Water Conservation

The amount of water used every year on the planet Earth is estimated to be more than 1000 times the amount of minerals and non-minerals we produce each year. The use in the United States is so great that by the year 2020 our rate of use will exceed 113% of the entire surface water volume.

There are many different ways to discuss water use. There is in-stream use and off-stream use. In-stream use is where the water is used in place. Examples of in-stream use include fisheries, hydroelectric generation, navigation and recreation. In these situations, water never leaves the water body.

Off-stream use is defined as water that is removed from a body of water and either returned immediately (like a cooling water) or at some later time (like irrigation water or water you drink). Water that is returned at a later time is called consumptive use. Eighty percent of consumptive use of water is for irrigation of agricultural crops. Clearly there is a problem developing with water usage and one solution is to conserve water.

• Name as many ways as you can that you can personally use to conserve your use of water.
• How could you reduce water consumption and still maintain current agricultural production?
• Develop the key components of a water management plan for a modern farm.
• Develop the key components of a water management plan for a modern city.

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© 2004, Arthur L. Buikema, Jr. All rights reserved.