Summary
The article that I have chosen is about the supply of water. People tend to drink an average or 2 or 3 liter of water a day, but people use way more water if the consumption of food is included. When meat is made for consumption, it requires way more water need then growing grain products. As the population and income raises, farmers will have to increase the amount of water used. The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) has said farmers will approximately use 2,000 more cubic kilometers or a quarter more then what they use today by the year 2030. In some parts of the world water is scarce, and as global warming worsens water gets scarcer.
The connection with this article with chapter one, is that they are both about scarcity. As the supply of water slowly diminishes, the cost of water will raise and the cost of things that require water will also increase. The supply of drinking water will decrease and the demand of water will rise. The human consumption of water from farming is 70%. Mr. Frérot, the head of the water division of Veolia Environnement, states that as up to 70% of the water used for crops will not even reach the crops perhaps because of leaky irrigation channels or drain into rivers and groundwater.
Reflection
I usually drink about 3 or 4 liters of water a day, even though doctors say it’s healthy to drink 8 cups of water daily. The fact that the price of water will increase sounds very sad because it’s such a daily necessity. There are many things that are cheap that farmers can do to save more water for corps like drip irrigation or fixing major leaks. When people brush their teeth, they can close the faucet when not using. The supply of water will diminish slowly because of global warming and world population, but we can do our own small part to help slow down the rate at which water is disappearing.
3 comments:
This article was a fascinating read and it shows us that many people take the supply of water for granted. People nowadays are consuming water recklessly,many are not even aware about the diminishing source of water. I myself need to be more environmentally conscious and make some sacrifices to do my part in conserving water. I also think its unfortunate that some countries rely heavily on agriculture to stimulate their economies but at the same time it accounts for a large portion of the water usage on earth, therefore stressing the need for more efficient farming techniques and distribution of water (considering a large portion of it does not get to crops some countries). The world can also consume less meat to reduce the amount of water used up in order to produce it.Overall, I definitely agree that a greater commitment to water conservation is needed by the public and water is turning into a scarce resource.
J.Tam
Block F
The earth consists of 75% water, making it seem almost impossible to label water as a "scarce resource." Unfortunately, because of the amount of usable water there is, and the outrageously large amounts of water used, the scarcity of water increases greatly.
I agree that everyone should be more conscious in using water during simple everyday activities, such as, like you said, brushing your teeth. It's a shame that some human necessities require the use of lots of water, such as showering. Even one flush of the toilet uses about 23 liters of water.
It really hurts to know how much water gets wasted from farming when there are so many people in the world that are suffering from water shortages. I believe that if we all save a bit of water everyday, the rate in which water becomes scarce would slow down, and it would be advantageous to everyone in the long run.
K. Chan
Block F
I agree that everyone should be more conscious in using water during simple everyday activities, such as, like you said, brushing your teeth. Simple things such as closing the faucet and not letting water drip down when it's not in use can save a lot of water in the long run. Although this is such an easy way to save water, why isn't everyone doing it? Maybe some people aren't educated enough, or too selfish to change their habits.
It really hurts to know how much water gets wasted from farming when there are so many people in the world that are suffering from water shortages. If the farming techniques were more efficient in saving water, I think that would help a lot. More water would mean we can use it in more ways, thus reducing opportunity costs. I believe that if we all save a bit of water everyday, the rate in which water becomes scarce would slow down, and it would be advantageous to everyone in the long run.
K. Chan
Block F
Post a Comment