How Choices I Have Made That Impact The Earth 's Water Cycle

Growing up in a small fishing town afforded me the opportunity to see water in a far different perspective than most. Our waterways acted as food source and livelihood while providing a venue for recreation and aesthetic enjoyment. Because of this, a deep respect for water and environment gripped me at an early age. My fascination with water continued to flourish as I grew and watched my hometown battle both natural and man-made disasters. I actively participated in coastal recovery efforts after many hurricanes and even the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Truly sobering moments come when one is standing center-stage of a disaster realizing how something as seemingly endless as water becomes so quickly scarce. These firsthand experiences piqued my initial interest in water resources and conservation sparking many questions about spatio-temporal patterns in the realm of ecosystem services. These personal factors were a major influence on my decision to apply for enrollment in the Earth Sciences Department at the

The article “Water Works”, published by Orion Magazine and written by environmental specialist Cynthia Barnett intends to inform the reader anyone can make water an important factor. Overlooking it has become common many people in the United States have adapted to through the changes that have occurred in society over time. At the beginning of her article, she describes an area that does not make water care a priority, whereas in another location they make it very evident water is important. The location she describes is gloomy, grey, and is a populated area that has old water systems that are damaging environmental factors. Barnett continuously emphasizes that people are the ones who can help restore nature. This is at a less cost than

Water is essential to life. It is a vital resource that makes up 70% of the earth’s surface. However, only 3% percent of the earth’s water is freshwater and two-thirds of that freshwater are frozen in glaciers and ice caps, leaving an incomparably small portion available for sustaining earth’s life forms (“How Much Water is in the Ocean?”). Rising surface temperatures, caused by greenhouse gasses that are released when burning fossil fuels, are threatening this water supply by accelerates the rate of water evaporation and limiting precipitation, which leads to droughts and water shortages. Furthermore, earth’s growing population is consuming an increasingly larger fraction of freshwater, which is causing the earth’s natural aquifers to dry up. This global water crisis is especially acute in the western United States where California is experiencing critical drought conditions that are endangering the state’s ability to sustain life. The current California water crisis will ultimately make the state uninhabitable because of several severe, long-term consequences.

Among all of the resources in the world, there is one that we do not often consider to be diminishing. The masses take this resource, water, for granted. When the average person takes a single look at a world map, they see multiple blue oceans covering the Earth. But, although we are surrounded by water, our clean water reserves dwindle rapidly. In her article, “Water Works”, Cynthia Barnett attempts to bring this issue to greater light and offers her own solutions. While I agree with many of Barnett’s points, she fails to look at the arguments of her detractors to the detriment of her already flawed case.

The way Americans use water all depends on the location and how much water is readily available. California, a dry state with scarce water supply, versus Florida, a tropical state with more water resources, have very different ways of using water throughout the day. For example, Coastal southern California has cutting-edge water usage policies, including mandatory low-flow toilets and strict lawn watering laws (Pickert, 19). Compared to Florida, which has an adequate water supply, Floridians still use more water than what is available, and have very little water usage policies to resolve this issue (Behn, 45). Although there are many issues concerning water usage in Florida and California, there are many ways in which they can be resolved,

Climate change has always been an ominous, impending thought in the back of my mind. Every day, I try to be more cognizant of my ecological footprint, a mindset which had spurred me into becoming more environmentally cautious over the years. The crux of the matter was undoubtedly discussed by Mr. Bardecki over the dramatic changes concerning the Colorado River. Our earth relies heavily on water as a source of life— from humanity's perspective alone, we use it for hydration, agriculture, and sanitation. That being said, it is equally as essential that we take care of our planet and water sources. It is said that "we're failing as stewards of God’s creation, but these changes we're seeing, that's not God punishing us -we're destroying ourselves." In full confidence, I agree with this statement; if we drive our planet and our resources into ruin, we have but ourselves to blame. We cannot let this be our legacy. The Colorado River, known as one of the most endangered rivers in the continental US, is being threatened by a drought, one brought by the rising changes in climate, and greenhouse gas emissions. I believe that the risk factor is increased because of direct human activity such as leisurely boating, agricultural irrigation, and the import/export business, which studies will prove to be a correct assumption. It is indisputable that humans largely take part in the latter, and so, with all of the warning signs in place and alarms ringing, we must act quickly.

Water sustainability is an ever-growing problem because of the increase in population, and over consumption used by agriculture, industry, and domestic which are using more water than we are able to supply. According to CBS News, California’s water shortage has been a big issue since 2011. Climate change has a lot to do with the amount of water we have available to us because the amount we need does not cut out to the amount needed to satisfy the population. Therefore, conservation is key; we must take into consideration the amount we use in a daily basis. Both you and I can easily save water we have, directly and indirectly like what we consume with what we eat, buy and use, which would overall improve water sustainability.

The California drought as of March 2015 has increased severely and has affected not just the residents of California, but also the farmers as well. My claim is to find a reliable way to save water and have the residents of California informed about the situation and the wastefulness of water being replenished. In this paper I want to address the issue of how much water we are constantly wasting even though we are in an exceptionally severe drought. I believe that the water shortage not only affects the residents but also takes a toll in the agricultural areas as well. I want to argue the point that everyone who wastes water is held responsible and what we could do

Americans consume far more water on average than people in other countries. This means there is significant room for making lifestyle changes and reducing our per capita water usage. However,

America has an abundant supply of water, readily available, also a bountiful of energy needs. Why not take advantage of a renewable resource? Water makes up 71% of earth, therefore, the energy supply is sufficient for the 7.4 billion people who live on the planet. “Ocean and river currents contain a huge amount of energy” states Gorlov, a mechanical engineering

Earth is filled with vast amounts of water, yet it’s like a cruel joke to people who cannot drink it due to its toxicity to us. Likewise, fresh water is our most precious resource that people depend on every day. Our society is based around the use of large amounts of water in our everyday lives. Charles Fisher, a three time winner of the Gerald Loeb award, a writer for the magazine Fast Company, and the author of The Walmart Effect and The Big Thirst, tells a different story. In the article Will the World Run out of Fresh Water, which explains that people take water for granted and never see its true value like people in the past, published at the Detroit Greenhaven Press in 2012. Because we use vast amounts of water and never see the process in which water is given to people, Fisherman proposes this idea that water is taken for granted until we run out, which is more than true.

One statement can be seen as the premise for National Geographic’s Water: Global Challenges & Policy of Freshwater Use (2013): “Water is life” (p.8). The book discusses how access to clean freshwater is not only essential to our survival, but shows it is also a contested resource. With much freshwater being unavailable due to location, sustainable water management decisions are an important part of supporting regions across the globe. National Geographic’s book elaborates on multiple freshwater issues and highlights how important water is to our survival. Providing regional, water-related examples of conflict, critical challenges, mitigation efforts, and economic importance it reveals many common themes regarding freshwater and its global importance.

If eight million people lack access to water, why am I wasting my finite amount of it? Also, I claim that I live an ecologically friendly lifestyle but I have contributed to pollution and continued to act poorly with my resources. However, my environmental value system has formed from a mixture of Western and Judeo-Christian Perspectives, giving me respect for the environment from the ecocentric viewpoint. Next, my ecological irresponsibility is aiding in environmental change. Finally, my future actions will be different in the sense that I am consistent and conscious about my impact on my surroundings. My value system has shaped my current actions towards the environment, establishing a pathway for my future habits, resulting in a lavish

The total volume of freshwater consumed and polluted for the production of goods and service used by a consumer is known as the water footprint. Consumption is loss of available water from its catchment area and redeposited at another catchment area, or used to make a product or by evaporation such that it is no longer available for use for another purpose. (Hoekstra et al 2011)

In today’s society, the idea of a limited resource is not a foreign concept. Most people understand that eventually humans will use up many of these resources, such as fossil fuels, and they will cease to exist. However, very rarely does a conversation about limited resources get started over the water. While water itself is not a limited resource, clean drinkable water is becoming scarcer as people continue to use excess water. The documentary “Last Call at the Oasis” highlights how precious water is to survival and just how much miss use of water occurs in the United States alone. Even though the United States has gone down the wrong path with its water consumption methods, it may not be too late to recover. With the proper systems and education in place, the chances of delaying a water crisis increase exponentially.