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Don't Dump It!Did You Know?
Most of the water in the world is not drinkable. The oceans cover two-thirds of the Earth, but ocean water is salty, so no one can drink it.
There is a lot of water in the polar ice caps, but we can't drink ice. And we can't just melt a part of the world. So what is left for us? The water in lakes, rivers, and streams . . . plus what is underground. That's called groundwater.
Where does your water come from? Do you know? More than half the people in America get theirs from groundwater. In fact, 90 percent of all the water on Earth that human beings can drink right now is groundwater.
It is really easy to pollute groundwater. Just dumping common, everyday things on the ground can do it because the Earth is like a sponge that soaks everything in. For example, a gallon of paint or a quart of motor oil can seep into the Earth and pollute 250,000 gallons of drinking water.
A spilled gallon of gasoline can pollute 750,000 gallons of water.
The pesticide that farmers and gardeners put out to kill bugs can also soak into the ground and pollute our water.
What You Can Do
Be careful about what you spill on the Earth. You cannot avoid accidents, but don't dump harmful liquids onto the ground on purpose.
When you aren't sure what to do with a can of oil, paint, or gasoline, bring it to an adult. Ask the adult to make sure the lid is on tight, and the can should be stored where smaller kids cannot get to it.
The can should not be thrown into the garbage!
It should be saved for a special garbage pickup called "toxic waste collection."
You probably won't be using much paint, motor oil, or gasoline soon, but it's not too early to think about this and to make sure that others are educated about caring for our groundwater.
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