The Ganges River is the dirtiest. The dirtiest river in the world - Citarum
This topic contains the 10 dirtiest rivers in the world. this moment, perhaps these rivers were once full of pure water, clear water, in which fish may once have been found.
The most dirty river in the world is located in Indonesia. Citarum- a river in Indonesia, flows near the capital of the country, Jakarta. And it collects waste from a city of 9 million. Local residents have already forgotten that there was once fish there. Collecting garbage in the river and recycling it is now much more profitable than fishing.
Surprised? This is the Citarum River in West Java, Indonesia. While this river looks like a garbage dump, it is actually the main source of water for agriculture and water supply for people. The river is heavily polluted by human activities and has no aquatic life. In December 2008, the Asian Development Bank issued a $500 million loan to remove garbage from the river, but we see that it will take years to bring the dead river back to life.
Yamuna River, India
Yamuna is a river in India with a total length of 1376 km. Is the most major influx Ganga. Occurs in Himalayan mountains near the Yamunotri sanctuary and flows through the Indian states of Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, as well as the capital Delhi. In addition to Delhi, the cities of Mathura and Agra are located on the Yamuna. Near the city of Allahabad, the Yamuna flows into the Ganges, forming the Sangam, sacred to Hindus.
It is one of the most polluted rivers in the world, with 58% of the garbage from the Indian capital New Delhi dumped in the river. The government has invested funds to clean up the Yamuna and the Ganges, but no matter how hard they try, it is useless.
Buriganga River, Bangladesh
Buriganga is a river flowing near Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, one of the branches connecting the Ganges with the Brahmaputra. The average depth of the river is 12 meters, maximum depth- 28 meters.
It is considered one of the most polluted rivers on the planet: the water from the river cannot not only be drunk, but even used for washing and technical purposes. Although the country has a legal ban on dumping waste into rivers, 1.5 million cubic meters of industrial waste is dumped into Buriganga every day. The river is considered biologically dead
"Yellow River(Yellow River), Lanzhou city, China. The Yellow River is the second most long river China and is the main water supply for millions of people in northern China. But the river, which is the main source of drinking water for two million local communities, is heavily polluted by oil spills.
Marilao River, Philippines. Plastic wrappers, rubber flip flops, and other trash can be found in the Marilao River. The waters contain toxic chemicals such as chromium, cadmium, copper and arsenic, making the water very dangerous. Despite slogans not to pollute the water and hefty fines, people still throw their garbage and factories release their sewage into the river, further polluting the river.
Ganga River, India. The Ganges River stretches from the Himalayas to Indian Ocean across the territory of India and Bangladesh, for 2510 kilometers. At the moment, the Ganges River is very polluted, due to the rapid growth of the population of India, the influence of industry, and the lack of modern sewerage, which has a detrimental effect on the river. The result of this pollution is a variety of waterborne diseases, including cholera, hepatitis, typhus and dysentery. About 80% of all health problems and a third of deaths in India are due to waterborne diseases.
Songhua River, China. Songhua is a river in Northeast China, and is the largest tributary of the Heilong River. In November 2005, the river was polluted with benzene, which led to the closure of Harbin's water supply.
Mississippi River, USA. Mississippi (English Mississippi, in the Ojibwe language misi-ziibi or gichi-ziibi - “ big river") is a river in the USA, one of greatest rivers world: length 3,770 kilometers. Originates in Lake Itasca at an altitude of 450 meters above sea level in National Nature Reserve Itasca (Minnesota), flows into the Gulf of Mexico. The Mississippi River is the main economic and natural resource for the United States. The river carries approximately 1.5 million metric tons of nitrogen pollution into the Gulf of Mexico each year.
River Sarno, Italy. Sarno is a stream that passes through Pompeii to the south of the city of Naples. The river is considered the most polluted river in Europe. The polluted waters of the basin flowing into the Gulf of Naples increase the pollution of sea water.
Royal River, Australia. The Royal River is the most polluted river in Australia. The river is polluted by chemical waste from the mining industry. About 1.5 million tons of sulfides have entered the river every year since 1995
Yellow and orange rivers have not surprised anyone for a long time. How soon will humanity drown in its own waste? Instead of a picturesque flower meadow, there are bright labels and tons of plastic. It takes tens of thousands of years for its natural decomposition.
Quite a lot known fact that certain human activities have a detrimental effect on nature. People have polluted over the past 50 years environment, since they were unable to do so in the entire previous history of human existence. There are many cases when a person, through his influence, caused many lakes or rivers to disappear or dry up. Just look at the value of the Aral Sea, of which only 10% remains. Previously, we covered a topic about, which talked about the state of the Ganges River. This river has become one of the most polluted in the world, but its pollution is nothing compared to the river that will be discussed further. The Cintarum River is not only the most polluted river in the world, but also the dirtiest water source on the planet.
Indonesia is an island country located in South-East Asia. On one of the large islands, Java, the Citarum River flows, playing a huge role in the life of the islanders. The waters of this river are used in agriculture, for water supply. This is the main one water artery in the province of West Java.
Today, the river is the most polluted body of water in the world. When viewing the photographs, it is clearly visible that if it were not for the boat with people, the water would not have had contact with the air due to the pile of garbage. Garbage thickly covers the surface of the river like a carpet. The river resembles more a landfill than a source of water.
Back in the 70s of the last century, Citarum was the most common river that served as a source of water for people, animals and plants. In the 80s, Indonesia became one of the fastest growing countries in the world. Plants and factories appear on its territory like mushrooms after rain. The river basin was no exception.
Along the riverbed, starting from the source, Chitarum becomes a place where plants and factories begin to dump waste, and big cities drain the sewer. The river is small in size, 10 meters wide and 5 meters deep, so the dumping of waste began to exceed the possibility of releasing it into the Java Sea. Thus, the river gradually began to turn into a landfill.
The hardest situation is for the settlements for which Chitarum is the main and only source of water. People living in such villages use this water for cooking, use it in everyday life, irrigate their lands and feed their pets with it. Whatever you say, they have no other option, because there is no other water nearby. All that remains is to sympathize.
But for some it’s grief, and for others it’s income. In the photographs there are people in boats swimming for a reason. This is a source of income for them. By sorting through piles of garbage, during the day, garbage is selected that is suitable for further processing. Also, from what was found, there were things suitable for further resale. They are washed, dried and sold as used items.
Despite all of the above, the state managed to build a hydroelectric power station on this river. Construction had a very strong impact on ecological condition region. The hydroelectric power station made it difficult for garbage to float downstream, thereby causing even greater accumulation of garbage on the Citarum River. Now the power plant is at a dead end. Because of the dam, garbage cannot pass through normally, and because of large quantity waste hydroelectric power station cannot operate normally. Concerned about this problem, in 2008 the Asian Development Bank allocated half a billion US dollars to clean up the river. But so far there has been no improvement. We can only hope that in the struggle between nature and industry, the state will make a reasonable decision in favor of nature.
Technological progress does not spare nature. People are too accustomed to a comfortable existence and rarely think about the harm that is constantly being caused to our common house. Every second, tens of tons of garbage are thrown out around the world, industry poisons the environment with harmful waste, and plastic and other artificial materials are finding even wider application. Especially clearly surrounding nature can be seen in the example of rivers. Historically, settlements were founded near them, they were used as shipping canals and sources of drinking water. Despite their importance in human life, there are many examples of barbaric attitudes towards rivers. This rating presents dirtiest rivers in the world.
10. King (Tasmania, Australia)
The fate of this river changed with the opening of the Copper Mine on its banks in the first half of the 19th century. During this time from the largest source fresh water in Tasmania it has turned into a real swamp and for this reason is among the ten dirtiest rivers in the world. Moreover, almost all animals die from contact with its yellow water. There is nothing royal left in the river; today the old name sounds like a mockery of nature. Every year the Copper Mine poisons the river with sulfides in huge quantities. Approximately half a million tons of waste end up there with rain, which often falls due to the large amount of harmful substances. In total, over 100 million tons of sulfides, as well as a large number of other dangerous compounds, entered the river.
9. Sarno (Italy)
Human activity has led to this river being called the dirtiest in Europe. This happened due to the fault of agricultural enterprises. Dozens of such facilities constantly release waste containing various harmful substances into it. Even the fact that the river flows into the Bay of Naples does not stop them. It is one of the most visited places in Italy and its poisoning could harm thousands of tourists. Hundreds of organizations are fighting for the cleanliness of the Sarno River, and the authorities are making serious efforts to resolve this situation.
8. Marilao (Philippines)
In previous cases, pollution was caused by industrial activities. There are also about a hundred factories located near the Marilao River that poison it. Due to the large number of different sources of pollution, hundreds of tons of substances from the entire periodic table enter the water every year. The situation is aggravated by the fact that the local population actually uses the river instead of a trash can. All waste is simply dumped near the banks of the river.
7. Yellow River, “Yellow River” (China)
This river is one of the largest in the world and serves as a source of drinking water for much of northern China. Despite this, many enterprises and settlements constantly poison it. The level of pollution of the Yellow River is quite high, which allows us to consider it one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. Heavy metals, waste oil industry and other harmful substances are found in it in such large quantities that this water is not suitable for some production facilities. The situation is aggravated by the fact that the river constantly contains impurities from the erosion of local soils. Because of them, water has yellow. Count of people getting poisoned drinking water from this river, goes to thousands.
6. Mississippi (United States of America)
America occupies one of the leading places in terms of development and is a fully formed state. But at the same time ecological situation in some places it is more similar to the situation in rapidly developing countries. The Mississippi River provides a clear illustration of this. The amount of municipal, industrial and agricultural waste in it is so great that “dead zones” have formed in some places. Water from them cannot be used in any way, even for industrial needs. Not to mention swimming, fishing or drinking it. Dozens of organizations are fighting to protect the river from pollution, but this does not bring visible results. Therefore, the Mississippi ranks 6th in the ranking of the dirtiest rivers on the planet.
5. Yangtze (China)
The Chinese are known for their disregard for the environment. The Yangtze River is a clear example this. The water in it usually has a dark gray color. But at times, due to emissions of hazardous waste, it takes on shades of almost any color, which locals are no longer surprised by. In 2012, the river temporarily turned blood red. The length of its channel is the longest among rivers throughout Eurasia. Therefore, about 20 thousand industrial facilities are located on the shore. Almost all of them dispose of waste using the river, without bothering to install filters or treatment facilities.
4. Jamna, “Yamuna” (India)
The Jumna is one of the dirtiest rivers in India. This is largely due to the fact that for most people living in the capital, it is the only way to get rid of waste. Many enterprises and factories are also doing their bit. The state is spending huge sums of money trying to clean up the river, but the large amount of harmful substances coming in greatly hinders this. Simply put, this river has turned into one big garbage dump for a huge city.
3. Buriganga (Bangladesh)
Water of an incomprehensible shade, from which a strong odor reeks from afar, heaps of plastic waste and the absence of signs of any living creatures nearby - this is what the Buriganga River looks like. This does not alarm the local population, who manage to wash and wash their things in such conditions. The river is officially declared dead because only protozoa can survive in it. I think that this is a good reason to place Buriganga on the 3rd place in the ranking of the dirtiest rivers in the world. Every year, dozens of tons of garbage are dumped into it, and the bottom is largely covered with a layer of dangerous and long-decomposing substances. Enormous amounts of pollution and a lack of understanding from industry and local residents are preventing authorities from correcting the problem.
2. Ganges (India)
If in other cases the local population tries to limit contact with contaminated water as much as possible, here they themselves get into it. This is due to the old superstition that swimming in this river gets rid of all diseases. If you look cynically at the result of contact with water, then you can say that this custom works one hundred percent today. Great amount pathogenic microbes, toxins and heavy metals can kill a person who momentarily plunges into the river. Official data says that every year about one and a half million people die from this “therapeutic” procedure. This statistics does not stop new applicants.
1. Citarum (Java Island)
The first, far from honorable place in the ranking belongs to the Citarum River, which means that it the dirtiest river in the world. Number various waste it is so large that in some places it becomes unclear whether there is water in it. From the outside, the river simply looks like a large stream of garbage, sluggishly moving in one direction. Such volumes of pollution arose due to the large concentration of industrial facilities on its shore. There are about five hundred textile, plastic and other plants and factories per 300 kilometers of riverbed.
It is also worth noting that there are many more than a dozen heavily polluted rivers on our planet. For example, the Matanza River flows through the Argentine capital Buenos Aires. Its waters contain high concentrations of toluene and other harmful chemical substances. This river is officially recognized as the site of an environmental disaster. The sacred Jordan River, located in Israel, is one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. Swimming in it is prohibited by the country's Ministry of Health. This is because the river water is used by many enterprises, including agricultural ones, and therefore it contains a high content of toxic waste hazardous to human health.
The dirtiest river in the world | Video
River pollution has been occurring for more than two thousand years. And if people did not notice this problem before, today it has reached a global scale. It is difficult to say whether there are rivers left on the planet with more or less clean water, suitable for use without prior cleaning.
Sources of river pollution
The main reason for river pollution is the active growth and development of socio-economic life on the banks of reservoirs. It was first established in 1954 that contaminated water was the cause of human illness. Then a source of bad water was found, which caused a cholera epidemic in London. In general, there are a large number of sources of pollution. Let's look at the most significant of them:
- domestic wastewater from populated cities;
- agochemistry and pesticides;
- powders and cleaning products;
- household waste and garbage;
- industrial wastewater;
- chemical compounds;
- oil leak.
Consequences of river pollution
All of the above sources significantly change chemical composition water, reduce the amount of oxygen. Depending on various pollution, the amount of algae in rivers increases, which in turn displaces animals and fish. This causes changes in the habitat of fish populations and other river inhabitants, but many species simply die.
Dirty river water is poorly purified before entering water pipes. It is used as drinking water. As a result, cases of people getting sick are increasing because they have been drinking untreated water. Regular consumption of contaminated water contributes to the occurrence of some infectious and chronic diseases. Sometimes some people may not know that the cause of health problems is dirty water.
River water purification
If the problem of river pollution is left alone, then many water bodies may cease to self-clean and exist. Cleaning activities should be carried out at the state level in many countries, installing various cleaning systems, and carrying out special measures for water purification. However, you can protect your life and health by drinking only clean water. To do this, many people use cleaning filters. The main thing that each of us can do is not to throw garbage into rivers and help preserve the ecosystems of water bodies, use less cleaning products and washing powders. It should be remembered that the centers of life originated in river basins, so it is necessary in every possible way to promote the prosperity of this life.
Technological progress that benefits humanity often greatly harms nature. Most people are accustomed to a carefree existence and hardly think about how difficult it is for our common home. River pollution is one of the scourges of our time. Which river is considered the most polluted on our planet?
Chitarum
The dirtiest river in the world flows on the Indonesian island of Java. This is the longest river in the western part of the island. She plays important role in agriculture, water and electricity supply, fisheries, industry and sewerage.
By the river ancient history: back in the 4th century, pottery flourished at its mouth. There are three hydroelectric power stations along the river, providing energy to a large area around Jakarta. Water from the dams is also used to irrigate rice fields, making the northern lowlands the leading region in rice production.
80% of the river's water is heavily exploited, and this has led to such severe pollution that some farmers have been forced to sell their fields at low prices. Water is polluted mainly by textile factories that discharge their toxic waste (lead, mercury, arsenic, etc.). In 2008, an Asian bank approved a $500 million loan to clean up the waters.
The river, sacred to the people of India, is, sadly, also one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. The waters of the Ganges pose a health hazard to five hundred million people living in its vicinity and in one way or another in contact with it. The Ganges becomes dirty due to the numerous sewage discharged by residents into the water, as well as due to the large number of factories and factories.
One stretch of river contains 200 times the normal amount of fecal bacteria
The cities along the river bed are overly populated and the population is increasing every year. A lot of human waste and sewage gets into the river, which is why you can’t not only use the water for drinking and cooking, but even just touch it, as this is fraught with intestinal infections. The authorities have repeatedly discussed the possibility of cleaning the river, but almost nothing has been done about it.
One of the dirtiest rivers in the world is the Buriganga, which flows in Bangladesh. It is extremely important for the economy of Dhaka city in terms of water communication.
Since ancient times, Dhaka has been an important trading port due to its convenient location on the banks of the river. Today, Buriganga suffers from disastrous pollution, in particular from chemical waste, sewage, plastics, oil, and animal corpses.
Dhaka produces about 4,500 tons of waste every day, and most of it is released into the river. Most coastal enterprises do not have a treatment system Wastewater. These are mainly textile, pharmaceutical and printing factories.
Due to the fact that Dhaka is heavily dependent on shipping, many food waste- rotten fruits, vegetables, fish. More than four million people are exposed to harmful pollution every day. The government has been criticized for its inability or unwillingness to influence the situation.
One newspaper article from 2004 reported that 80% of all wastewater is untreated
Another Indian river, one of the dirtiest rivers in the world. It is noteworthy that in 1909 its waters were described as “pure blue” (compared to the yellowness of the Ganges). But because tall population density and high rates of industrialization, the Yamuna quickly began to be polluted.
The capital New Delhi dumps more than half of its waste into this river. The Indian government spent five hundred million dollars to clean up the river, but it did not produce much results. This may be due to the fact that most wastewater treatment plants are underfunded or improperly funded.
Money continues to be allocated for purification, for example, in 2007 a plan was developed according to which the water was supposed to become 90% cleaner by 2010, but this was not entirely achieved.
The water level does not change for almost nine months of the year, which aggravates the process of cleaning the river
The degradation of this Chinese river began in the 1950s, when thousands of kilometers of dams were built for reclamation, irrigation and control of floods and disease-carrying microbes. Thus, more than a hundred lakes became cut off from the main river. Gates were installed that can be opened during floods.
However, despite the bans, many farmers began to settle on land near the lakes. When the threat of a flood came, the gates were not opened, because this would have caused significant destruction. Thus, almost all the lakes dried up, fishing in this area decreased by half, and biological diversity fish. Pollution is aggravated by the discharge of waste from pig farms as well as untreated sewage.
Many animals have lost their natural environment a habitat. In 2006, the world lost the last representative of the Chinese species river dolphin.
By September 2012, the water in the Yangtze had turned scarlet from pollution.
Yellow River
China's Yellow River is, according to a 2006 report, one-third unsuitable for agricultural or industrial use due to wastewater from factories and the rapid growth of coastal cities. When examining the river, 33% received level five; according to the UN classification, level five water becomes unsuitable for drinking, fishing and industrial needs.
The Volga, the largest body of water in Europe, is considered the most polluted of all Russian rivers.
In 2009, according to a study by the University of California, statistics were compiled that revealed that coastal zones rivers suffer extremely from both industrial and domestic pollution.
At the moment, almost half of the country's industrial and agricultural production is concentrated in the river basin. And almost 38% of all waste waste is dumped here. According to statistics produced by experts, the load on the Volga's water resources exceeds the average load in Russia by eight times. Moreover, organized wastewater, that is, industrial wastewater, is not the main threat, since at least it can be controlled. The main pollution is caused by abandoned wastewater.
Storm flows also play a significant role, causing petroleum products, such as oils, to enter the river.
King
The dirtiest river in Australia. In the 1880s, active copper mining and, accordingly, wastewater discharge began there. Between 1922 and 1995, low-grade mining residues and sulfide waste, as well as huge amounts of acid enriched metals, were also released into the water. As a result, on the nearest territory then we walked acid rain.
In 1995, the mine was closed and no more waste was released into the river. However, acidic water continues to flow into it from the mountains. Thus, the river is still toxic to aquatic organisms.
In the summer of 2013, the Greenpeace water patrol collected 10 water samples from this reservoir and conducted laboratory analysis on them. Absolutely all the results revealed a significant excess of the amount of heavy metal, as well as petroleum products.
As is known, an excessive amount of strontium can cause bone diseases, and an excess of aluminum can cause bone disorders. nervous system. Near the oil refinery, an amount of manganese exceeding the norm by 120 times was detected, and this is a serious risk factor for blood diseases and deterioration of the immune system.
The results of the analyzes were sent to Rosprirodnadzor and the Moscow Prosecutor's Office to solve the problem of pollution of the Moscow River
This Philippine pond is full of plastic wrappers, rubber slippers and more. household waste. In addition, water is extremely dangerous due to the content of toxic chemicals such as cadmium and arsenic. Both factories and ordinary people, continue to dump their garbage and sewage waste into the water, despite impressive fines and the activity of environmentalists.
Workers do not have time to clean the pond from pollution
This is not a complete list of heavily polluted rivers on Earth. You can also mention the Matanza River, which flows through the capital of Argentina, and the sacred Jordan River. There is no justification for mankind’s irresponsible attitude towards the cleanliness of rivers, because from time immemorial our ancestors settled near them, they fished in them, organized navigation along them, and took food from them. drinking water. Taking into account all this significance, the authorities must devote efforts to eradicate the barbaric attitude towards such important water resources.
