residents reported fish gasping at the surface, and by the end of the week, thousands of dead fish had washed up along the banks. This devastating incident underscores the dangers of using chemicals to manage
Hydrilla, a non-native aquatic plant, has been labeled one of the world’s most invasive species. While it can dominate shallow, warm waters in places like Florida, its threat in deep, cold lakes such as those in New York is far less clear. Nevertheless, aggressive chemical eradication campaigns have been launched across the state, including in