You thought you knew how bad water pollution can get? Trust me, you don’t. The filth that the most polluted rivers in the world have collected over the years is unimaginable until you see it. With garbage floating on the surface and sewage being dumped into the water on a daily basis, the fresh water in some countries is a fiasco of the highest degree. Most such rivers are located in these 13 most water polluted countries with the worst pollution in the world, a list created not only by the number of polluted rivers found in these areas but also by water contamination disasters that have occurred here, such as oil spills, metal contamination, waterborne disease outbreak etc.

The discovery of such adulteration of water shocked me. Water is a critical resource, and although three-fourths of the planet are water, most of this water is undrinkable or unusable. It’s really an indication of how much the Earth needs its citizens to be careful right now: careful with the things we take for granted. Even if we realize this now, it will take a long time for us to make improvements that really matter.