What is nonpoint source pollution?
Nonpoint source pollution comes from various land use practices, air pollutants, and sewer overflows — plus daily human activity. It is harder to control nonpoint sources of pollution. An example includes excess farm and lawn nutrients moving throughout the soil and into the groundwater, or the pollutants enter local waters directly through runoff during heavy rains, causing dangerous algal blooms. Q: What are biosolids and biosolids recycling? A: Biosolids are a safe and beneficial resource composed of essential plant nutrient and organic matter that is recovered from the treatment of domestic sewage in a wastewater treatment facility. Biosolids can be recycled and applied as fertilizer to improve and maintain productive soils and to stimulate plant growth. Farmers and gardeners have been recycling biosolids for ages. Biosolids are also used to fertilize gardens and parks and to reclaim mining sites. They are carefully monitored and must be used in accordance with regulatory requirem
Nonpoint source pollution is that which cannot be traced to a single source. The pollution that contaminates stormwater runoff is considered nonpoint source pollution because the contaminants cannot be linked to one particular location, but rather, are picked up throughout the landscape. This is in contrast to “point source pollution” that is traceable to a specific site, such as a pipe that directs wastewater directly from a factory into a river. Nonpoint source pollution—whether nutrients from lawns, bacteria from pet waste, or sediment from erosion—is recognized as the leading source of water contamination in the country today.
• When it rains or when snow melts, water washes over impervious services such as roads, parking lots and compacted soil and removes all of the oil, debris, soil and fertilizer from those surfaces. The water and pollutants are then washed into storm sewers and are carried – untreated – to the nearest river, lake or groundwater. • Because these pollutants come from several sources instead of one discharge point, this is called nonpoint source pollution. Why are impervious surfaces a problem? • An impervious surface is any area that cannot easily absorb water. They include: streets, sidewalks, parking lots, driveways, roof tops, soil that has been packed down because of high traffic and soil that has certain geographic characteristics that does not allow water to be absorbed quickly. • When a pollutant is spilled on to an impervious surface, it stays there until water washes it away. • When the same pollutant is spilled on loose soil, it travels through the ground and is partially filter
Nonpoint source (NPS) pollution, unlike pollution from industrial and sewage treatment plants, comes from many different sources. NPS pollution is caused by rainfall or snowmelt moving over and through the ground. As the runoff moves, it picks up and carries away natural and human-made pollutants, finally depositing them into lakes, rivers, wetlands, coastal waters, and even our underground sources of drinking water.
