Water Resources

Annotations:

• We wanted to show how all of these global trends, which we split into five categories (economic, social, political, environmental and demographic), influence and are affected by water resources. We are also aware that each of these categories is interconnected. However, our flow chart was influenced by the strains of technology. This application, while effective in many ways, did not allow us to connect the different nodes of the chart. Therefore, each of the main categories (as listed above) has a note attached to it where we explained some of the main ways that it connects to the other categories.
• Bibliography: “Gapminder World.” Accessed October 18, 2015. http://www.gapminder.org/world/#$majorMode=chart$is;shi=t;ly=2003;lb=f;il=t;fs=11;al=30;stl=t;st=t;nsl=t;se=t$wst;tts=C$ts;sp=5.59290322580644;ti=2010$zpv;v=0$inc_x;mmid=XCOORDS;iid=phAwcNAVuyj1jiMAkmq1iMg;by=ind$inc_y;mmid=YCOORDS;iid=pyj6tScZqmEd98lRwrU3gIg;by=ind$inc_s;uniValue=8.21;iid=phAwcNAVuyj0XOoBL_n5tAQ;by=ind$inc_c;uniValue=255;gid=CATID0;by=grp$map_x;scale=log;dataMin=194;dataMax=96846$map_y;scale=lin;dataMin=2;dataMax=100$map_s;sma=49;smi=2.65$cd;bd=0$inds=. “Global Warming Effects on the Water Supply.” Accessed October 18, 2015. http://www.climatehotmap.org/global-warming-effects/water-supply.html.“IEA - Water-Energy Nexus.” Accessed October 18, 2015. http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/resources/water-energynexus/.Yang, Xiao-e, Xiang Wu, Hu-lin Hao, and Zhen-li He. “Mechanisms and Assessment of Water Eutrophication.” Journal of Zhejiang University. Science. B 9, no. 3 (March 2008): 197–209. doi:10.1631/jzus.B0710626.US EPA, OW. “Water Impacts of Climate Change.” Overviews & Factsheets. Accessed October 18, 2015. http://water.epa.gov/scitech/climatechange/Water-Impacts-of-Climate-Change.cfm.Monica, 1776 Main Street Santa, and California 90401-3208. “Withdrawing Liquid Assets: How Demographics Trends Affect the Freshwater Supply | RAND.” Accessed October 18, 2015. http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9102/index1.html.

1. Environmental

   Annotations:

   • Environmental effects on water resources and the water resources effects on the environment are greatly perpetuated by factors especially in the social, economic, and demographic categories. Politics can help to regulate the environmental factors in many cases. In terms of demographics, the population growth, diet change, and fertility rate all lead to different uses of land. Climate change, for example, is perpetuated by increased population using cars and other Co2 emitting objects. As for economics, industry and trade require increased energy which thus requires massive amounts of water. Urbanization, under the social category, is an example of increasing mobility that falls in the environmental category. Also, this population movement, combined with population growth (under demographic) can accelerate climate change. In sum, the environmental category ties many of these global water resource consumption factors together.
   1. Fresh Water vs. Salt Water

      Annotations:

      • - Freshwater resources along the coasts face risks from sea level rise. As the sea rises, saltwater moves into freshwater areas. This may cause public utilities to find potable water from other sources, including an increase in the need for desalination (or removal of salt from the water) for some coastal freshwater aquifers used as drinking water supplies. (EPA)  - Sea-level rise can lead to saltwater intrusion into groundwater drinking supplies, especially in low-lying, gently sloping coastal areas. (Union)
   2. Energy

      Annotations:

      • - constraints on water can challenge reliability of energy sector  - constraints: droughts and heat waves, or be human-induced, as a result of growing competition among users or regulations that limit access to water - use of water for energy production can impact freshwater resources, affecting both their availability (the amount downstream) and quality (their physical and chemical properties)  - energy accounts for 15% of the world's water use withdrawals, second to agriculture - growing population especially in developing countries will put a tremendous amount of pressure on increasing energy and thus the use of water - when choosing what kinds of energy to use we must consider the virtual water footprint (World Energy Outlook)
      1. Dams

         Annotations:

         • Many societies build dams to cultivate energy. One example is The Three Gorges Dam in China. The dam was built for water energy, to moderate the destructive floods and to store and distribute water in dry periods. However, the dam has altered the geology, poisoned water supplies, and uprooted nearly 1.4 million people. However dams are a large and relatively clean source of energy, and do help an economic side of a country by giving energy.
   3. Climate Change

      Annotations:

      • Climate change will challenge the reliability of water supplies. - Changing patterns in precipitation, ie. heavy precipitation in concentrated amounts of time and longer dry spells - Droughts will intensify, and are affecting water supplies - Increased risk of flooding, effects people and communities especially in underdeveloped areas - Groundwater Availability
   4. CO2 Emissions/Increasing Mobility

      Annotations:

      • With the increasing global population and especially that in developing countries, more people are driving in cars and flying in planes. Generally, our world is becoming increasingly mobile. Cars and planes require a lot of fuel/energy and thus water to power them. Not only do they contribute to the increasing pressure on the limited water resources in our world, but also they pollute it. The Co2 emissions of cars and planes is very high and depletes the clean water that is available.
   5. Eutrophication

      Annotations:

      • Water eutrophication is usually caused by an increased amount of nutrients (usually different forms of Nitrogen and Phosphorus) that leads to an algae bloom. The algae blocks sunlight so the resources below the algae die, and the algae use the remaining resources. However, due to the blocked sunlight, no more resources can be brought in, and thus the algae also dies. The water that had the eutrophication becomes a dead zone, as almost nothing can live in it. Water eutrophication has become more severe due to "increased discharge of domestic wastes and non-point pollution from agricultural practices and urban development" (ncbi). Once a body of water has been eutrophicated, it will "lose its primary functions and subsequently influence sustainable development of economy and society".
2. Social

   Annotations:

   • Social factors such as religion, education, poverty, and urbanization function as explanations of some of the other subcategories. Religion, for example, is one reason why people's diets change, and thus the agriculture industry is different. Their less meat heavy diet will require less water. Urbanization is typically an outcome of population growth. Highly concentrated populations use more water in a given area, and thus rely more heavily on the water resources (as explained in the "urbanization" tab). 
   1. Poverty

      Annotations:

      • Impoverished communities tend to put less stress on water resources. They tend to be greatly lacking in water infrastructure, and they have limited access to clean water. This is a huge cause of disease in many poor areas. These poverty stricken communities use much less water per person than do people in wealthy areas. This lack of fair distribution is a source of a lot of political tension. It raises the question of if clean water is a basic human right. Politics are called into play here as many poverty stricken communities plead for a redistribution of water resources. As these impoverished communities gain wealth and water infrastructure, the distribution of water resources will become even more complicated because there will be an increase of water use without the means to do so.  
   2. Education

      Annotations:

      • As education becomes more widespread, there will be an increase in wealth. With wealth, many people change their lifestyles to be more demanding on most resources. Global trade will increase, industry will increase, people's diets will become more meat heavy, infrastructure will change, etc. All of these changes will put more pressure on water resources. On the other hand, however, more education could lead to better political distribution on water resources, more savvy inventions to save the environment, and people who make more conscious decisions about their water use. 
   3. Religion

      Annotations:

      • People's religious values, such as with diet, etc., can have an effect on water resources.  In the Hindu tradition, for example, it is forbidden to consume cow meat. In Judaism, under Kosher law, one cannot mix milk and meat during meals. Both of these are examples of diet constraints that would reduce meat consumption, and thus would decrease a person's virtual water footprint. While many people follows these rules simply because their religious tradition asks them to do so, many religious thinkers suggest that these rules were put into place by people thinking about the environment and health factors at the time of creation. Who would have thought that maybe religion could have positive environmental affects?! Another interesting example of water as it is connected to religion is in Hinduism where the Ganges river is believed to be a Goddess, and this leads to a lot of human interaction with the river. The river is therefore incredibly polluted. 
   4. Urbanization/Migration

      Annotations:

      • Urbanization/migration affects water resources through changes in landscape. People may be forced to migrate by deforestation, desertification, drought or lack of arable land. This functions as a cycle: people are forced to move, especially into cities, due to shortage of water or lack of suitable farmland, and this urbanization puts even more pressure onto water resources (rand). Urbanization has increased greatly recently. Density of population in cities concentrates water demand which depletes water supply and disrupts ecosystems, urban areas create more concentrated waste that can effect groundwater.
3. Demographic

   Annotations:

   • A country's demographic largely depends on water. Water affects the population's diet, fertility rate, infrastructure, and populations growth significantly. Water resources need to be balanced out properly. A country's demographic is largely based on its economic and political side. This is no different with water, as both are largest forces in driving a change for a country. While environment effects and social change are dependent on a country's demographic.
   1. Fertility Rate

      Annotations:

      • Usually as population increases, society is tasked with finding more efficient ways to use water. However at the point of inflection the population stops increasing at such a rapid rate and begins to flat line. The fertility rate starts to decrease as children become less and less beneficial and more expensive. A good example of this would be Iran, in 1960 the Iranian fertility rate was at almost 7 children per women and only had around 35% of its population living in urban areas. Fast forward 50 years and in 2011 the fertility rate was just below 2 children per women and the percentage of the population living in urban areas doubled to almost 70%. Also, developing countries tend to have higher fertility rates, because, as mentioned above, children are still economically beneficial. These countries usually have less access to clean global water resources. Thus, here lies the water allocation paradox.
   2. Diet Change

      Annotations:

      • More developed countries frequently have more meat heavy diets simply because they can afford it. While countries in less developed areas of the world generally have more fruit and vegetable based diets. Meat heavy diets require more water in production. As countries gain wealth, or become more developed, as is the general trend we are seeing, they tend to adopt more meat heavy diets. Thus, they will require even more water resources that we may not be able to afford.
   3. Changes to water use in infrastructure

      Annotations:

      • Commonly when infrastructure increases water used for energy creation (dams), water availability (reservoir), and percentage of usable water (sewage plants/ treatment plants) is also increased. Generally, the way water is used also changes. Different industries of water change the way they produce objects and products. As our water resources become more limited, we will also have to change infrastructure to account for this. Many smart companies are already starting to advertise their water-friendly habits. An example of this is Levi's jeans. 
   4. Population Growth

      Annotations:

      • Population growth largely depends on fertility rate and water. Fertility rate generally determines population growth however, life expectancy and standards of living also play a large part. Generally, as improved water reousrce becomes more available life expectancy usually increases. When life expectancy increases population growth frequently decreases as it becomes more and more expensive; as well as more and more unnecessary to have them.
4. Economic

   Annotations:

   • The economics of a country greatly influences its water use. Developed countries often use water more efficiently; this is especially true with respect to industry. However, because they have more economic activity, they use "more water per capita to run industry, grow food, produce electricity, and process waste" (rand). Their populations (demographics and social standards) often demand more water per person due to their lifestyles. As developing countries gain more wealth and industry, the social, demographic and environmental stress on water resources will presumably increase, unless we are able to develop new infrastructure or politics that will better distribute the available water resources. 
   1. Trade/Global Trade in Virtual Water

      Annotations:

      • Virtual water refers to indirect water use that in everyday life we might not remember we are using. Products such as clothes, coffee or iPhones at some point required water in their making. An item that you are using right now may have been produced in a far away place, such as Honduras.Thus, the water used came from Honduras, and the product required a lot of water to transport it globally. As countries develop and demand more products such as those listed above, and trade between countries becomes even more global, we will rely more on water resources to produce and transport our material goods.
   2. Industrial

      Annotations:

      • Water is very frequently used for industrial resources. Water is an integeral process in heating and cooling. A good example would be on the movie Watermark it shows the water usage for tanning some leather. Thus usually places that have a large amount of industry a large amount of water probably will be used and needs to be treated.
      1. Agriculture

         Annotations:

         • Farming is one of the largest if not the largest use of water. Due to the high need of water in order to keep crops alive water can be brought in different ways. aquifers,wells, resivoirs, dams, canals, and other irrigation tactics can be used to insure that water is available to farmers in case of a drought.
5. Political

   Annotations:

   • Politics are crucial to the future of water resources on a global and local scale. We must account for all demographic factors, social factors, economic development, and distribution (as mentioned in the other categories), by way of political policies. Policies must address the need to "reduce demand and augment supply...[and] revamp...governance of many water systems" (rand). 
   1. Water Allocations to Developed and Developing Countries

      Annotations:

      • In order to draw in large amounts of water, Water Allocation permits must be acquired. In New Jersey, in order to draw large amounts of water a permit is required. Generally in developing countries there is usually less water available than in countries that are more developed. According to gapminder, a developed country like Canada has almost 100% improved water availability and has a GDP/ capita around 40,000$; meanwhile in a country like Somalia it has only 30% improved water availability and a GDP per capita only at 600$. 
   2. Who does the water belong to?

      Annotations:

      • So presently, India and Pakistan are locked in the Indus Waters Treaty. This is because on the Indus River that passes through India before it reaches Pakistan. Thus when India dams the Indus as much as it is planning on doing and is Pakistan loses water