Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
not drink up the pond in which it lives.” Figure 11-20
lists ways to implement this principle.
The challenge in encouraging such a blue revolu-
tion is to implement a mix of strategies. One strategy
involves using technology to irrigate crops more effi-
ciently and to save water in industries and homes. A
second approach uses economic and political policies
to remove subsidies that cause water to be under-
priced and thus wasted, while guaranteeing low prices
for low-income consumers and adding subsidies that
reward reduced water waste.
A third component is to switch to new waste-treat-
ment systems that accept only nontoxic wastes, use
less or no water to treat wastes, return nutrients in
plant and animal wastes to the soil, and mimic the
ways that nature decomposes and recycles organic
wastes. A fourth strategy is to leave enough water in
rivers to protect wildlife, ecological processes, and the
natural ecological services provided by rivers.
We can all help bring about this blue revolution by
using and wasting less water. We can also support
government policies that result in more sustainable
use of the world's water and better ways to treat our
What Can You Do?
Water Use and Waste
• Use water-saving toilets, showerheads, and
faucet aerators.
• Shower instead of taking baths, and take
short showers.
• Repair water leaks.
• Turn off sink faucets while brushing teeth,
shaving, or washing.
• Wash only full loads of clothes or use the lowest
possible water-level setting for smaller loads.
• Wash a car from a bucket of soapy water, and
use the hose for rinsing only.
• If you use a commercial car wash, try to find one
that recycles its water.
• Replace your lawn with native plants that need
little if any watering.
• Water lawns and gardens in the early morning
or evening.
Solutions
• Use drip irrigation and mulch for gardens
and flowerbeds.
Sustainable Water Use
• Use recycled (gray) water for watering lawns
and houseplants and for washing cars.
• Not depleting aquifers
• Preserving ecological health
of aquatic systems
Figure 11-21 Individuals matter: ways you can reduce your
use and waste of water. Critical thinking: which four of these
actions do you believe are the most important? Which actions
on this list do you do or plan to do?
• Preserving water quality
• Integrated watershed management
• Agreements among regions and countries
sharing surface water resources
industrial and household wastes. Figure 11-21 lists
ways you can reduce your water use and waste.
• Outside party mediation of water
disputes between nations
• Marketing of water rights
11-4
TOO MUCH WATER
• Raising water prices
Science: Flooding
Heavy rainfall, rapid snowmelt, removal of vegetation,
and destruction of wetlands cause flooding.
Whereas some areas have too little water, others some-
times have too much because of natural flooding by
streams, caused mostly by heavy rain or rapid melting
of snow. A flood happens when water in a stream
overflows its normal channel and spills into the adja-
cent area, called a floodplain. Floodplains, which in-
clude highly productive wetlands, help provide nat-
ural flood and erosion control, maintain high water
quality, and recharge groundwater.
• Wasting less water
• Decreasing government subsidies
for supplying water
• Increasing government subsidies
for reducing water waste
• Slowing population growth
Figure 11-20 Solutions: methods for achieving more sustain-
able use of the earth's water resources. Critical thinking: which
two of these solutions do you believe are the most important?
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