National Institutes of Health
- The primary NIH organization for research on Water Pollution is the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
A service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine 
National Institutes of Health
Water Pollution
We all need clean water. People need it to grow crops and to operate factories, and for drinking and recreation. Fish and wildlife depend on it to survive.
Many different pollutants can harm our rivers, streams, lakes and oceans. The three most common are soil, nutrients and bacteria. Rain washes soil into streams and rivers. The soil can kill tiny animals and fish eggs. It can clog the gills of fish and block light so plants die. Nutrients, often from fertilizers, cause problems in lakes, ponds and reservoirs. Nitrogen and phosphorus make algae grow and can turn water green. Bacteria, often from sewage spills, can pollute fresh or salt water.
Environmental Protection Agency
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Start Here
- Primer on Water Quality(U.S. Geological Survey)
- What Can You Do to Protect Local Waterways?(Environmental Protection Agency) - PDF
The top row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Basics
,
Learn More
, and
Multimedia & Cool Tools
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For group Basics
For group Learn More
For group Multimedia & Cool Tools
The bottom row in the table of contents box contains the following groups:
Research
,
Reference Shelf
, and
For You
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For group Research
For group Reference Shelf
For group For You
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Overviews
- Pollution(National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science)
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Prevention/Screening
- Do's and Don'ts Around the Home(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water)
- Protecting Water Quality from Agricultural Runoff(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water) - PDF
- Protecting Water Quality from Urban Runoff(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water) - PDF
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Specific Conditions
- Acid Rain(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Also available in Spanish
- Beach Pollution(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Also available in Spanish
- Biological Hazards in Sewage and Wastewater Treatment Plants(Center to Protect Workers' Rights) - PDF
- Contaminated Sediments in Water(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Effects of Urbanization on Water Quality: Pesticides(U.S. Geological Survey)
- Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs)(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Hysteria over Pfiesteria(Environmental Protection Agency) - PDF
- Special Topics in Water Science (Water Pollution)(U.S. Geological Survey)
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Related Issues
- Coastal Watershed Factsheets(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Wastewater Treatment Systems(NSF International)
- Watersheds(Environmental Protection Agency)
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Tutorials
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Tox Town(National Library of Medicine)
- Also available in Spanish
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Tox Town
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Clinical Trials
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Air Pollution(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Protozoan Infections(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Water Pollution(National Institutes of Health)
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Air Pollution
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Research
- Harmful Algal Blooms(National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science)
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Journal Articles
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Veno-occlusive liver disease: a case report.
- Article: Physico-chemical investigation of consumables and environmental samples to determine the...
- Article: Toxicity study and evaluation of biochemical markers towards the identification...
- Water Pollution -- see more articles
- Pfiesteria -- see more articles
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Dictionaries/Glossaries
- Water Science Glossary of Terms(U.S. Geological Survey)
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Directories
- Beach Advisory and Closing On-line Notification: Find a Beach(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water)
- Fish Consumption Advisories(Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water)
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Organizations
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Children
- Fish Kids(Environmental Protection Agency)
- Where We Stand: Testing of Well Water(American Academy of Pediatrics)
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