By: Susie

Read time: 11 minutes

The month of August, with its cool winds, bright sun, and lingering hints of fall, is celebrated as National Water Quality Month. As summer begins to come to a close, many of us are basking in the remaining days left to swim and play in the water. In honor of August being a time to turn our attention towards the health and quality of our waterways, this article will take a look at Indiana’s water to understand the extent of water pollution and what solutions we can implement to improve it. 

An overview of water pollution in Indiana: What we know 

Water is the defining element of our lives: we use it every day in our households, businesses, and industries. Water is required to generate power, operate technology, manufacture goods, grow food, wash dishes, do laundry, bathe, recreate, and drink. Yet despite its critical importance, many of us turn a blind eye on the longstanding issue of water pollution.

Hoosiers know that while Indiana’s water is drinkable, stepping into surface waters is another story. From muddied creeks to fish kills to closed beaches, water quality in Indiana has a tumultuous history. Luckily, the state has a relatively robust monitoring network, providing insights on the extent of water pollution.

It is no secret that Indiana’s water suffers heavily from pollution. Indeed, the most recent water quality assessment, conducted every two years as part of requirements under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA), revealed that 70 percent of assessed rivers and streams are considered unsafe for swimming or recreation in the state. 

Additionally, Indiana’s groundwater tested positive for several pollutants at sampling locations throughout the state, including nitrogen, arsenic, pesticides, and herbicides. Those pollutants, along with many others that may remain unregulated or untested, come from a variety of sources which are deemed “high priority” due to their environmental risk. 

According to IDEM, high priority pollutant sources that impair Indiana’s groundwater include:

  • Commercial fertilizer applications
  • Confined animal feeding operations
  • Animal manure applications
  • Landfills and underground storage tanks
  • Septic systems
  • Shallow (Class V) injection wells
  • Industrial facilities 
  • Material spills
  • Salt storage and road salting

On a national scale, Indiana’s water pollution remains a problem. A report released in 2022, which analyzed water quality data, revealed that Indiana had the highest number of polluted rivers and streams in the nation—a total of 24,395 miles (Figure 1). Another report, released in 2020, ranked Indiana as the second state with the most toxic releases into our waterways (Figure 2). 

Fig. 1. Image by Environmental Integrity Project.

Fig. 2. Image by Environment America Research and Policy Center.

How land use and non point source pollution plays a role in Indiana’s water pollution

Agriculture

To understand why Indiana’s water suffers from pollution, it’s important to consider the state’s land use. Over 60 percent of the land in Indiana is used for agriculture, primarily for growing monoculture crops such as corn and soybeans. Agriculture is essential to Indiana’s culture and economy, but its industrialization has wide ranging effects on our waterways. For example, the 2024 water quality assessment identified agriculture as the leading source of impairment in the state. 

These industrial agricultural practices have layered impacts. First, monoculture crops replaced vast expanses of natural ecosystems such as wetlands and forests, which are essential for filtering water pollutants. The loss of these natural ecosystems, or natural “infrastructure,” has led to a reduced capacity of the land to properly treat water pollution. 

In addition, industrial agricultural practices depend on external inputs such as pesticides and nutrients. Pesticides are essential to managing monoculture crops, because they are vulnerable to pest invasions due to their lack of biodiversity. However, pesticides, which are chemicals that are designed to kill a specific pest and include herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides, can contaminate water resources and pose significant health risks to people and wildlife. 

The story of DDT

DDT was a widely used pesticide in the 1950s. After the publication of Silent Spring by Rachel Carson and pressure from activists, the pesticide was eventually banned, but not without consequences. Bald eagles were on the brink of extinction due to the pesticide — it was estimated that there were only 417 breeding pairs in 1963. Today they are making a comeback, with an estimated population of over 300,000 individuals, illustrating the importance of eliminating harmful chemicals in our environment.

Nutrient application, another key factor in industrial agriculture, is essential for ensuring healthy plant growth. Animal manure and other biosolids are often applied to fertilize crops and replace nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus. But those nutrients end up polluting our waterways. These fertilizers may also be contaminated with bacteria such as E. coli or chemicals such per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), which pose additional health risks. 

Urban environments and stormwater

Urban environments are also notorious for introducing pollutants to waterways due to polluted stormwater. Hard surfaces, such as parking lots, roads, and buildings, reduce and often eliminate water infiltration. This means water that falls across cities and towns is conveyed directly to a ditch, stream, or other waterbody, at faster rates, which erodes stream channels and creates sediment pollution. Furthermore, water that falls over these environments contains several pollutants such as oil and plastic particles from cars and tires, road salt, and trash, which end up directly into our waterways. 

Even green spaces in urban environments can have an impact if not carefully managed – especially those that use fertilizers and pesticides, as in the case of traditional lawns and golf courses – underscoring the importance of proper land management. 

Water pollution from agricultural land and urban stormwater is considered non point source pollution, a type of water pollution that comes from large areas and is hard to track and regulate. In fact, non point source pollution remains largely unregulated – grant programs do exist under Section 319 of the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) – but there is currently no comprehensive approach to regulate water pollution from agricultural fields or stormwater for urban environments. Efforts to mitigate these types of pollution are largely optional or poorly implemented.

Point source pollution

Another major form of water pollution is point source pollution. This type of pollution is more easily identifiable – it comes from a point source, like industrial facilities or combined sewer overflows. Point source pollution is more easily managed and regulated largely through the issuance of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits under the CWA. Most industries, businesses, and wastewater treatment plants have a NPDES permit and are subject to specific requirements to limit pollutants that end up in our waterways.

Point source pollution, especially coming from industrial and manufacturing operations, can still present problems even in the face of regulation. For example, the BP Whiting Refinery in northwest Indiana operates under a controversial NPDES permit. The refinery, which is the largest refinery in the Midwest and produces gasoline, jet fuel, and diesel, discharges polluted water to Lake Michigan — home to Indiana’s only national park. Their most recent NPDES permit received backlash because it doesn’t regulate several harmful pollutants, underscoring the limitations of current regulations to appropriately address point source pollution (Figure 3).

Fig. 3. Image by Environmental Law and Policy Center.

Common pollutants in Indiana’s waters 

Below is a list of known pollutants in Indiana’s waterways. While not a comprehensive list, it provides a snapshot of the types of pollutants entering and existing in waterways. 

  • PFAS, a group of over 15,000 chemicals 
  • Nutrients, such as nitrate and phosphorus, either from fertilizers, biosolids, manure, or other sources
  • Pesticides, which includes hundreds of chemicals like herbicides; insecticides; and fungicides
  • Mercury
  • Lead
  • Arsenic
  • Pathogens, such as the disease-causing bacteria E. coli
  • Trash and plastic
  • Sediment
  • Road salt and chloride 

Regulation challenges and failures 

Whether it’s nonpoint source or point source, pollutants ultimately end up in our rivers, streams, lakes, and aquifers, posing health threats and costly clean up challenges. 

Only a fraction of pollutants are regulated by state and federal statutes under the CWA and Indiana’s Water Quality Standards (WQS), leaving several pollutants free to roam undetected. In addition to the examples given above, below are some emerging pollutants of concern and how current regulations are struggling to keep up. 

PFAS

PFAS refers to a group of nearly 15,000 different types of man-made chemicals used in everyday household products and technology. In response to a growing concern on the public health impacts of PFAS, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) to establish legally enforceable levels for six types of PFAS in drinking water in April 2024. 

However, PFAS regulations for drinking water does not extend to other water sources, meaning PFAS can still enter the environment from manufacturing operation or PFAS-laden biosolids. 

A sampling event by IDEM found PFOS (Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid, a type of PFAS chemical), in 100 percent of fish samples, indicating that PFAS chemicals are not just present water — they are traveling up the food chain. 

EPA has set recommendations for “aquatic life” water quality criteria to protect designated water uses such as fishing, but those are simply recommendations and not yet legally enforceable limits. Even so, without strong nonpoint source pollution programs, PFAS can still enter the environment through the application of biosolids, sewage sludge, commercial composts, and chemical fertilizers. PFAS chemicals are but one example of how murky water pollution regulation can be, and how critical it is to simplify it moving forward. 

For more information on PFAS in Indiana, read Purdue University’s Statewide PFAS Assessment.

Plastic pollution

It is estimated that over a million tons of plastic end up in the ocean from rivers each year, creating islands of plastic waste that harm ocean wildlife. This plastic also breaks down into smaller pieces over time and can form microplastics, which lingers in the environment and in the bodies of animals, including humans, posing unknown health risks. 

Plastic pollution comes from a variety of sources, including littering of plastic products, laundering of plastic fibers, and plastic shedding. With so many of our everyday items donned in plastic, it’s easy to see how it has become one of the most widespread forms of water pollution. 

One local study in the West Fork of the White River in central Indiana revealed the presence of microplastics in the river, with synthetic fibers being a dominant source of the plastic pollution.

Microplastics have been found almost everywhere on Earth – in the depths of the ocean and in the organs of humans. Emerging studies show correlations between microplastic exposure and adverse health outcomes, but the biggest concern is the unknown impacts of microplastics, especially given how prevalent they are in the environment.  

Yet despite plastic pollution becoming so widespread, little effort has been made to regulate it. Some states, such as Vermont, have implemented plastic bag bans to reduce plastic waste and landfill burdens, but currently there are no water quality standards for microplastics or nationwide bans or reduction efforts on non-essential plastic products. In Indiana, there is no comprehensive law to regulate plastic pollution or phase out plastic products. 

There is, however, an initiative called the Global Plastics Treaty, whose intended goal is to curb plastic pollution at a global scale. While not yet legally binding, it is perhaps one of the most comprehensive and wide-ranging policies that has been promoted to address plastic pollution. The treaty emphasizes phasing out non-essential plastic products that pose a high risk, which includes single-use plastics such as grocery bags and excessive packaging. While progressive, the problem of implementation remains.

 Where do we go from here?

Clearly, Indiana has a water pollution problem that modern day regulation is struggling to grapple with, but the good news is that the solutions aren’t as complex as it might seem. Regulating water pollution at larger scales, such as addressing nonpoint source pollution, and being a part of global policies, are key to addressing water pollution in Indiana and beyond. 

Most importantly, though, is eliminating pollution at the source, rather than cleaning it up at the end. Not only is it a more economically feasible solution, but it is also a solution that ensures we eliminate pollution, rather than guessing what’s in our drinking water and favorite natural swimming spots. 

Below are additional solutions we can implement to improve our water quality here in Indiana:

  • Diversify agriculture to reduce reliance on external inputs 
  • Protect natural infrastructure such as wetlands, forests, and floodplains 
  • Require green infrastructure in new developments
  • Implement smart growth policies to discourage urban sprawl and encourage natural infrastructure preservation
  • Ban or significantly reduce harmful pollutants such as plastics, pesticides, and PFAS
  • Impose stricter limits on industrial dischargers
  • Educate ourselves and others 

Despite all these pollutants, though, our water remains drinkable—for now. But reducing water pollution, removing toxic chemicals, and protecting essential natural infrastructure will help preserve this resource for years to come. 


Categories: Indiana Clean Water, Sustainable Development and Green Infrastructure, Water & Wilderness Protection