water pollution in the united states
- More than 2/3 of U.S. estuaries and bays are severely degraded due to nitrogen and phosphorus pollution.
- 45% of streams, 47% of lakes, and 32% of bays are polluted
- Over 40% of rivers and lakes are too polluted for fishing, swimming, or aquatic life
- Every year, almost 25% of all beaches are closed at least once because of the excessive pollution
- The Mississippi River carries about 1.5 million metric tons of nitrogen pollution into the Gulf of Mexico every year. This creates a dead zone the size of Massachusetts along the coast
water pollution worldwide
- 50% of groundwater is unsuitable to drink because of water pollution
- In Bangladesh, 85% of the groundwater is contaminated due to water pollution
- The King River in Australia is one of the most polluted rivers in the world. The toxins in the water have caused the deaths of over 1,000,000 birds and over 100,000 marine mammals
- According to the UN, by 2025, 48 nations, with a combined population of over 2.8 billion, will face freshwater scarcity
- Every year, 14 billion pounds of garbage are dumped into the ocean
- In the Northern Pacific Ocean, there is a mass of trash the size of Texas, commonly referred to as the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch". It has entrapped and killed hundreds of thousands of animals.