What is water?

Water is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which
is the main constituent of Earth's streams, lakes, and oceans, and the fluids of most living
organisms. It is vital for all known forms of life, even though it provides no calories or
organic nutrients. Its chemical formula is H2O, meaning that each of its molecules
contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms, connected by covalent bonds. Water is the
name of the liquid state of H2O at standard ambient temperature and pressure. It forms
precipitation in the form of rain and aerosols in the form of fog. Clouds are formed from
suspended droplets of water and ice, its solid state. When finely divided, crystalline ice
may precipitate in the form of snow. The gaseous state of water is steam or water vapor.
Water moves continually through the water cycle of evaporation, transpiration
(evapotranspiration), condensation, precipitation, and runoff, usually reaching the sea.

Importance of water
From a biological standpoint, water has many distinct properties that are critical for the
proliferation of life. It carries out this role by allowing organic compounds to react in ways
that ultimately allow replication. All known forms of life depend on water. Water is vital
both as a solvent in which many of the body's solutes dissolve and as an essential part of
many metabolic processes within the body.

Water is fundamental to photosynthesis and respiration. Photosynthetic cells use the

sun's energy to split off water's hydrogen from oxygen[citation needed]. Hydrogen is
combined with CO2 (absorbed from air or water) to form glucose and release
oxygen[citation needed]. All living cells use such fuels and oxidize the hydrogen and
carbon to capture the sun's energy and reform water and CO2 in the process (cellular
respiration).

Water is also central to acid-base neutrality and enzyme function. An acid, a hydrogen ion
(H+, that is, a proton) donor, can be neutralized by a base, a proton acceptor such as a
hydroxide ion (OH−) to form water. Water is considered to be neutral, with a pH (the
negative log of the hydrogen ion concentration) of 7. Acids have pH values less than 7
while bases have values greater than 7.
 How to avoid water pollution?
The best way to prevent large-scale water pollution is to try and reduce its harmful
effects. There are various small changes we can make to protect ourselves from a scary
future where water is scarce.

Save Water: Conserving water is our first aim. Water wastage is a major problem globally
and we are only now waking up to the issue. Simply small changes you can make
domestically will make a huge difference.

Better treatment of sewage: So treating waste products before disposing of it in a water

body helps reduce water pollution on a large scale. Agriculture or other industries can
reuse this wastewater by reducing its toxic contents.

Use environmentally friendly products: By using soluble products that do not go on to

become pollutants, we can reduce the amount of water pollution caused by a household.

Causes of the contamination of the water

Water pollution results when contaminants are introduced into the natural environment.
For example, releasing inadequately treated wastewater into natural water bodies can
lead to degradation of aquatic ecosystems. In turn, this can lead to public health problems
for people living downstream.

Sources of water pollution are either point sources and non-point sources. Point sources
have one identifiable cause of the pollution, such as a storm drain, wastewater treatment
plant or stream. Non-point sources are more diffuse, such as agricultural runoff. Pollution
is the result of the cumulative effect over time. All plants and organisms living in or being
exposed to polluted water bodies can be impacted. The effects can damage individual
species and impact the natural biological communities they are part of.

The causes of water pollution include a wide range of chemicals and pathogens as well as
physical parameters. Contaminants may include organic and inorganic substances.
Elevated temperatures can also lead to polluted water. A common cause of thermal
pollution is the use of water as a coolant by power plants and industrial manufacturers.
Elevated water temperatures decrease oxygen levels, which can kill fish and alter food
chain composition, reduce species biodiversity, and foster invasion by new thermophilic
species.
 Consequences of water pollution
Diseases: In humans, drinking or consuming polluted water in any way has many
disastrous effects on our health. It causes typhoid, cholera, hepatitis and various other
diseases.

Destruction of Ecosystems: Ecosystems are extremely dynamic and respond to even small
changes in the environment. Water pollution can cause an entire ecosystem to collapse if
left unchecked.

Eutrophication: Chemicals in a water body encourage the growth of algae. These algae
form a layer on top of the pond or lake. Bacteria feed on this algae and this decreases the
amount of oxygen in the water body, severely affecting the aquatic life there.

Effects the food chain: Disruption in food chains happens when toxins and pollutants in
the water are consumed by aquatic animals (fish, shellfish etc) which are then consumed
by humans.