The problem of fresh water in the world. Which countries are experiencing a shortage of fresh water?

The total volume of water on Earth is approximately 1400 million cubic meters. km, of which only 2.5%, that is, about 35 million cubic meters. km, accounts for fresh water. Most of the fresh water reserves are concentrated in the multi-year ice and snow of Antarctica and Greenland, as well as in deep aquifers. The main sources of water consumed by humans are lakes, rivers, soil moisture and relatively shallow groundwater reservoirs. The operational part of these resources is only about 200 thousand cubic meters. km - less than 1% of all fresh water reserves and only 0.01% of all water on Earth - and a significant share of them is located far from populated areas, which further aggravates the problems of water consumption.

In terms of the total volume of fresh water resources, Russia occupies a leading position among European countries. According to the UN, by 2025, Russia, together with Scandinavia, South America and Canada, will remain the regions most supplied with fresh water, more than 20 thousand cubic meters. m/year per capita.

According to the World Resources Institute over the past year, the most water-insecure countries in the world were 13 states, including 4 republics of the former USSR - Turkmenistan, Moldova, Uzbekistan and Azerbaijan.

Countries with up to 1 thousand cubic meters. m of fresh water on average per capita: Egypt - 30 cubic meters. m per person; Israel - 150; Turkmenistan - 206; Moldova - 236; Pakistan - 350; Algeria - 440; Hungary - 594; Uzbekistan - 625; Netherlands - 676; Bangladesh - 761; Morocco - 963; Azerbaijan - 972; South Africa - 982.

The material was prepared based on information from open sources

In the 20th century The world's population has tripled. During the same period, fresh water consumption increased seven times, including 13 times for municipal drinking needs. With this increase in consumption, water resources have become severely scarce in a number of regions of the world. According to the World Health Organization, more than two billion people in the world today suffer from a lack of drinking water. In the next 20 years, taking into account current trends in population growth and the world economy, we should expect an increase in the need for fresh water by at least 100 km 3 per year.

The problem of fresh water shortage is becoming increasingly urgent for many regions of the world. Its exacerbation is associated with population growth, climate change and a number of other reasons. However, for many places on the globe this problem is not new and is caused by climatic features, namely low rainfall. Dry areas include those areas that receive less than 400 mm of precipitation per year. With such values ​​it is impossible to conduct agriculture without additional sources of water. The driest regions (extra-arid), where less than 100 mm of precipitation falls per year, account for 34% of the earth's surface (excluding Antarctica). Arid regions (100-200 mm of precipitation per year) account for 15% of the land surface. The semiarid regions occupy the same amount (200-400 mm of precipitation per year).

Arid lands are mainly located in developing countries, where water consumption standards differ from industrial countries. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in developing countries, only 25% of the rural population has reasonable access (i.e., without requiring significant walking) to a source of water supply. The territories of 36 countries of the world include arid areas, and the territories of 11 countries are 100% arid areas (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Djibouti, etc.). In Russia, areas experiencing a shortage of fresh water include Kalmykia, and from neighboring countries - Crimea, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan.

Currently, water hunger is felt even in places where it did not exist before. Drought reigns on 70% of all cultivated land. Moreover, in untouched steppes the moisture content in the soil is 1.5 - 3 times higher than in arable land. The cause of water starvation is not a lack of fresh water, but a disruption of the chain connecting water to the soil.

Human activity is increasingly influencing changes in the regime of land waters, as a result of which the consumption of water for evaporation noticeably increases in the process of developing irrigation and increasing the area of ​​reservoirs. A decrease in atmospheric precipitation and river runoff with an increase in evaporation of inland areas of land led to a decrease in their overall moisture content.

Human activity is associated with changes in the exchange of groundwater, their replenishment through the creation of artificial reservoirs and reduction as a result of intensive pumping. Up to 20 thousand km 3 of groundwater is extracted annually. Currently, under the influence of anthropogenic activities, more than 20% of the continents' territory has been radically transformed (overgrazing of livestock, deforestation, etc.), which leads to changes in the water regime.

Such environmental violations could not but affect the global process of water consumption. Due to the decrease in the increase in agricultural water consumption, there was a decrease in the overall increase in global water consumption.

This has already led to difficulties in water supply in several regions of the Earth. Suffice it to say that since the mid-1990s, the Yellow River (China), due to the fact that it is being diverted throughout its entire course for irrigation, does not flow into the Yellow Sea 260 days a year. Similar difficulties with water supply are observed in India, Pakistan, North Africa and other Mediterranean countries, the Arabian Peninsula, Mexico and a number of countries in Central, South and North America, in particular in the USA and Australia.

The increase in water consumption has been seriously affected by the increase in urbanization. The daily water consumption for personal needs of a resident of a modern well-maintained city is 100-400 liters. At the same time, in many places around the world this figure drops to 20-30 liters. Almost a billion people on our planet are not provided with safe drinking water, although its annual consumption is constantly growing

Natural sources of water supply are surface waters of rivers and lakes. However, in many areas of the world, and not just in developing countries, water withdrawals have already reached or exceeded acceptable levels. For example, in the southwestern United States, water consumption is equal to the average annual river flow.

Another natural source of water supply in arid areas is groundwater. Large reserves of groundwater are available in Saudi Arabia in the eastern part of the Al-Hasa desert, where wells produce 200-700 l/s from a depth of 200-1000 m. Renewable reserves of groundwater are available in Asia. However, in many places this source of water supply is absent, or the water is mineralized. Thus, natural sources of fresh water cannot satisfy the ever-increasing demand for it. Therefore, to solve this problem it is necessary to look for other, more effective ways.

Desalination of sea water or salt water from underground sources. The production of fresh water in the world is growing continuously and at a high rate. So, if in 1960 desalination amounted to 0.09 km 3, then in 1985 they received 7.5 km 3. At the same time, a forecast was made for 2000 - 40 km 3, which was not destined to come true. In fact, they were able to reach a value of 15.3 km3. The distribution of the amount of water received across regions is uneven. The Middle East accounts for 60%, North America - 13%, Europe - 10%, Africa - 7%, and the rest of the world - 10%. The CIS countries account for only 0.6% of the total desalinated water production in the world. shortage fresh water pollution

Despite the significant differences between these desalination methods, they have a number of common properties. Firstly, to produce fresh water they use sea water or slightly saline artesian water, while for the distillation method and reverse osmosis water is required in large quantities, because in the first case it is used to cool the condenser, and in the second to create a water flow along the membranes in order to prevent them from becoming dirty.

The use of sea water means the need to place them near a body of water, because the operation of large installations far from a reservoir leads to an increase in the cost of water, and the operation of installations for individual use is practically impossible. In addition, the need to locate desalination plants near a reservoir is due to the fact that concentrated brine is discharged into it during desalination. It should be noted that the discharge of brine has an adverse effect on the environment, since a large amount of harmful substances enters the reservoir in concentrated form, for example, chemical additives that are added to the water to reduce the formation of scale during distillation, and the discharge also leads to an increase in salinity in the area .

The trend of rising fuel prices is especially negative for the development of seawater desalination, because The cost of produced water is significantly influenced by energy costs, amounting to 60% of its value.

One cubic meter of fresh water in temperate latitudes cost 15-32 cents depending on the location, and for some coastal industrial enterprises it cost about $2.2 or more, especially in the case of chemical purification of tap water or penalties for exceeding water limits. Desalination is in an economically advantageous position compared to supplying fresh water over a distance of 10-300 km for water supply to small settlements and individual recreational facilities.

Currently, the main source of fresh water continues to be water from rivers, lakes, artesian wells and desalination of sea water. At the same time, if there are 1.2 thousand km 3 in all river channels, then the amount of water present in the atmosphere at any given moment is 14 thousand km 3. Every year, 577 thousand km 3 evaporates from the surface of land and ocean and the same amount then falls in the form of precipitation. Water in the atmosphere is renewed 45 times during the year.

Moisture is distributed unevenly along the height, half of all water vapor falls on the lower, one and a half kilometer layer of the atmosphere, over 99% - on the entire troposphere. At the earth's surface, the global average absolute humidity is 11 g/m 3 . Many of the countries in the hot zone suffer from a lack of fresh water, although its content in the atmosphere is significant. For example, in Djibouti there is practically no rain throughout the year, while absolute humidity in the ground layer of air ranges from 18 to 24 g/m3. In the deserts of the Arabian Peninsula and in the Sahara, over each square of surface with a side of 10 km per day, the same amount of water flows as would be contained in a lake with an area of ​​1 km2 and a depth of 50 m. To take this water, you only need to open the symbolic “tap”

The fresh water resource in the atmosphere is constantly renewed, the quality of condensate for most areas of our planet is very high: it contains two to three orders of magnitude less toxic metals (compared to the requirements of sanitary services), there are practically no microorganisms, it is well aerated. As economic estimates show, water from the atmosphere can become the cheapest of all that can be obtained by other means.

For the process of condensation of water from atmospheric air, among other things, geographical conditions must be taken into account. Of these, the most important are the following:

• 1. Global air circulation. For condensation of water from atmospheric air, stable winds in one direction are most acceptable. This situation is possible where air circulates around an area of ​​high pressure, such as in the southeastern Pacific Ocean. This allows for steady winds to exist throughout the dry summer months, such as on the southwest coast of northern Chile and along the coast of Peru. A similar situation occurs on the southwest coast of Africa.
• 2. Mountain areas. To increase the likelihood of water condensing from the atmosphere, it is necessary for mountains to serve as a barrier to saturated, humid air. On a continental scale, these are, for example, the Andes in South America. At the micro level, there are isolated hills that allow moist air to accumulate there. In the case of a mountain coast, it is important that the mountains are approximately perpendicular to the direction of the wind coming from the ocean. This expands the ability to choose places suitable for condensation.
• 3. Altitude above sea level. The thickness of a stratus or stratocumulus cloud varies with altitude. The upper part of the cloud is the most saturated. This area has the most acceptable water content. In various parts of the world, such a “working” area for the possible production of condensation water is located at an altitude of 400 to 1500 m above sea level.
• 4. Distance from the coast. The movement of streams of supersaturated sea air can reach inland at a distance of 5 km, but it is possible up to 25 km. As sea air flows deeper into the continent, there is a good chance that it will mix with land air and dissipate. However, there are many areas in the interior of the continents where this does not happen: the Atacama Desert in South America, the Namib Desert in South Africa. In addition, breeze circulation is especially important for the condensation process in coastal areas. This is largely why coastal areas are the most suitable places for obtaining condensation water from atmospheric air.

Experiments on obtaining water using this method are being carried out in many areas of the world. In 47 locations in 22 countries on 5 continents, water collection using this method has been experimentally verified. The cost of producing water using this method depends on many factors, in particular the location of the installation. It is estimated that when operating the installation in the experimental area, the cost will be 1 dollar per m 3, and this includes the cost of manufacturing the collectors. The subsidized cost of water delivered to a given area is $8 per m 3 .

Experiments on the condensation of water from the atmosphere are also being carried out in our country, in particular, in the laboratory of renewable energy sources of the Faculty of Geography of Moscow State University, where scientific research work in this area has been carried out since 1996.

In our opinion, forced condensation of water from the air in the ground layer could eventually solve the problem of water supply in many regions suffering from a shortage of fresh water. The use of condensing plants, for example, in developing countries will save energy, which is required when desalinating seawater.

FRESH WATER SHORTAGE AS ONE OF HUMANITY’S GLOBAL PROBLEMS

Adaeva Amina Khamidovna

3rd year student, Department of Ecology and Environmental Management, Chechen State University, Russian Federation, Grozny

E- mail: aminka1905@ gmail. com

Bankurova Raisa Umarovna

scientific supervisor, senior lecturer of the Department of Ecology and Environmental Management, Chechen State University, Russian Federation, Grozny

Today, humanity has become acutely aware of all past and present mistakes associated with improper treatment of nature. This is due to the fact that our century has become one of the global environmental problems - an acute shortage of fresh water. Fresh water is water that contains minimal amounts of salt. Of the total mass of the hydrosphere, which is approximately 98%, fresh water accounts for only 2%. Of this 2%, approximately 0.66% is available to humans. The rest of the fresh water comes from the glaciers of the Arctic and Antarctica and the snowy tops of the mountains.

Fresh water is the source of life for humans. Agricultural lands are irrigated using fresh water. Agricultural lands, in turn, are a source of food for humans. What will happen if there is no water suitable for drinking? There will be no man! After all, a person can live without water for only 3-4 days (depending on the body). Man is designed in such a way that he consists of 80-85% water. And therefore, water for humans is one of the sources of life. But there is also a positive side to this problem. There will be fresh water as long as our planet exists in the Universe. Why? Because the main source of fresh water is the World Ocean. Natural desalination of water occurs. During the water cycle on earth, water from the ocean evaporates due to temperature. The water turns into steam and rises, but the salt remains in the ocean, since salt is heavier than steam. And after such a cycle, the water comes to the earth already desalinated.

Freshwater depletion has become a global environmental problem as it affects the entire world. And it began to be felt more and more strongly with the demographic explosion. That is, the population, as Thomas Malthus said, is growing exponentially. And, accordingly, nature cannot cope with so many people.

Fresh water shortage is one of the main problems faced by humanity in the 21st century.

Freshwater shortages are caused by both natural and anthropogenic factors. Natural ones include global climate change, which leads to desertification and a decrease in water availability. The main anthropogenic factor is the growth of the Earth's population. But this is not the whole problem, but the trouble is that people are becoming richer and their needs are growing, and accordingly, the demand for water is increasing, because with the growth of industrial production, the impact on all natural resources, including water, is also increasing .

Currently, the problem of water pollution is very pressing. Industrial emissions, wastewater, and the runoff of fertilizers and pesticides from fields all significantly reduce freshwater supplies.

Lack of fresh water leads to various diseases, famine and armed conflicts. In a word, there will be no peace on earth. Therefore, in order to avoid such disastrous consequences, the authorities of all countries must formulate and implement specific plans for the implementation of political, economic and technological measures to provide the population with water in the present and future.

There are many scientific theories about fresh water depletion:

1. irrigation of farmland;

2. use of water at various enterprises (ferrous and non-ferrous metallurgy, pulp and paper mills, nuclear power plants, thermal power plants, etc.);

3. municipal water consumption.

The shortage of fresh water is already felt throughout the world. However, there are places on Earth where such an environmental problem as fresh water shortage is not new. This is due precisely to climatic features, i.e., to the least amount of precipitation. The category of arid regions includes those where the annual precipitation is less than 400 mm.

If you look at the map “Environmental Problems of the World”, you can see that fresh water shortage is the main problem for African countries (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, etc.). It is in these countries that the problem of fresh water shortage is natural. Since these areas belong to very dry areas, i.e. the annual precipitation does not exceed 100 mm. In Russia, Kalmykia is considered an area experiencing a shortage of fresh water. And to neighboring countries - Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan.

Humanity is trying to fight this problem in different ways. Different countries around the world have their own approaches and ways to solve the problem, which are primarily determined by the water resource potential of each country. Firstly, it is the export of water to countries in need, i.e. an agreement is concluded between certain countries. An agreement is drawn up for a certain period, with the aim of supplying fresh water to this country for a certain fee. Secondly, sea water or salt water from underground sources is desalinated. Thirdly, saving water consumption. For example, the law that was adopted in 1992 by the American Congress “On a 70% reduction in the volume of water for domestic needs.” Fourthly, the creation of artificial reservoirs. In the future, many countries are thinking about towing glaciers to their territories with further melting of the ice to obtain fresh water.

Let's look at the problem of fresh water depletion using our country as an example.

Our country is the most endowed with water resources, and the main “reservoir” of fresh water is Lake Baikal, which is experiencing enormous anthropogenic pressure. Lake Baikal is the deepest lake on the planet. Its depth is 1642 m. The length of this lake is 620 km. Baikal is a lake of tectonic origin. Lake Baikal is located in the center of Asia, on the border of the Irkutsk region and the Republic of Buryatia. The main property of the water in Lake Baikal is that it contains few dissolved and suspended minerals. A lot of oxygen and a very small amount of organic impurities.

Baikal is a unique, richest supply of fresh water. It contains about 20% of the total mass of fresh water on the planet. In a word, the property of the country and the world as a whole. But, unfortunately, this unique natural object is also endangered. Man's unreasonable use of natural resources leads to such disastrous consequences. For example, emissions into the atmosphere, wastewater, the location of various industrial enterprises on the shore of the lake, such as the Baikal Pulp and Paper Mill (BPPM), the Selenga Pulp and Cardboard Mill, a federal highway, all this negatively affects the ecosystem of Lake Baikal. But this lake is unique not only because it contains such an amount of fresh water, but also because the lake is saturated with unique flora and fauna.

The government is currently taking measures to protect water resources, but until humanity realizes the seriousness of this problem, the depletion and pollution of fresh water will continue, remaining a serious global problem.

It is the responsibility of all humanity to take care of the natural environment. The task of the current generation is to develop and implement new ways of managing the environment. This is to ensure that not only does not have a negative impact on nature, but also that people help it. The duty of every modern person is to be environmentally literate. You just need to realize that “nature is our home,” and taking care of it is our direct responsibility. I would like every person to be properly educated environmentally. Environmental education and upbringing must begin from a child’s early years. Teach him and carry out practical work directly addressing issues such as fresh water depletion, global climate change, desertification, etc. Create an environmental play scheme for children to learn the material with joy. Also, conduct educational trainings for the entire population. If each country begins to minimize the negative impact on the natural environment, then the risk of an environmental disaster in the world will be reduced.

Bibliography:

1. UN report on the state of the world's water resources. Review (World Water Resources Assessment Program) M., 2003.
2. Danilov-Danilyan V.I. The global problem of fresh water shortage. // Century of Globalization, - No. 1-2008. - P. 45-56.
3. Internet-

The lack of fresh water is becoming an increasingly hot issue for our civilization every year.

In this material we will look at the possible consequences of this global problem. Let us immediately note that the problem of the lack of clean drinking water applies not only to the arid regions of our planet, it concerns all countries where ineffective “unreasonable” use of water resources is carried out. People feel a lack of fresh water on all continents, without exception.

Water consumption by humanity is growing inexorably and in the 20th century reached 5,000 km 3 per year, while it must be taken into account that the rate of its pollution is also growing. Every year, 2,800,000,000 people face a shortage of fresh water within 1 month. Currently, about 700,000,000 people live in regions with water resources below the minimum level. Moreover, the trend is that by 2025 this figure will increase to 3,000,000,000 people. An interesting fact is that during the period when the population tripled, water consumption increased approximately 17 times.

The most problematic regions are currently considered to be the Middle East and Africa, and in the near future this problem may become radically acute in countries such as India and China.

Causes of fresh water shortage

• Global changes in the Earth's climate.
• Weather changes are a consequence of global warming.
• An increase in the number of floods and droughts is a consequence of weather changes.
• Aggressive pollution of water resources as a result of human household and economic activities.
• Growing demand for fresh water due to the growth of the world's population.
• Irrational use of water by humans.

Lack of fresh water - possible consequences

A global shortage of fresh water, with almost 100% probability, will lead to the following consequences:

• the development of industries that consume large amounts of fresh water will slow down or completely stop;
• the quality of life as such will decrease;
• it is obvious that the lack of clean fresh water will cause a significant blow to agriculture (currently 3/4 of all water consumed by humanity is in agriculture);
• experts have calculated that in countries that constantly experience a lack of water, a decrease in GDP by 6% is possible;
• lack of clean drinking water can cause interregional political and military conflicts;
• the consequence of a lack of clean drinking water will inexorably lead to an increase in the number of various diseases and epidemics;
• due to a lack of clean drinking water, a noticeable decrease in the birth rate and population decline is possible;

What to do …

What to do!? Much has been written and said about this, but we will once again list the most important, from our point of view, measures that humanity can take today:

• Restoration and protection of the natural eco-system of the planet;
• High-quality collection and treatment of wastewater;
• High-quality collection and treatment of agricultural waste;
• Introduction of water-saving technologies into agriculture;
• Development and implementation of water-saving technologies in industry and household appliances;
• Saving water in households;
• Use of water in industry and agriculture in a closed cycle;

The above list is only a small fraction of all possible conservation actions

Scientists were able to find out that on earth currently more than 97.5% of all water reserves are in the seas and oceans. This fact is confirmed by the shortage of fresh water, which amounts to only 2.5% of the world's reserves.

Relevance of the problem

More than half of the unsalted water is “frozen” in the polar caps and mountain glaciers. In addition, about 24% is located in groundwater. Analyzing this situation, we can conclude that there is a serious shortage of fresh water on our planet.

Lakes and rivers, which contain no more than 0.01% of the world's water reserves, can be considered as an accessible and inexpensive source.

Since it is of particular importance for the life of living beings, we can say with confidence that moisture is the precious treasure of the Earth.

Cycle in nature

Water is in constant movement. After evaporation from the surface of water bodies, it accumulates in the atmosphere. At the moment when the vapor concentration reaches its maximum, a transition to a liquid or solid state occurs, precipitation replenishes the reserves of lakes and rivers.

The total amount of moisture on our planet remains unchanged, it simply passes from one state of aggregation to another.

Of the total precipitation, only 80% ends up directly in the ocean. What happens to the remaining 20 percent that falls on land? With their help, people replenish water sources.

It turns out that the moisture that remains on land has the opportunity to enter lakes (rivers) and flow into reservoirs. In addition, it can seep into the soil and replenish groundwater sources.

Fresh water shortage occurs due to a disruption in the connection between groundwater and Both sources have certain advantages and disadvantages.

Surface sources

The problem of fresh water shortage is associated with geological and climatic factors. From a climatic point of view, the frequency and amount of precipitation, as well as the ecological state in the region, are important. Precipitation brings a certain amount of insoluble particles: plant pollen, volcanic dust, fungal spores, bacteria, and various microorganisms.

Industrial emissions

The problem of fresh water scarcity partly arises due to the fact that the ocean contains a variety of salts. Sea moisture contains chlorine and sulfate anions, potassium, calcium, and magnesium cations. Industrial emissions also make their “contribution” to the atmosphere. They also contain sulfur and nitrogen oxides, which are the main cause of acid rain. Chemicals that are currently actively used in agriculture also have a negative impact on its quality.

Geological factors

These include the structure of river beds. If it is formed by limestone rocks, then the water is hard and clear. If the bed base is granite, then the water is soft. Turbidity is given to it by suspended particles of inorganic and organic origin.

Ground sources

Solving fresh water shortages is a serious problem that deserves separate study and consideration. For example, the issue can be partially resolved through groundwater. They are formed as a result of melt water seeping into the soil. It dissolves organic matter in the soil and is saturated with molecular oxygen. Clay, sand, and calcareous layers are located deeper. Organic compounds are filtered in them, the water is saturated with microelements and inorganic salts.

The quality of ground sources is influenced by several factors:

• the quality of rain moisture is determined by acidity and salt saturation;
• state of the liquid in the underwater tank;
• the specificity of the layers through which it passes;
• geological nature of the aquifer.

The reasons for the shortage of fresh water can also be explained by the fact that groundwater contains magnesium, calcium, iron, sodium, as well as a small amount of manganese cations. They form salts together with bicarbonates, carbonates, chlorides, and sulfates.

In the “oldest” ground springs, the concentration of salts is so high that they have a salty taste. The shortage of fresh water on the planet forces us to look for technologies for purifying groundwater sources. Life-giving moisture of high quality is located in deep limestone layers, but this is an expensive pleasure.

Meaning of water

Why should a person look for ways to solve fresh water shortages? The reason is that this liquid is rightly called the basis of life on Earth. By itself, it has no nutritional value, but without it the existence of living organisms is impossible.

In plants there is up to 90% water, and in the body of an adult it is about 65%. In individual organs, its amount differs significantly:

• in bones up to 22%;
• in the brain - 75%;
• in the blood up to 92%;
• in muscles 75%.

Discussing how the problem of fresh water shortage is solved, we note that it is an excellent solvent for many chemical compounds. It can be considered the environment in which life processes take place.

Main functions

It humidifies the air during breathing and helps regulate body temperature. It is she who delivers oxygen and nutritional components to different cells of the human body, protects vital organs, and removes waste and toxins from the body.

For the existence of a living organism, a constant and certain water content is important. When its quantity or salt composition changes, a serious disruption occurs in the processes of food absorption and hematopoiesis. Without fresh water there is no regulation of heat exchange with the environment.

A person suffers seriously due to a decrease in fresh water; he can only spend a few days without it. A decrease in the amount of water in the body by 10-20% is a serious threat to life.

The shortage of fresh water leads to the need to reduce its consumption for technical needs. The result could be an outbreak of infectious diseases, which is why it is so important to develop new ways to desalinate seawater.

Taking into account the intensity of work, external factors, and cultural traditions, a person consumes from two to four liters of water per day. According to the World Health Organization, no more than 5% of drinking water can be considered acceptable for human consumption.

Global problem

Fresh water reserves on our planet can be considered as a single resource. In order to count on the long-term development of world reserves, a clear solution to global problems is required. The shortage of fresh water is especially relevant for regions that do not have adequate and stable sources of fresh water. Surface and underground sources are in a deplorable state.

The main problems that negatively affect the quality of water bodies (lakes and rivers) are associated with the following factors:

• insufficient treatment of domestic wastewater;
• weak control of industrial effluents;
• loss and destruction of watersheds;
• irrational placement of industrial enterprises;
• deforestation;
• uncontrolled agriculture.

The result is a disruption of the natural balance of the aquatic ecosystem, a threat to freshwater living resources appears, which causes a shortage of fresh water on earth.

Assessing the scope of the problem

It affects the condition of reservoirs, the presence of pesticides in water and the construction of dams, the creation of water management structures, and irrigation projects.

Erosion, deforestation, siltation, and desertification also have a negative impact on ecosystems. Such problems arise due to the public's lack of understanding of the seriousness of mismanagement of water resources. Human economic activity, organized to the detriment of nature, creates a shortage of fresh water: problems and solutions - a pressing issue that has forced humanity to reconsider its attitude towards aquatic ecosystems.

Ways to solve the problem

First of all, it is necessary to develop preventive measures that will avoid expensive measures for cleaning, restoration, and development of fresh water resources.

Water that comes from a well or municipal water supply network must be pre-treated so that it meets hygienic standards.

Freezing

One of the ways to obtain fresh water is to freeze sea water. It is this technique that is used in those regions where there is a serious lack of fresh water bodies. What are the main disadvantages of this technology? Freezing is carried out at low temperatures, which involves significant energy costs. Due to rising energy prices, this method of obtaining fresh water can hardly be considered economical and rational.

Important aspects of the problem

In order to solve the problem of lack of fresh water, scientists propose to carry out comprehensive wastewater treatment by constructing full-fledged treatment systems. The quality of water can only be assessed if the results of its bacteriological and chemical analysis are available.

What are the main problems with water used by consumers? It may contain insoluble mechanical particles, rust, and colloidal substances. They not only lead to rapid clogging of sewer and water pipes, but also negatively affect human health and provoke many infectious diseases.

Unpleasant taste, color, odor - all these are called organoleptic indicators that can affect the quality of drinking water. The sources of such problems can be some organic compounds, hydrogen sulfide, and residual chlorine.

To improve the quality of drinking fresh water, it is also important to assess its bacteriological contamination. The cause of such processes are various microbes or bacteria. Some of them can threaten human health, therefore, despite the availability of such drinking water, it should not be consumed.

Often, even the most harmless bacteria form organic products during their life. When they interact with chlorine and bromine, carcinogenic and toxic compounds are obtained.

Among the factors that lead to a shortage of fresh water are pollution of water bodies. It means a decrease in their economic importance and biosphere functions that occurs when harmful substances enter. For example, power plants and industrial plants discharge heated water into rivers and lakes. Such a process is accompanied by an increase in water temperature, a decrease in the amount of oxygen, an increase in the toxicity of impurities, and a violation of biological balance.

In many regions, the main sources of fresh water are groundwater, which was previously considered the cleanest. As a result of human economic activity, many of these sources are polluted. Unfortunately, the degree of contamination is often so high that underground water is unsuitable for drinking.

Conclusion

For various needs, humanity consumes huge amounts of fresh water. The main consumers are agriculture and industrial plants. Among the most water-intensive industries are steel, mining, chemical, pulp and paper, and petrochemical industries. More than half of all water used by industrial enterprises is used for their needs. If high-quality purification systems are not used that allow the repeated use of fresh water, then in a couple of years the shortage of fresh water will become a large-scale disaster.

Ecologists and chemists are conducting serious research work aimed at finding optimal ways to desalinate sea water. Currently, innovative methods of drinking water purification are already being used to reduce its losses.

In addition, special attention is paid to the installation of complete cleaning systems at industrial enterprises. Only with an integrated approach to all issues related to desalination and purification of sea water can we count on reducing the shortage of fresh water.