The state of the world's water : an altas of our most vital resource / Maggie Black
- Author:
- Black, Maggie, 1945-
- Published:
- Oxford : New Internationalist, 2016.
- Edition:
- Third edition.
- Physical Description:
- 128 pages : color illustrations ; 25 cm
- Contents:
- Machine generated contents note: pt. 1 A Finite Resource -- 1.Global Water -- The volume of water in the world never changes, but only 2.5% is fresh, and more than two-thirds of this is unavailable for human use -- 2.Water's Unequal Distribution -- The amount of water that falls as rain, filling lakes, rivers, streams and aquifers, remains constant. At present we are still using less than a third -- 3.Water Shortage -- The spectre of water shortage is less a global phenomenon than one threatening particular regions and localities -- 4.Rising Demand -- Around 4,000 cubic kilometres of fresh water are withdrawn every year -- equivalent to roughly 1,700 litres per person per day -- 5.Dwindling Supply -- About a fifth of water used comes from aquifers. Some are replenished, but many are non-renewable and are being irreversibly mined -- 6.Competition and Conflict -- As populations grow, and more water is extracted per person, there is increasing competition and conflict over the exploitation of river waters and aquifers -- 7.Environmental Security -- Aquatic ecosystems make a vital contribution to environmental security -- pt. 2 Water and Climate Change -- 8.Ice and snow melt -- Climate change is likely to affect river flow in many complex ways -- 9.Storms and Floods -- Life-threatening and destructive floods are becoming more frequent and affecting an increasing number of people -- 10.Droughts -- The world's drylands will become drier as a result of climate change -- 11.River Basin Stresses -- Seasonal changes in river flow and temperature of fresh water affect water quality -- pt. 3 Water for Living -- 12.Water for Drinking -- Everyone has access to a source of drinking water but in an increasingly crowded world most natural sources are contaminated -- 13.Water for Food -- All food production depends on water, so water stress leads to stress on the global and family food basket -- 14.Water for Sanitation -- Many lower-cost sanitation systems in the developing world use no water or very little -- 15.Water in the City -- The increasing number of people living in towns and cities is exerting huge pressure on municipal infrastructure and services -- 16.Water at Home -- There are huge discrepancies in the amount of water people use in their home, depending on lifestyle and availability -- 17.Water and Disease -- Water's critical role in hygiene and sanitation, and in the spread of diarrhoeal disease, confers on it a central place in public health -- pt. 4 Water for Economic Production -- 18.Water Footprint -- Industrialized lifestyles involve the consumption of large amounts of "virtual" water embedded in foodstuffs and in manufactured items -- 19.Water for Irrigation -- Around two-thirds of water withdrawals are for irrigation, which supports a fifth of the world's cropland -- 20.Water for Fisheries -- Fish make a major contribution to the global food supply and are increasingly farmed as a cash crop -- 21.Water for Industry -- Just over 20 per cent of all freshwater withdrawals are for industry -- 22.Water for Energy -- Water plays a vital role in the generation of electricity -- 23.Transport and Leisure -- Water is integral to many productive and cultural activities not easily traceable in economic statistics -- 24.Water for Sale -- The sale of water is an inevitable part of any organized delivery system, but in general the wealthy pay less than the poor -- pt. 5 Damaged Water -- 25.Dammed Rivers -- Nearly 60 per cent of major rivers are impeded by large dams -- 26.Dispossession by Water -- Rivers need to be managed so as to sustain the lives of those dependent on them -- 27.Water Pollutants -- Globally, 2 million tons of sewage, industrial and agricultural waste are discharged into the world's waterways every year -- 28.Water Pollution -- Rapid urbanization and accelerating industrialization are causing increased water pollution and corresponding environmental threats -- 29.Damaged Waterways -- Industrialization is damaging the world's waterways -- 30.Threatened Ecologies -- Even subtle changes in quality, temperature or seasonal availability of fresh water can have a devastating effect on the living organisms that inhabit it -- pt. 6 Water for the Future -- 31.Technological Fixes -- Technological innovations and adaptations have a role in meeting the mounting threats to freshwater supplies -- 32.The Rising Price of Water -- Water is a vital resource to which everyone has a right, but it is also seen as a commodity for which a realistic price should be paid -- 33.Treaties and Obligations -- More than 260 river basins are shared between countries, and equitable use of their waters requires negotiation and agreement -- 34.Striving for Co-operation -- The spectre of growing competition between states over water has generated fighting talk, especially in retaliation against upstream behaviour -- 35.Managing the Future -- The real world water crisis is a crisis of water management -- pt. 7 Data Tables and Sources.
- Subject(s):
- Genre(s):
- ISBN:
- 9781780263731 (pbk.) and 1780263732 (pbk.)
- Note:
- Includes index.
- Source of Acquisition:
- Purchased with funds from the Paterno Libraries Endowment; 2016
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