All About The Water - Conservation and its Challenges

Many countries in the world face serious water shortages with its root not really about shortage of water but of overpopulation. The worse one to know is knowing people living

in places where it is unfit for human habitation. Often, water shortages are local problems rather than national ones. Water shortages are worse in places where there’s little rain or water and lots of people.

Repeated drilling and well building caused the water table to drop in some places as much as six feet a year. This is the reason water tables are falling almost everywhere. Rich countries can compensate for these shortages in some areas by building dams, tapping deep water aquifers, importing food, recycling wastewater or desalinating seawater.

Unfortunately, poor countries are vulnerable to do these things.

There are major disagreements between environmentalists and agriculturists on how available water should be managed. But, water experts say that progress made in cleaning water and making it cheap has only encouraged people to waste it.

However, the goals of planners in solving water problems is to keep water cheap so poor people can get it but at the same time keep it expensive so people don’t waste it. In places where water is subsidized, due to the cheap prices, people tend to waste it. The obvious solution was to end the subsidies.

The most practical solution is reusing and recycling water. Some cities can meet a fifth of their water needs by recycling water. Worldwide, two thirds of urban water doesn’t get treated. Systems that treat and reuse water are often least costly. The most efficient way to clean water but have difficulty overcoming the aversion is to have drinking water derived from sewage.

Conserving water can extend the life of the system and delay the need for repair. If you live in an area serviced by a municipal water system, the greater your water use, the more you pay for water.

Also, water conservation can help prevent water pollution. Overloading a septic system may cause nutrient and bacterial contamination. Of nearby lakes, streams and drinking water, even the water from your own well. The smaller the amount of water flowing through these systems, the lower the likelihood of pollution.