Phosphorus Pollution And You
Degradation of our streams, rivers, and Lake Simcoe can be halted. What it will take is a collective effort, involving each of us, in our homes, yards, neighbourhoods and workplaces. If we all commit to making small changes, such as conserving water and using fewer harmful household products, we can have a tremendous collective impact. Potentially, thousands of people could join the effort to protect Lake Simcoe.
Water is our most recycled natural resource. Driven by solar energy and transported by gravity water evaporates from a lake, condenses in a cloud, falls as rain, snow, sleet, or hail on a hillside, and finally runs into a watercourse and into Lake Simcoe. It is essential to remember these interconnections if we are to improve water quality, not just in a single lake or bay, but throughout the entire region.
Reducing Phosphorus Pollution
Phosphorus is found in everything from toothpaste to fertilizer and most of the food we eat. While some phosphorus is natural and necessary for Lake Simcoe's health, the excessive amounts found in the lake are a result of human activity in the Lake Simcoe watershed. Every time toilets are flushed, dishwashers are turned on, clothes are laundered, or lawns fertilized, a certain amount of phosphorus is added to Lake Simcoe.
Phosphorus is one of the nutrients that is responsible for the premature aging of Lake Simcoe. It is not too late to turn the situation around so that virtually no excess nutrients are entering the watershed and eventually Lake Simcoe.
What You Can Do
- Cut down or stop using personal hygiene products containing phosphorus. Use vegetable-based phosphate free soap and shampoo.
- Buy and use household cleaning products and detergents that do not contain phosphates.
- If your supermarket, department store, or hardware store does not carry alternatives, let the manager know of your concerns. The other alternative is to shop somewhere else.
| Compare How Much Phosphorus Used, in these two cottages, in just 90 days | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| High Phosphorus Household | Grams Used | Lower Phosphorus Household | Grams Used |
| Human waste | 535 g | Human waste | 535 g |
| One Load of Dishes, in the Dishwater, per day... using powdered detergent | 650 g | Switching to phosphate-free detergent | 0 g |
| Fertilizing a 30mx30m lawn, once per year, with a fertilizer containing 10 percent of each of the following: nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium | 1,960 g | No Fertilizer | 0 g |
| Lot cleared of trees increases runoff | 30 g | Leave trees standing | 20 g |
| Using commercial household cleaners | 180 g | Using Phosphate-free household products | 20 g |
| Total Phosphorus Load | 3,355 g | Total Phosphorus Load | 575 g |