Fossil Fuel Water Pollution – The US Government Accountability Office has found that 40 U.S. states expect water shortages in 10 years. Nearly a fifth of Americans, 63 million, were exposed to unsafe water in the last decade. The American Society of Civil Engineers gave the U.S. drinking water delivery system a D on its most recent infrastructure report card, based on the high number of leaks and the presence of both legacy contaminants like lead and new threats like PFAS – making it even more susceptible to climate change disasters like flooding and extreme storms.
In Fresno, California, half the water is polluted, as fossil-fuel companies have sold their toxic waste to farmers as a pesticide, which was found to be carotenogenic and unfilterable. Fresno is pursuing a $100 million settlement, and a nearby town won a $22 million settlement, yet the local papers have provided minimal coverage to the Fresno water crisis. Additionally, the area is projected to sink 13 feet due to drought over the next 20 years unless urgent action is taken.
Plastic pollution is so widespread we are eating and drinking a credit card worth of plastic each week according to a study by Australia’s University of Newcastle. The largest source of plastic ingestion is by drinking water. Plankton provides over half the world’s oxygen. Plastic blocks sunlight from getting to plankton, which prevents the organism from photosynthesis and thereby oxygenate the ocean and world. Plastic production is projected to be nearly half of global oil demand growth by 2050.