Water is life. And if without food a person can hold out for some time, then without water it is almost impossible to do. Since the heyday of mechanical engineering, the production industry, water has become too fast and without much human attention to become polluted. Then the first calls appeared about the importance of preserving water resources. And if, in general, there is enough water, then the reserves of fresh water on Earth constitute a negligible fraction of this volume. Let's deal with this issue together.
Water: how much it is and in what form it exists
Water is an important part of our lives. And it is she who makes up most of our planet. Mankind uses this extremely important resource daily: household needs, production needs, agricultural work and much more.
We are used to thinking that water has one state, but actually it has three forms:
- liquid;
- gas / steam;
- solid state (ice);
In a liquid state, it is found in all water basins on the surface of the Earth (rivers, lakes, seas, oceans) and in the bowels of the soil (groundwater). In a solid state, we see it in the snow and ice. In gas form, it appears in the form of clubs of steam, clouds.
For these reasons, calculating what is the supply of fresh water on Earth is problematic. But according to preliminary data, the total volume of water is about 1.386 billion cubic kilometers. Moreover, 97.5% is salt water (unsuitable for drinking) and only 2.5% is fresh.
Freshwater Reserves on Earth
The largest accumulation of fresh water is concentrated in the glaciers and snows of the Arctic and Antarctica (68.7%). Next come groundwater (29.9%) and only an incredibly small part (0.26%) is concentrated in rivers and lakes. It is from there that mankind draws the necessary water resources for life.
The global water cycle changes regularly, and from this the numerical values change as well. But overall, the picture looks exactly like that. The main reserves of fresh water on Earth in glaciers, snows and groundwater, its production from these sources is very problematic. Perhaps, not in the distant future, humanity will have to turn its eyes to these sources of fresh water.
Where is most fresh water
Let us consider in more detail the sources of fresh water, and find out on which part of the planet its most:
- Snow and ice at the North Pole is 1/10 of the total freshwater reserve.
- Groundwater today also serves as one of the main sources of water production.
- Lakes and rivers with fresh water are usually located on high elevations. In this water basin, the main reserves of fresh water on Earth are concentrated. In lakes of Canada, 50% of the total volume of freshwater lakes in the world is concentrated.
- River systems cover about 45% of the land of our planet. Their number is 263 units of water basin suitable for drinking.
From the above it becomes obvious that the distribution of fresh water reserves is uneven. Somewhere it is the most, but somewhere it is negligible. There is another corner of the planet (except Canada), where the largest reserves of fresh water on Earth. These are the countries of Latin America, 1/3 of the total world volume is located here.
The largest freshwater lake is Baikal. It is located in our country and is protected by the state, is listed in the Red Book.
Deficiency of usable water
If we go from the opposite, then the continent, which is most in need of life-giving moisture - is Africa. Many countries are concentrated here, and all have the same problem with the water resource. In some areas it is extremely small, but somewhere it simply is not. Where rivers flow, the quality of water leaves much to be desired, it is at a very low level.
For these reasons, more than half a million people receive less water of the required quality, and, as a result, suffer from many infectious ailments. According to statistics, 80% of cases of diseases are associated with the quality of fluid intake.
Sources of water pollution
Water conservation measures are a strategically important component of our lives. Fresh water is not an inexhaustible resource. And, moreover, its value is small relative to the total volume of all waters. Consider the sources of pollution in order to know how these factors can be reduced or minimized:
- Wastewater. Numerous rivers and lakes were destroyed by sewage from various industrial enterprises, from houses and apartments (household slag), from agricultural complexes and much more.
- Burial of household waste and equipment in the seas and oceans. Very often practiced this type of burial of rockets and other space devices that have served their term. It is worth considering that living organisms live in reservoirs, which greatly affects their health and water quality.
- Industry ranks first among the causes of water pollution and the ecosystem as a whole.
- Radioactive substances, spreading through water bodies, infect flora and fauna, make water unsuitable for drinking, as well as the life of organisms.
- Leakage of oily products. Over time, metal containers in which oil is stored or transported are subject to corrosion, respectively, water pollution is the result of this. Precipitation with acid content can affect the state of the reservoir.
There are much more sources, the most common of them are described here. In order for fresh water reserves on Earth to remain usable for as long as possible, they must be taken care of now.
Water reserve in the bowels of the planet
We have already found out that the largest reserve of drinking water is in glaciers, snows and in the soil of our planet. In the bowels of the world, fresh water reserves amount to 1.3 billion cubic kilometers. But, in addition to the difficulties in its production, we are faced with problems that are associated with its chemical properties. Water is not always fresh, sometimes its salinity reaches 250 grams per 1 liter. Most often, water is found with a predominance of chlorine and sodium in its composition, less often with sodium and calcium or sodium and magnesium. Fresh groundwater is located closer to the surface, and at a depth of up to 2 kilometers, salt water is most often found.
What are we spending this valuable resource on?
Almost 70% of us spend water on supporting the agricultural industry. In each region, this value varies in different ranges. About 22% we spend on all world production. And only 8% of the remaining goes to household needs.
A decrease in the water reserve of drinking water threatens more than 80 countries. It has a significant impact not only on social, but also on economic well-being. It is necessary to seek a solution to this issue now. Thus, reduced consumption of drinking water is not a solution, but only exacerbates the problem. Every year, the supply of fresh water is reduced to a value of 0.3%, while not all sources of fresh water are available to us.