What Are the Long-Term Effects of Current Water Usage That Is, Is Water Effectively Being Used and Managed Now?

Darien Freeman

December 5, 2017

Global Issues

Final Research

Professor Omunga

What are the long-term effects of current water usage that is, is water effectively being used and managed now? If not, how can we improve water management for the well-being of our future? If we fail to effectively manage water, what are the implications on our future?

        The Earth consist of about 70% of salt water. 3% of the world’s water is freshwater but only half of that is accessible. The accessible water is in rivers, lakes and groundwater however the freshwater that is not accessible is being held in glaciers. Freshwater is used with agriculture, power, domestic and industrial. Agriculture uses approximately 70% of the world’s water. If there was ever a demand for more food production, the stress on water resources will only get worse.

        Compared to the rest of the world the United States uses a larger amount of water each day. In Mali, an average person uses 3 gallons a day, in India 38 gallons a day, in France 77 gallons a day and in the United States 156 gallons a day. As shown these numbers tend to be higher in developed countries versus developing countries. Could this extreme overuse of water in the United States have a negative effect on the rest of the world? I believe the long-term effect of our current water usage will be a huge risk. If developed countries continue using tons of gallons a day that could possibly decrease the amount of accessible freshwater available for developing countries.

        With the amount of accessible freshwater being such an issue now and possibly becoming a future risk, can we say water is effectively being used and managed now? Us every day Americans tend to not look at water as a resource that needs to be preserved. While taking showers we allow the water to run for several minutes before getting in, then as we bathe water continues to flow out until we decide to rinse off. We turn the water faucets on as we brush our teeth, wash dishes and water plants and do not turn it off until we are done. These everyday things we do is what makes our gallons per day water usage numbers to be so high.

        Some great ideas of how to use and manage water effectively have been considered. The creation of automated sinks, which have a sensor that can tell when you need water to rinse off your hands. Automated sinks have conserved a lot of water that probably would have been wasted by regular faucets because some individuals forget to turn the faucet off and it continues to run, wasting water. An invention I think could be affective is a button you press while in the shower that runs water for a timed period allowing you to do what you must do. The number of gallons of water used will decrease because water is not just flowing out the duration of the time spent in the shower. Even though there are some negatives for the way water is being used, let’s not forget about the positive ways it is. For example, water is the key essential for life on Earth, we use it for agriculture, power, domestic and industrial reasons. Damns are also built so water can be used for electricity.

Most people are living in the world of today but we must also think about the future and ways of improving water management. A couple of years ago the state of California was having a major drought and the amount of water resources was scarce. The state’s government ended up putting restrictions on how much water each household could use a day. If someone was watering the plants, sprinklers could not be left on for more than 10 minutes. Also, if the amount of water use in the house was exceeded it would have automatically cut off for the day by the water company.

Another way to improve water management for the future would be an enforcement on recycling. I feel as though places we get our freshwater from like stream, rivers and lakes are being more and more polluted. Items such a plastic bottles, cans or bags are nondegradable and continuously keep ending up in them. Putting more recycling bins in plain eye view can decrease the amount of pollutants that end up in our water supply.

In the future, we can preserve a lot of water if the government enforces some policies, rules, regulations and restrictions. First off, by giving a certain percentage of freshwater towards electricity around the world. Secondly, the production of food for agricultural or manufactural uses. Thirdly, the amount of water coming from one’s residence should be controlled, so that could reduce the levels of water being wasted. Lastly, if the government needs to fine people who put our water at harm. These are just some suggestions on how our fresh water risk can be mitigated.