Water Management Flashcards
What percentage of global water is saline?
97%
Saline water refers to the salty ocean water.
What percentage of global water is fresh water suitable for human consumption?
3%
Of this fresh water, 2% is locked up in glaciers and ice caps.
How much of the world’s fresh water is available for human consumption?
1%
This 1% is crucial for the expanding global population.
Which regions typically lack water?
Near the Equator, especially North Africa
These areas experience low rainfall.
Which countries have the greatest fresh water availability per person?
Canada and Iceland
These countries have abundant freshwater resources.
What natural features contribute to a water surplus?
Tropical rainforests and mountainous areas
These regions receive more water than they lose.
What causes a water deficit in the Sahel region of North Africa?
Little rainfall and high rates of evaporation and transpiration
These factors lead to insufficient water resources.
Fill in the blank: 97% of global water is _______.
saline
This refers to salty ocean water.
Fill in the blank: Only 1% of the world’s fresh water is _______ for human consumption.
available
This is crucial for the growing population.
True or False: Southern England has more water per person than Spain.
False
Southern England has less water per person than Spain.
What factors contribute to the uneven distribution of global water supplies?
Variations in rainfall, evaporation, and transpiration
These factors affect water availability.
Difference in usage of water between developed and developing countries:
Developed:
Agriculture:
Drip irrigation
Automated irrrigation systems
Domestic:
Most usage of water here
Piped water means people use lots of water for : * domestic appliances baths and showers toilets. Recreational use, e.g. swimming pools, hot tubs.
Industry:
Water used for cooling machinery in factories and for fuel production
Developing:
Agriculture:
Most usage of water here
-Hand pumps limit water use. Surplus water left to drain away, evaporate or run off surface.
Domestic:
-Communal taps and wells used for washing clothes. Bathe in rivers.
Industry:
-Small-scale industries, e.g. basket weaving and pottery, use very little water.
Water supply problems in the UK?
Ageing Infrastructure
Rainfall Imbalance
Seasonal Imbalance- greater difference between summer and winter rainfall
Water supply problems in developing countries?
Untreated water
*663 million people - 1 in 10 - lack access to safe water.
Developing countries in Africa are the most affected by a lack of safe drinking water.
* Without safe water, people cannot lead healthy, productive lives.
* Drinking polluted water causes water- borne diseases and parasites.
* An estimated 2000 people die every day from diarrhoea - governments can’t afford water treatment schemes.
Pollution of watercourses:
Water can become polluted because of : * poor farming practices and unregulated use of fertilisers and pesticides * mining, e.g. copper mining in Zambia in 2006 caused health problems * lack of sanitation and education about human and animal faeces in water, leading to diseases.
Low annual rainfall:
Low annual rainfall can be the result of climate change, seasonal variations in climates and increasing population. * Countries in the Sahel region have been subjected to repeated drought. * Countries such as Chad and Mali suffer extreme water shortages. Worked example
Explain one reason why there are different views about the development of
desalination technology
Positive views e.g.
Desalination can provide people with clean / fresh drinking water (1)
because it removes dissolved salts and other minerals from seawater (1)
which means that it provides a solution for areas that have limited
resources of fresh water (1) and therefore a reliable alternative source of
water in times of severe drought (1).
Desalination can provide more water for agriculture / industry (1) which
means that more water is available to farmers for irrigation (1), which
means that arid regions or areas experiencing droughts can now grow
crops (1) which boosts the economic productivity of a country (1)
Desalination uses tried-and-tested technology (1) which means that the
method is proven and effective at providing clean water (1) and this is a
method that can be considered ‘renewable’ (1) because there is an
almost inexhaustible supply of sea/ocean water (1)
Desalination can actually help preserve current freshwater supplies (1)
which is important as our freshwater supplies are limited / under
increasing pressure (1) as a result of growing demand / population (1)
which means that the process of desalination will reduce potential water
shortages in the future (1)
Negative views e.g.
The process of desalination requires chemicals (e.g. chlorine) to be added
to water before desalination (1) but these can only be used for only a
limited amount of time (1) which means that once they’ve lost their
ability to clean the water, these chemicals are dumped (1) which
becomes a major environmental concern as they often find their way
back into the ocean, where they poison plant and animal life (1).
Brine is a waste product of desalination (1) which can be a pollutant if
dumped back into the ocean (1) because many species are not equipped
to adjust to the immediate change in salinity / decrease in oxygen (1)
which can cause animals and plants to suffocate (1).
Desalination can increase the amount of brine / chemicals in the water
(1) which can kill plankton and phytoplankton, which form the base of all
marine life by forming the base of the food chain (1) which then could
reduce the biodiversity / number of species further up the food chain (1).
By-products of the chemicals used in desalination can get through into
the drinking water system (1) which may endanger the people who drink
it (1) because desalinated water can be acidic – doesn’t agree with
human digestive systems (1) which means human health can be placed
at risk (1).
