Water pollution in Delaware County has been a consistent problem for quite some time. The Muncie area was settled near 1801 and in 1886 large amounts of natural gas were discovered which led to large industries moving into the Muncie area. Examples of these industries include Ball Brothers Co., Indiana Steel and Wire, and Ontario Silver Plating. Near the beginning of the 20th century raw sewage and industrial waste were being directly and indirectly dumped into the white river. As a result chemicals in the river were found to include cyanide, heavy metals and ammonia.

Image Courtesy: http://www.munciesanitary.org/