Question

Most abundant water pollutant is:
A. Detergents
B. Industrial wastes
C. Pesticides
D. Oil spills

Answer 1

To answer the question, we must know the extent at which each of these pollutants is polluting the water bodies. We all know that there is an ongoing industrial revolution in many areas of the world, mostly the developing countries but also there is a lack of proper management of waste products.

Complete step by step answer:
We all know that Water pollution is the contamination of various water bodies by certain water-polluting agents such as plastic bags, chemical waste, fertilizers, landfills, oil spills etc. All these water pollutants contribute to water pollution at different levels. Some contaminate the water bodies at a large extent and some at a bit smaller scale. Out of all the water pollutants the most abundant water pollutant is industrial wastes.
The waste from industries containing poisonous chemicals enter the ponds, lakes, rivers, and seas and degrade the oxygen level in the water, blocking the sunlight affecting the growth of aquatic species. The pollutants may change the colour, Ph and temperature of the water and disturb the minerals balance of the water. All this happens due to the lack of management of waste which is being dumped directly in the water.
Industrial waste contributes about $61\%$ of the total water pollution. Water also gets polluted when oil is spilt in oceans due to an accident. But these contribute less to the overall water pollution. Detergents from households and small-scale industries also increase the contamination in water but only up to $20\%$. When pesticides and weedicides used in agricultural development get mixed with the groundwater, it contributes to about $14\%$ of the total water pollution. The pollution due to detergents and pesticides are still lower than those of industrial pollution.

So, the correct answer is Option B.

Note: we should know that there are different types of waste generators example, chemical industries, paper industries, printing industries, petroleum refining industries, construction, and metal manufacturing industries etc. All these emit different types of waste, for example, petroleum refining industries emit benzene $\left( {{C_6}{H_6}} \right)$ and other hydrocarbon sludge waste, paper industries emit paints, heavy metals, and ignitable solvents.