Sustainable Water Supply (WJEC GCSE Chemistry)

• The demand for water has increased over the last 100 years due to an increasing population and a greater need for it in agriculture and industry 
• Climate change could also result in water shortages all over the world, including the UK which would cause the cost of water to increase
• As a result we need a sustainable water supply 

Graph to show the global demand for water 

• 

The global demand for water has increased 

• Ways people can reduce their water consumption are:
  • take showers instead of baths 
  • use dishwashers instead of washing by hand and ensure they are full 
  • water plants with leftover bath or sink water 
  • make sure taps are turned off when not in use
  • insulate pipes 
  • use a water meter to monitor water use
• How we abstract and distribute water also needs to be considered to ensure this is also sustainable 
• Abstracting water involves obtaining water from natural sources 
  • The ways we do this are:
    • collecting rainwater 
    • building dams and reservoirs 
    • desalination (removing salt from seawater)
    • collecting water from rivers and lakes 
    • pumping water from underground
  • Ensuring a sustainable water supply will help reduce the environmental impact of abstracting water
    
    • Damns and reservoirs can flood land and destroy habitats 
• Distributing water involves taking the water from where it has been abstracted to its destination 
  • Sometimes this can be many miles away 
  • Water is distributed through pipes to areas that need it for drinking water, growing crops and water for sanitation
• Ensuring we have a sustainable water supply will help reduce the environmental impact of abstracting, distributing and treating water 
  • Damns and reservoirs can flood and damage habitats 
  • Pipes to distribute water are unsightly and are very expensive 
  • Treatment plants containing sewage can smell and are a hazard to human health 

Image taken from Wikipedia 

The Clywedog reservoir in Wales