Draining Our Future: The Growing Shortage Of Fresh Water

This essay is a review of the article “Growing More Food with Less Water”, written by Sandra Postel. According the article, our global freshwater sources, including underground aquifers and rivers are stressed beyond their ability to provide freshwater. Agriculture redesign is necessary with the two primary goals being to cut water demands of mainstream agriculture and bring low cost irrigation to poor farmers. Typical irrigation, crop furrow flooding is a main cause of wasted and polluted water. This article discusses alternatives to typical irrigation. These alternatives have been tested onsite by farers and surveyed.

People often think that water will never be used up. There is plenty of water, such as rain, water from the rivers and wells. It seems as if water is always available around us and we never have to worry about water shortage. In fact water is rather limited on the earth. With the rapid increase of population and fast development of industries, water is more needed than before. At the same time, a large amount of water has been polluted and wasted every day. Some big cities in China are facing the problem of water shortage already. There, water supply is controlled and industry has been restrained.

​Water is one of the crucial element our planet provides, however, the supply of freshwater will wane if the consumption of water remains unchecked. The steadily growing need to conserve water usage within the United States has sparked people to change their usage of water to aid their communities during desperate times. Recently California experienced a severe drought which called on a restriction on water usage to a bare minimum. During this drought, rising temperature and lack of rain on cities who rely on rain water to recharge the many water sources pushed California governor to act encouraging people to assist with implement the restrictions. The water restriction allowed people to still go about their daily lives while maintaining a

Water is a fundamental resource necessary for all life on Earth. Humanity would be extinct without it. People think there is an unlimited supply of water, however there is not. The overuse of water is a problem that needs to be stopped. Society needs to learn to live in a more sustainable way. If humanity continues to overuse Earth’s natural resources the way it does today, the Earth will run dry. To prevent the depletion of water, people need to be aware of their impact on the environment and live sustainably. By controlling the population, limiting fossil fuel usage, and stopping greed, the depletion of water can be prevented.

Water, is a very valuable and necessary resource that, must be managed more carefully. Quantity-wise it is endless; all around the world there are many bodies of water. Ground sources, such as aquifers, as well as surface water, including oceans, seas, rivers, lakes, ponds, and streams. Because of its endlessness it becomes more difficult to manage it all. Clean water that is readily available, for developed and devolving nations alike, is a challenge. There are many factors that play into what can access water sources, and pollute it. Pollution of water is a worldwide problem that occurs too frequently. There are various contributors to water pollution including agriculture, industry, waste management, as well as naturally occurring

In recent years overconsumption of water has drained the earth’s river basins faster than rain can replenish them. An average person’s daily water footprint i.e. the total amount of water consumed to support their lifestyle is 3,800 liters. Most of this consumption relates to the crops that are farmed to provide us with food and clothing. Irrigation consumes an enormous amount of water, and the effects of this are seen at every stage in the food chain. For example 98 percent of the water footprint created by raising beef cattle comes from growing the grain that feeds the cows during their lifetimes. For each kilogram of steak produced, we consume 15,415 liters of water. That’s enough drinking water to last one person nearly 17 years. Growing water footprint is partly a result of our increasing population; but it is also compounded by the fact that irrigation systems, especially in the developing world, are often extremely inefficient. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization states that even a good irrigation scheme is only 50-60 percent efficient. Poor irrigation systems can result in the vast majority of the water being lost to evaporation, seepage and other problems before it reaches the fields. Moreover, once it gets there, if farmers choose to irrigate at the wrong time for example, just before it rains, the water will be wasted and the crops may even be damaged.

Water is essential to food security. Food production to a great extend is depending on water. Water can be a great use of irrigation to the agriculture. Not only for the food crop, non-food crop like cotton and rubber also count on water in order for its growth. About 70% of freshwater are now for irrigation use. “According to the united nations, 1.2 billion people already live in areas experiencing a lack of physical access to water.” (purt, 2013)

Water covers 70% of our planet, and it is easy to think that it will always be plentiful. However, freshwater, what we drink, bathe in, irrigate our farm fields with makes up only 3% of the world’s water, and two-thirds of that is stored in frozen glaciers or unavailable for our use. Many of the water systems that keep ecosystems thriving and feed a growing human population have become stressed. Rivers, lakes and aquifers are drying up or becoming too polluted to use. Already, 80 countries suffer from water shortages that threaten health and economies while 40 percent of the world—more than 2 billion people—does not have access to clean water or sanitation

What is known about the bodies of water on this planet is that 97% of all water on earth is salt water, which is not suitable for drinking. Only 3% of all the water is fresh and only 1% is available for drinking, which leaves only 2% of the available fresh water sources lock in ice caps and glaciers. However, with the growing population rate and such a small percentage of all the water on earth, it only makes sense that we must preserve and conserve these precious resources (Evans). According to UNEP senior director Klaus Toepfer, “ history provided grim reminders that failure to manage water resources properly has caused the end of civilizations – in Mesopotamia, but also in other countries, such as Ethiopia, where the ancient civilization of Aksum collapse – partly because of deforestation and its consequent water-related impacts”

Water is the main source of life on the Earth. It is vital for normal existence and functioning of organisms. Earth is sometimes called “water planet.” But, in fact, the number of freshwater is limited. “Only about 2 percent of the planet's water is fresh.” (How much water is there on Earth?) This water is not enough even to meet daily needs of mankind. According to World Health Organization, “a lack of water to meet daily needs is a reality today for one in three people around the world.” (2009) In the Middle East the situation is especially hard. This region is thought to be one of the droughtiest places in the world, most of it’s territory is deserted. Freshwater accounts to 1 percent of the world’s supplies, while the population comes

Many people know that water is essential for human-being and it is not only valuable for health and life, but water is also important for industry and agriculture. Furthermore, use of water has a spiritual, cultural and recreational dimension. However, water resources are not infinite. Wide and inefficient use of water resources can lead to irreversible consequences, such as water shortage. This essay will firstly discuss the problem of water shortage on examples of developed and developing countries and include the diversification of the same issue in the different parts of the world. It will also identify causes and effects of this environmental problem on society and other spheres of life. Moreover, in this essay I am going to propose

water scarcity is the biggest threat to our food security. agriculture uses about 70 percent of all our freshwater from rivers every single year from around the world. river water is used to irrigate farms and feed billions of people around the world. the level of threat to the ongoing supply of fresh water available depends on the place. river systems and the water that the farmers capture store and distribute are the most threatened natural environments on earth. an increasing demand for water is by far the most common threat to food security around the world. with so much water being used it is easy to run out of the water what makes the crops die of dehydration.

It is an essential resource for sustaining life as well as central to agriculture and rural development, and is intrinsically linked to global challenges of food insecurity and poverty, climate change adaptation and mitigation, as well as degradation and depletion of natural resources that affect the livelihoods of millions of people across the world. According to the World Bank, (2010) report, water is a scarce resource with multiple interwoven uses that range from drinking water, energy, irrigation, manufacturing things, transport of people and goods among others. The report further states that, more than one-sixth of the Worlds’ population does not have access to safe drinking water, with 80% living in rural areas thus access to water cannot not be guaranteed globally.

Water is an essential resource to sustain life. From 50 - 90 percent of the weight of living organisms is water. Water is the major constituent of living matter. Water, essential for growth of all crops, is the natural resource in shortest supply. More than 20 countries lack sufficient water to grow enough food for their people. The situation is getting worse as needs for water rise along with population growth, urbanization and increases in household and industrial uses. According to a UN report two-thirds of mankind will suffer moderate to severe water crisis within next 30 years if remedial steps are not taken. World Bank report estimates 5 million deaths from unsafe drinking water and investments to the tune of $ 600 billion worldwide

Quoted by the United Nations in a report regarding the mismanagement of resources, one fifth of the world’s population lacks safe drinking water. Yet here we have farmers and their wasteful irrigation systems contributing to water scarcity in this country. Did you know that 950 gallons of water are needed to produce just 2 pounds of boneless beef? Let’s consider water waste in industry.