How much clean, drinkable water is left on Earth and what is being done to combat an eventual shortage?
In: Earth Science
Water is the earth’s infinitely renewable resource. Everything we use it for it returns to the water cycle in one state or another. We don’t use it up like fossil fuels.
What limits good clean available drinking water is the economics to pump, treat, transport it from a source to all that need it. The true marvel of our time is how many people in the world have been pulled out of extreme poverty and cities/country governments have enough capital to put infrastructure in place. Available drinking water is improving, not running out.
That’s not to say there are not severe proplems to work out. Jakarta is quickly sinking into the sea largely from too much groundwater usage. Again its economics, sources are available but its cheaper and more reliable to drill your own well and ignore regulations than count on the govt for water supply. We hae tons of regional issues but its not an overall consumption of water.
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