Runoff runs amok
Environmentalists have long been aware that agricultural and urban runoff is contaminating the Hudson River Valley. But many didn't realize that the amount of toxic pollutants surpasses that discharged by municipal sewage-treatment plants and manufacturers. In 1987 Inform, a research group based in New York City, confirmed the higher levels of lead, mercury, and many other toxic substances deposited in the river by runoff. The problem is not confined to the Hudson. Runoff from abandoned mines has polluted streams in the Rockies with lead, copper, cadmium, and other metals. The degradation caused by runoff from rain and melting snow is known as nonpoint-source pollution-a general term for pollutants that are not released directly into a body of water. The five major contributors to nonpoint pollution are farms, urban areas, construction sites, mines, and forests where logging is conducted.
- OSTI ID:
- 7068004
- Journal Information:
- Sierra; (USA), Journal Name: Sierra; (USA) Vol. 73:6; ISSN 0161-7362; ISSN SIERE
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
540320* -- Environment
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
CADMIUM
COPPER
ELEMENTS
ENVIRONMENTAL TRANSPORT
HUDSON RIVER
LEAD
MASS TRANSFER
MERCURY
METALS
MOUNTAINS
POLLUTION
POLLUTION SOURCES
RIVERS
ROCKY MOUNTAINS
RUNOFF
STREAMS
SURFACE WATERS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
WATER POLLUTION