Water Issues
All life on Earth depends on water for its existence. As an example both trees and humans are about 65% water by weight! We can live without most things for an extended period, but we can only live a few days without water. Biological processes simply don't work without it.
Water -- most of it salt water -- covers about 71% of the Earth's surface. Of this, about 97% is found in the oceans and is too salty for drinking, irrigation, or industry (except as a coolant). This leaves 3% of the world's water as fresh water, but most of this is locked up in ice caps or glaciers or is buried so deep that it costs too much to extract. Only about .03% of the Earth's total volume of water is easily available to us in soil moisture, exploitable ground water, water vapor, lakes, and streams. But even these sources are not always ideal. Pollution and conflicting needs make access to fresh water a problem with much of our supply. Since we must have it to survive, water is a precious resource.
Human civilizations have risen and fallen based on how well they managed their basic natural resources, such as land and fuel. Past wars have been fought over oil and future wars will undoubtedly be fought over water. Already in the Middle East, countries are in dispute over water resources. The United States itself has an internal battle over water. The Colorado River, for example, is claimed by seven states and two countries. Several users such as municipalities, industry, farming, fishing, barging, and recreation often compete for the same water.
All life on Earth depends on water for its existence. Grasping the connection between our own destiny and that of water is integral to the challenge of meeting human needs while protecting the ecological functions which all life depends upon. Water will probably be the resource which determines the carrying capacity of the Earth and sustainability of human populations on all continents. It is in many ways our most precious resource.
Learn more about water and forestry in our Eco-Links, Water or Forest Soils. You can also check out these links for more information about water in North America.
-
Home page for water resources information from the US Geological Survey, US Department of the Interior.
-
Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Water home page.
-
Web page for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Ground Water and Drinking Water.
^ Top
Water and Sustainability
Water policy is one of the most important issues we face.
From the report, When The Well Runs Dry: Population pressures threaten global water supply by Population Connection;
While our fresh water supply accounts for less than 3% of the water on the earth's surface, experts contend that the water crisis does not result from an actual decrease in water supply. Surprisingly, in fact, the earth has virtually the same amount of fresh water as it did when dinosaurs roamed the planet. According to Joel E. Cohen of the Rockefeller University Laboratory of Populations, "Our planet has more than enough fresh water for every living person, it is often just in the wrong place at the wrong time." [Population Connection]
On a global basis it is estimated that 65% of the water is wasted, and the United States wastes an estimated 50%. With an exploding world population and water shortages in many countries we cannot afford to waste this resource. Even a 15% reduction in waste would help us meet most of the world's water needs for the foreseeable future.
Clean water is a major issue addressed by the Clean Water Act. Storm water runoff and "non-point source pollution" are major issues industry and industrial land owners must deal with. The protection of wetlands is also a major issue which impacts private property rights. Irrigation, flooding, and power generation are contentious issues, as are the dams built by the Bureau of Reclamation and the Corps of Engineers. The declining Salmon populations in the Pacific Northwest are attributed in part to the dams built on the Columbia, Snake and other rivers.
^ Top
< Temperate Forest Foundation Home
