Pollution
Pollution occurs when an amount of any substance or any form of energy is put into the environment at a rate faster than it can be dispersed or safely stored. The term pollution can refer to both artificial and natural materials that are created, consumed, and discarded in an unsustainable manner.
We have sewers to take our toilet and water waste, and there are water treatment plants to process that waste into fertiliser. Some people have septic tanks to collect toilet waste outside underground and away from the house. We don't usually experience the concentrated waste environment in our daily lives.
That's good!
The major pathogens of concern in municipal wastewater and diseases or illness associated with them
| Name of pathogen | Major disease or symptoms | |
|---|---|---|
| Bacteria | Campylobacter jejuni | Gastroenteritis |
| Escherichia coli | Gastroenteritis | |
| Salmonella spp. | Salmonellosis, typhoid, paratyphoid | |
| Shigella spp. | Bacillary dysentery | |
| Vibrio cholerae | Cholera | |
| Yersinia spp. | Gastroenteritis | |
| Viruses | Adenovirus | Upper respiratory infection and gastroenteritis |
| Astrovirus | Gastroenteritis | |
| Coxsackie virus | Meningitis, pneumonia, fever | |
| Echovirus | Meningitis, paralysis, encephalitis, fever | |
| Hepatitis A virus | Infectious hepatitis | |
| Hepatitis E virus | Infectious hepatitis, miscarriage, and death | |
| Human calicivirus | Epidemic gastroenteritis with severe diarrhea | |
| Polio virus | Poliomyelitis | |
| Reovirus | Respiratory infections, gastroenteritis | |
| Rotavirus | Acute gastroenteritis with severe diarrhea | |
| TT hepatitis | Hepatitis | |
| Protozoa | Balantidium coli | Balantidiasis |
| Cryptosporidium spp. | Cryptosporidiosis | |
| Entamoeba histolytica | Acute amoebic dysentery | |
| Giardia duodenalis | Giardiasis | |
| Toxoplasma gondii | Toxoplasmosis | |
| Helminths | Ascaris lumbricoides | Ascariosis |
| Ascaris suum | Coughing and chest pain | |
| Hymenolepis nana | Hymenolepiasis | |
| Necator americanus | Hookworm disease | |
| Taenia saginata | Insomnia, anorexia | |
| Taenia solium | Insomnia, anorexia | |
| Toxocara canis | Fever, abdominal pain, muscle ache | |
| Trichuris trichiura | Diarrhea, anemia, weight loss |
Like I said, it's good we aren't exposed to that.
We produce plastics that do not fit in any natural order, so they will not go away and not be successfully integrated back into any natural cycle.
We continue to produce out of balance with the ability of nature to absorb the waste.
