Chapter 19, Problem 19RQ

What are two ways in which people disinfect water in areas where municipal treatment facilities are not available?

To determine

The two ways to disinfect the water where municipal treatment facilities are not available

Answer to Problem 19RQ

The two ways with which people disinfect water are by boiling the water and using iodine tablets.

Explanation of Solution

In many areas where municipal treatment facilities are not available, people disinfect the water by boiling and taking in the form of hot beverages such as tea or coffee. Also iodine tablets are used for disinfecting water. The iodine tablets are widely used to disinfect the water and it is less toxic than the other cleaning agents. In some cases, chlorine is used to kills pathogens and disinfect water, but higher amount of chlorine is required for such purposes and accumulation of chlorine can cause serious damage to the human body as well as plant lives.

Conclusion:

Therefore, to disinfect water, people either boil the water or use iodine tablets.