Water Management Flashcards
what is water used for
drinking cooking washing clothes planting crops generating power industries
how much water is freshwater
3%, but 2/3 of that is locked in ice-caps and glaciers
why is water unevenly distributed
amount of rainfall
rate of water loss through evaporation and transpiration
water stress
not enough water to meet people’s needs
3 factors why water stress is increasing
Increasing population
climate change - lower rainfall
development - economic development means more water use
water usage in developing countries - agriculture
used inefficiently as lots of water is added to fields and they are flooded
water usage in developed countries - agriculture
sprinklers supply just enough water to right places
water usage in developing countries - industry
water used relatively less
water usage in developed countries - industry
millions of litres of water are used for things such as cooling machinery
water usage in developing countries - domestic
most people dont have taps and water is collected after walking long distances and this reduces water wasted
water usage in developed countries - domestic
people have taps, pools, baths, showers etc…
why has supply and demand for water changed
living standards and economic development. People expect to have things like dishwashers and powerful showers
where does Las Vegas get most of its water
Lake Mead reservoir
what are the water supply problems in UK
supply and demand is not balanced
seasonal imbalance - rains more in winter, less in summer
ageing infrastructure - causes leaky pipes and water loss
what is seasonal imbalance
when some months receive far less rain than others.
problems in emerging and developing countries
only access to unsafe water
water courses polluted
low rainfall
annual rainfall which varies
problems caused by unsafe water
without clean water, you can’t be healthy
lots of deaths ( child dies every 2 mins)
education disrupted if always ill from water
adults cant work if ill
need to use lot of money for medicine if always ill
how is pollution created by farming and industry
poor farming leaves soil exposed
fertiliser and pesticide = water pollution
mining for metal
how is pollution caused by human waste
people use water courses to dispose of sewage and poo and some people can’t afford sanitation
what is desalination
technology used to make sea water available
what is the most common desalination
reverse osmosis
what is reverse osmosis
uses pressure and partially permeable membrane to get little water molecules through, leaving large salt molecules behind
negatives of desalination
not very efficient
waste is very salty water, which is put back in sea
membrane needs to be cleaned often
marine creature killed
uses lots of energy
desalination plants are expensive to make
water management methods in UK
Hippos
Water metres
Environment agency
plug it
