Water Efficiency : A Green Issue Analysis

Water is one of the most precious resources, which support the life of almost everything in the world. Indeed, the world is covered by 75% water, but most of this water is not suitable for human consumption or use. On the same note, the world has been increasing its consumption of water due to the increasing population, leading to increased demands. The increased water consumption, which has been a result of high population, is worrying because the matter may lead to massive water shortages in the future.

Water: a necessary facet to all living things. For animals, water can be a home or a drink. As for humans, the uses of water are endless. Not only do we use water as a beverage or washing clothes or dishes, but we also use water for toilets, various kinds of plumbing and other things that aren’t as easily identifiable. As of 2005, this 70% of our Earth has been manipulated and used for thermoelectric power (41.5%), irrigation (37%), domestic affairs (8.5%), public supply (5.4%), industry (5%) and aquaculture (2.6%).1 The importance of water is infinite, not only to our way of life, but also our lives. We need to drink water to ensure the health of individual cells of the body, lubricate joints, moisten mucous membranes of the organs and many other vital bodily functions.2 Not only do we expect the availability of water, but it is highly important to humans and all living things. Although it is such an integral part of our Earth, one may ask about some of its properties and characteristics.

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.

Freshwater resources are being overused by us humans. A rarely known fact is that only 2.5% of water on earth is freshwater (Powers, par 12). Just to add to the problem, most of the freshwater resources we do have are not readily accessible. When a freshwater source is found, it is quickly used up by our ever growing need for water. A common estimate for the average amount of water used per day by each person is 80-100 gallons (USGS, par 1). Take into consideration that we have about 320

Water is the source of all life on earth and continues to provide health, wealth and prosperity to all but what happens when water becomes scarce? What would happen if majority of the water on earth is polluted? Are we regulating the amount of water consumed? As a whole are we as efficient as possible when water is used? The food industry thrives off of water which also plays a hand in water consumption. We need to question the tradeoffs between water consumption and food production and how we can improve water productivity worldwide. I believe water is the true gold standard for currency; as a business management major I intend to understand how the world economy works in conjunction with global patterns of water productivity which is food produced per unit of water consumed.

In order to improve water use in Australia, the factors that need to be considered are; water reuse by using reclaimed water to flush toilets, wash clothes and water gardens, educating farmers on water use, by informing them on irrigation techniques and watershed methods. In doing so, water demand in Australia will be reduced in the future if these methods are explored and practiced.

This paper explains the issues involving the Earth’s most vital resource – water – and how problems with access to it are on the rise due to a lack of sanitation practices and sustainable water systems. Especially in developing countries, preventable diseases have become a top 10 global killer, claiming the lives of nearly 730,000 innocent people per year (Water.org, 2015; Prüss-Ustün, Bartram, Clasen, et al., 2014). As the world’s population’s need for water increases and the amount of water on Earth remains constant, different issues stand out regarding the quality of water resources. In Western societies, people pay little attention to the issue of water scarcity, yet, in the developing world, access to water is a daily struggle ¬–

Human beings and ecological systems depend on water for survival (Kenneth). No human, animal or plant can survive for long without this essential commodity. For us humans, water is the driving engine of most of our economic and recreational activities. For instance, we depend on water for the production of energy in industries, transportation and outdoor recreation. Most of us equally depend on water for the provision of amenity and cultural values. Barlow and Clarke state that one cannot simply whisk away the crisis of fresh water we have in the world today (25). For us, fresh water is very essential for direct consumption. A huge majority of plants and animals also depend on fresh water for survival. Experts predict that if we do not

Water is directly related with the survival of human kind and it is crucial unlike other resources, because it does not have choices and alternatives. As a consequence of global warming and pollution, importance of water has increased much. Some "2 billion people” already lack water supplies. Water use has risen six-fold over the past 70 years. By 2050, it is estimated that 4.2 billion people live in countries that cannot meet people’s daily basis needs. South Asia is a region of water abundance and scarcity. “Issues concerning water

Even with the advanced technology which is available today, there are places on the face of the Earth that doesn’t have access to Electric Power and clean water for drinking and irrigation. Energy and clean water scarcity are two major problems in countries that are developing and trying to achieve Energy Independence.

The ever-growing water consumption of people leads to water shortage by wasting water in other needless areas. In our

Water, although considered a renewable resource is not available for infinite use as only six percent of the world’s total supply is fresh water. Only this fresh water can be directly used for daily human needs and thus the amount of water actually available for use is much lower than the total amount of water present on the earth. The limited amount of water then poses the issue of water scarcity in some areas and makes the wise use and sustainable management of water extremely important. To ensure this sustainable management of water and prevent any misuse, it is important to have an appropriate institutional framework that looks after the water supply. The lack of a proper framework in the past has lead to the shifting of water management from the hands of the government to the private sector (Prasad, 2007).

There is only a small amount of fresh drinking water on Earth, and water shortage is becoming increasingly apparent. According to the national geographic, freshwater makes up a very small fraction of all water on the earth. While nearly 70 percent of the world is covered by water, only 2.5 percent of it is freshwater. The rest is saline and ocean-based. Even then, just 1 percent of our freshwater is easily accessible, most of it trapped in glaciers and snowfields. Therefore, only 0.007 percent of the planet 's water is available to fuel and feed its 6.8 billion people. (IMF 2010) With increasing economic development and population, the demand for water continues to increase. However, the freshwater is decreasing due to high amounts of

In many areas around the world, from the United States to northern China and Iran, this long-standing water crisis looms in our future. Iran’s President, Hassan Rouhani, stated last November that, “We need plan to save water in agriculture, prevent excessive tap water use, and protect underground sources of water as

With the changing hydrological cycles and increased number of droughts in many regions, it is likely that use of water might become a conflict between countries. Many countries started to think about water