Water: A Non-renewable Resource

Water is one of the few life sustaining resources that can be found all around us. However, the majority of it can not be utilized in its current state. Salty ocean water, contaminated water, and water in the atmosphere make up a large portion of the water supply, but none of it can be used for human consumption, leaving our ground level and underground water supplies the sole provider of clean water. The levels of clean water are being vastly depleted and many people have not grasped the urgency of water conservation. Although there are many programs being developed to solve this problem, we must still increase our efforts to conserve water for now and future generations.

Some of the new technologies being developed to increase or at least slow the decrease of our current water supply include desalinization, a technique used to remove salt from salt water, purifying, and water conservation efforts. These, when done correctly, will have a tremendous effect on the livelihood of the worlds water supply.

However, there are negative effects to these solution. Desalinization produces salt byproduct, called brine, that will ultimately end up in fresh water sources if it is not disposed of properly. Purification involves using chemicals to eliminate the contaminants in dirty water, however, the chemicals themselves could make the water harmful for drinking if they become too concentrated. Water conservation efforts only work when the majority of the population acts on them.

Saturday, March 14, 2009