Thermal pollution is the degradation of water quality by any process that changes ambient watertemperature. A common cause of thermal pollution is the use of water as a coolant by power plants and industrial manufacturers. When water used as a coolant is returned to the natural environment at a higher temperature, the change in temperature impacts organisms by
(a) decreasing oxygen supply, and
(b) affecting ecosystem composition. Urban runoff--stormwater discharged to surface waters from roads andparking lots--can also be a source of elevated water temperatures.
When a power plant first opens or shuts down for repair or other causes, fish and other organisms adapted to particular temperature range can be killed by the abrupt rise in water temperature known as 'thermal shock'.
Thermal pollution can also be caused by the release of very cold water from the base of reservoirs into warmer rivers. This affects fish (particularly their eggs and larvae), macroinvertebrates and river productivity.
Thermal Pollution -- Thermal pollution can occur when water is used as a coolant near a power or industrial plant and then is returned to the aquatic environment at a higher temperature than it was originally. Thermal pollution can lead to a decrease in the dissolved oxygen level in the water while also increasing the biological demand of aquatic organisms for oxygen.
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