Essential Resources: Water

• Can live without water for 3 days, food for 60 days and sleep for 7 days
• Water Sources

  • Rivers
  • Wells
  • Extracted from aquifers
  • Dams/reservoirs
  • Desalinisation
  • Glaciers/ice caps
• Climate change causes glaciers to melt (loss of freshwater)
• Drought reduces amount of available water
• Lack of education on how to preserve water (e.g. turn off tap when finished)
• Domestic use of water increases as the population increases
• Industrial use decreases as more products are made overseas
• Agricultural use increases as there are more people to feed
• Climate change is increasing temperatures so plants dry out quicker and need more water to retain moisture
• Average UK household consumes 155 litres of water per day
• Negatives to reservoirs

  • Loss of farmland
  • Populations may be forced to move
  • Dams may stop migration of species
  • Carbon emissions from pumping water to areas of water deficit
• Wellbeing


  The state of being comfortable, healthy or happy; also known as quality of life
• Water footprint


  Amount of water you use in your home, school or office throughout the day
• Water scarcity

  When there isn’t enough water to ensure the population of an area enjoys good health, livelihood and earnings
• Physical water scarcity

  When an area doesn’t have enough water due to natural/physical conditions (e.g. a dry climate)
• Climate change (droughts), pollution and acid rain contaminates the water (not fit for human consumption)
• Arid conditions

  Less rainfall leads to less water in rivers and lakes; groundwater stores take a long time to recharge
• Economic water scarcity

  Area has plenty of water but doesn’t have the money to build pipelines or a well to distribute the water
• Economic water scarcity is common in LICs
• Relief rainfall


  Rainfall that occurs on high land and mountainous areas
• Relief rainfall process

  1. Warm, moist air rises over high land

  2. Cools and condenses to form clouds

  3. Clouds release precipitation

  4. Air descends and warms, creating drier conditions
• Rain shadow

  An area with reduced rainfall because it is behind higher land
• Water transfer

  The distribution of water from areas of surplus to areas facing water deficit
• Water transfer example

  • Kielder Water scheme
• Reservoirs

  Man-made water sources that supply water to areas
• Eutrophication


  When nutrients wash into rivers causing an algal bloom to grow
• Eutrophication blocks out sunlight, making water biologically dead
• Kielder Water’s water supply to NE England is higher due to relief rainfall
• Kielder Water tackles NE England’s water deficit by storing rainwater and transferring it via pipes and canals
• Advantages of Kielder Water

  • £6 million raised through tourism
  • Flood prevention measure
  • Stores nearly 200,000 million litres of water
  • Produces huge volumes of timber
  • Potential for leisure activities
  • Potential for hydroelectric power
  • Includes 8 Sites of Special Scientific Interest
• Disadvantages of Kielder Water

  • 2700 acres of farmland lost
  • Clear water erosion
  • Dam cost over £167 million
  • Monoculture reduces biodiversity
  • Concrete dam prevents fish migration
  • 58 families displaced
• Kielder Water is a successful example of a water transfer scheme
• Kielder Water reduces water shortages and introduces new jobs and income for the local economy
• Kielder Water has a lack of concern for the nature surrounding it and problems caused by the dam
• In the UK, only 27% of water is classified as being of ‘good status’
• Causes of water pollution

  • Chemicals from farming
  • Rubbish dumping
  • Pollution from boats
  • Untreated waste from industries
  • Runoff from roads
  • Sewage containing bacteria
• Toxic waste can poison wildlife and contaminate drinking water
• Increased water temperature can lead to the death of wildlife and disrupt habitats
• Increased fertilisers in water speeds up eutrophication
• Microbacteria in sewage can spread infectious disease