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Industrial and Municipal Contamination
.
In industry, water isa raw material that is used as an ingredient With other
raw materials to create a nished product,as a transporting medium, as a
agent, as a coolant, and as a source of steam in heating and power
production. In the chemical industry, which creates extremely dangerous
water ;pollutants, water is the raw material most frequently used in the manu—
facture of 150 important industrial chemicals, and air is the second most frequently used [2]. Various ores and minerals usually thought of as the most im—
portant raw materiàlsin- chemical production actually fall much farther down
thelist than water and air interms of frequency of use. The volumes of water
used by industry and agriculture in the United States far surpass the amount
of water used for domestic purposes. The overall Withdl‘âWàl of water in mil—
lions of gallons per day for various uses in 1960, compared With projections
for 1980 and 2020 based on current estimates of economic and population
growth, is tabulated on page 90 [3]. The data show au ever increasing use of
water in all categories except agriculture, where the slight decline reects au—
ticipated improvement in irrigation eiciency.
The dilemma though is that some of the water essential to these activities
is discharged laden with pollutants that interfere with other activities. Industries usually are located near rivers that answer specic water quality and
water volume needs. The plants utilize & variety of treatment equipment, if
necessary,
to maintain desired quality. The more serious problem is the inter—
,
89
…
u:
'
....
{
\_
.f/
Industrial and Municipal Contamination
.
In industry, water isa raw material that is used as an ingredient With other
raw materials to create a nished product,as a transporting medium, as a
agent, as a coolant, and as a source of steam in heating and power
production. In the chemical industry, which creates extremely dangerous
water ;pollutants, water is the raw material most frequently used in the manu—
facture of 150 important industrial chemicals, and air is the second most frequently used [2]. Various ores and minerals usually thought of as the most im—
portant raw materiàlsin- chemical production actually fall much farther down
thelist than water and air interms of frequency of use. The volumes of water
used by industry and agriculture in the United States far surpass the amount
of water used for domestic purposes. The overall Withdl‘âWàl of water in mil—
lions of gallons per day for various uses in 1960, compared With projections
for 1980 and 2020 based on current estimates of economic and population
growth, is tabulated on page 90 [3]. The data show au ever increasing use of
water in all categories except agriculture, where the slight decline reects au—
ticipated improvement in irrigation eiciency.
The dilemma though is that some of the water essential to these activities
is discharged laden with pollutants that interfere with other activities. Industries usually are located near rivers that answer specic water quality and
water volume needs. The plants utilize & variety of treatment equipment, if
necessary,
to maintain desired quality. The more serious problem is the inter—
,
89