Water Flashcards
(20 cards)
Why do we need water?
Water is more essential to life than food (humans can only survive 3 days without water), clean and safe water is difficult to access in some parts of the world, in the mid 20th century the world’s population was around 4 billion so there was enough water but now there are like 8 billion peoples so that’s too many
How much of the UK’s water consumption is for industry?
75%
The world Health Organisation estimates how many people are malnourished and how many are undernourished?
1 billion malnourished and 2 billion undernourished
What are the issues with limited access to clean and safe water?
spread of waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhoid, children have to walk many miles to access water, reducing time at school
What is a water surplus and deficit?
A surplus means having more water than needed and a deficit means not having enough to meet demand
Why is the demand for water changing?
UK population is predicted to rise by 10 million by 2040, many new homes are being built in the south east, which is already in deficit, people use more water now than in the past due to appliances such as washing machines and dishwashers
What to do when supply is lots in one area and not enough in another????/
water transfer (bit expensive tho and also disrupts wildlife)
How’s the water quality in the UK
bit better than before (salmon are back in the Thames after 100 years of absence) but there are still nasty farm chemicals in there and also from cars and chemical spillage
What’s the risk with sourcing most of the water from groundwater?
Half of the groundwater is at risk of pollution and it requires expensive treatment and new laws to restrict chemical use
What is water security and insecurity/stress?
security is having enough good quality water to meet demand and insecurity is not having enough
why is water consumption increasing?
rising population (everyone needs water and also food which needs water), economic development (industry requires more water, energy production (water is used in this like in fracking), increased living standards so people like more water so they can wash their plates without getting their hands wet
What are the physical factors affecting water availability?
climate (how much is evaporated), geology (we want to drink from aquifers (permeable rock) and not from rivers (impermeable rock)
What are the human factors affecting water availability?
over-abstraction (taking too much water out due to economic development, industry, tourism), limited infrastructure (not having the pipes), poverty (some cant afford the price of clean and safe water), pollution (water gets dangerous for this reason either human waste which is gross or industrial waste which is also gross)
What are the impacts of water insecurity?
pollution and disease from contaminated water so lots of people get ill with cholera and stuff (example- mercury from mining in the Niger delta gets into rivers and causes miscarriages and birth defects), less food produced, industry slows as there is less water, conflict over water (future issue maybe) like if someone puts a dam up and greedy keeps all the water for themselves
What are the strategies to increase water supply?
Storage (aquifers on purpose), dams (holds lots of water) and reservoirs, water transfer, desalination (Dubai supplies 98.8% of its water through desalination)
Where is Lesotho?
South Africa, surrounded by the country of South Africa, a little bit east
What is LEsotho?
small and poor mountainous country in South Africa (in water SURPLUS)
How does the LEsotho Large-scale water transfer project benefit the country?
provides 75% of GDP, provides lots of hydropower, water for 90% of capital
What were the downsides of the Lesotho water transfer project?
30,000 people were displaced by the first two dams, corruption has stopped compensation from reaching the affected people
What are some sustainable strategies for increasing water supply?
Groundwater management (laws to prosecute the nasty polluters) however this is more difficult in countries who get water via a well, recycling grey water (water from homes like sinks or dishwashers) use it for like irrigation power plants and toilets, water conservation like fixing leaky pipes, water meters to raise awareness, dual flush toilets, shorter showers, efficient washing machines, more efficient irrigation
