10 dirtiest rivers in the world
Contents:
• Rivers are the main source of life, because fresh water is crucial for the survival of flora and fauna on Earth. However, many rivers are so polluted that they look more like giant floating garbage chutes. According to statistics, 90% of the plastic that enters the world's oceans "comes" from rivers.
It's good that the articles do not convey smells, because our rating contains dirtiest rivers in the world. They are visible evidence of the unfavorable consequences of a thoughtless attitude towards nature.
10. Volga, Russia
Let's start the anti-rating from the river, which is located in our country. For several years now, it has been ranked first in the list of the dirtiest rivers, and this is not an unfounded statement, but the opinion of experts from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology. About 38% of all Russian polluted effluents fall into it.
• In 2018, Rosprirodnadzor conducted a survey of the banks of the Volga with a length of 7500 km. And experts have found that the biggest contribution to the slow killing of the river is made not by industrial enterprises, but by organizations from the housing and communal services sector. The total amount of damage caused to the Volga exceeded 1 billion rubles.
One of the longest Russian rivers seriously ill. And the authorities in 2019 plan to allocate 1,7 billion rubles for the implementation of a project to improve it.
9. Matanza or Riachuelo, Argentina
It is the most polluted river in South America. The reason for this is industrial enterprises that, day after day, dump wastewater into the river. The main type of pollution is volatile organic compounds, in particular, toluene.
• In addition, Matanza is informally called the "Slaughterhouse River", as there are many tanneries along it. Guess where they dump their waste? According to the World Health Organization, people living near the river are twice as likely to get cancer as people living in other parts of the country.
8. Buriganga, Bangladesh
For a country heavily dependent on a single river for its livelihood, Bangladesh is too casual (to put it mildly) on the Buriganga River. Currently, it is a dumping ground for all kinds of pollutants, including industrial and domestic waste, sewage, medical waste, dead animals, plastics, and so on.
About 80% of wastewater discharged into the river is not treated. The capital city of Dhaka alone dumps 4500 tons of solid waste into Buriganga every day! It is not surprising that this river is one of the most toxic bodies of water on the planet.
7. Mississippi, USA
The main river of North America's largest river system has suffered enough human damage to be considered one of the 10 most polluted rivers in the world. Scientists call it one of the most polluted ecosystems on the planet. And the massive "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico is a prime example of their being right.
• More than 5,7 million kilograms of toxic chemicals such as PCBs, mercury, fertilizers, etc. are dumped into Mississippi in just one year. And the main pollutants are benzene, mercury and arsenic.
• The level of toxins in Mississippi water makes it dangerous not only for the animals but also for the people who consume it.
6. Marilao, Philippines
The millions of people in the Philippines who depend on the Marilao River for drinking and agriculture are currently at serious health risk due to high levels of water pollution.
• Most of the pollutants that enter the river are waste products from tanneries and gold refineries. Now a significant part of the river is a giant dump of inorganic materials such as single-use plastic bags, cans and bottles. And the level of lead in the water is so high that it kills the fish.
• Like the Sarno River in Italy, the Marilao River also tends to flood, causing water pollution to spread to neighboring lands.
5. Huanghe, China
This river, whose waters have a yellowish tint, is where many businesses dump their waste. A report by the United Nations Environment Program indicates that in 1996, 4,29 billion tons of industrial and sewage waste was dumped into the Yellow River. This makes the Yellow River water too toxic even for agriculture.
• However, people still take water from the Yellow River and use it for bathing, drinking, and other domestic purposes. It is because of this that in the 9 provinces of China, through which the Yellow River flows, there is an increase in diseases transmitted through water. Recently, the Chinese authorities have been trying to dissuade the population from drinking water from this river, as it is not safe for human or animal consumption.
4. Sarno, Italy
This is perhaps the most polluted river on the European continent. The source of Sarno is clean and safe to drink. But as you move away from it, the amount of industrial and agricultural waste dumped into the river increases. And all this muck goes through the Gulf of Naples straight into the Mediterranean Sea.
3. Yangtze, China
One of largest rivers in the world is also one of the worst when it comes to the highly competitive group of most polluted rivers in the world. A deadly combination of overpopulation (480 million people live in the river basin), a completely consumer-oriented lifestyle and poor waste management has resulted in about 333 tons of plastic waste being dumped into the East China Sea each year.
2. Ganges, India
The fact that this is the most sacred river in India does not prevent it from being one of the dirtiest on the planet. At the same time, it is the main source of water for 40% of the country's population (which is over 500 million people).
• Due to the high content of sewage, chemicals and artisanal waste, the water of the Ganges used for domestic purposes such as drinking, bathing or cooking is life-threatening.
• And sometimes you can see a human corpse here. On the banks of the Ganges, bodies are cremated and the ashes are scattered over the water, but many poor Hindus cannot afford the luxury of burning the deceased on wood. Therefore, they limit themselves to setting fire to the raft on which the deceased lies, and letting him go on his last journey along the sacred river.
1. Chintarum, Indonesia
For hundreds of years, this river, flowing near the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, has contributed to the development of agriculture and fishing. It was the main source of water supply and even electricity generation in West Java.
• However, a long neighborhood with 5 million people (about the same number of Indonesians live in the Chintaruma basin) has left the river in a terrible state. It is overflowing with industrial and household waste dumped into it. Almost every kind of contaminant can be found here, such as plastic products, rubber, glass, metal, paints, chemicals, etc.
• In many places in the Chintarum, the level of pollution is so high that the surface of the water is not visible at all under the layers of debris.
• According to the tests, the mercury content in the river is 100 times higher than the permissible level, and the level of lead is 1000 times higher. Because of such an unimaginable scale of environmental disaster, the river is considered the dirtiest in the world.
