Different Techniques for Providing Fresh Water to Arid Regions of the World - Research Paper Example

Different techniques for providing fresh water to arid regions of the world Introduction It is a known aspect that water is the most indispensable aswell as life sustaining resource for all life forms, further considering the fact that 80 percent of Earth’s surface and around 66 percent of human body is made up of water. (Standish-Lee, Loboschefsky and Beuhler, 2005). Despite such significance, it was only recently that the access to fresh water was recognised as a universal human right (“General Assembly Declares”, 2010). This was officially acknowledged in an attempt to further encourage the international community to increase efforts in order to meet the Millennium Development Goals, particularly the goal of providing fresh water to arid regions of the world. Arid regions of the world, found mainly in Africa and Middle-East Asia, typically lack physically accessible, hygienic, and adequate water supply, necessary for multiple aspects such as domestic use, industry and agriculture. Due to this shortage, these regions face difficulties in not only economic development but also human resources development, with people living there facing numerous struggles. Thus focusing on the current tough situation in arid regions, and the resultant difficulties, this report will discuss about two different water provision techniques of desalination and water transfer, and how they can provide fresh water to those regions. Background and situation in Arid Regions Although, 70 percent of the Earth’s surface consists of water, only around 2.5 percent is fresh water, with the rest being salt water contained in the oceans. (“And not a drop to drink?”, n. d). Among the already minimal proportion of fresh water, just about 1 percent is easily accessible for the people to ‘tap’ and utilize, and that 1 percent is found mainly in rivers, lakes as well as some underground sources. “Only this amount is renewed regularly by rain and snowfall, and therefore available on a sustainable basis.” (“And not a drop to drink?”, n. d). However, the key issue here, this 1 percent is not evenly distributed throughout the world, with arid regions bereft of those natural fresh water sources. “The Amazon carries 16 percent of global river flow (or run-off). But arid zones, which cover 40 percent of the worlds landmass, have only 2 percent of run-off.” (“And not a drop to drink?”, n. d). Considering these shortfalls, people living in these regions face drinking water shortage, deterioration of agricultural production as well as industrial activity. There are a variety of estimates concerning the amount of water humans need on a daily basis. Clarke rounds the necessary amount of clean water at “less than 100 litres per day” (Clarke, 2013, pg.20). However, people in the arid regions particularly during the dry season, could consume just around 5 litres per day. (Water Worldwide, 2011). With rainfall being less than 250mm each year, and also with evaporation being more than precipitation, there will be less inflow of water. (Daniell, 2009). All these issues in arid regions are necessitating the need to get water through various water provision techniques. As Standish-Lee, Loboschefsky and Beuhler (2005) state, it is at “these locales that there is the greatest need to collaborate and develop techniques for properly managing existing supplies of fresh water”, as well as generating newer supplies. Among the various techniques that could be used, the two most feasible techniques are desalination and water transfer. Desalination Desalination is considered to be the only climate independent water generating technique, as it does not depend on climate induced rainfall in arid regions or elsewhere, and instead involves the process of removing salt and other unwanted minerals from the sea water and making it fresh water. Although, desalination is one of the earliest techniques used by people to generate drinkable water, nowadays the process has improved a lot and also being carried out in large-scale, due to the utilization of various technologies. “The technologies most often applied to desalinate water are multi-stage flash (MSF) distillation, which uses steam; and reverse osmosis (RO), which is a membrane technology.” (Nellen, 2011). Desalination is adopted in many arid regions specifically in Middle-East Asia, where it is providing good results. As countries in Middle-East Asia face groundwater salinity problems and with potential groundwater sources located remotely, desalination is used in a large-scale manner by these countries to provide water for drinking, agriculture as well as industries. However, the shortfalls with this technique are, it is costly, could have impact on the environment and can be mainly applicable to the regions which are nearer to the sea. The cost of water production remains high, ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 US$ per cubic meter in Middle-Eastern countries and that will be disadvantage for economically deprived arid regions. (Dawoud & Abderrahman, 2006). Desalination plant can cause environmental harm through greenhouse gas emissions, when coupled to a power plant, and degradation of marine environments. (Nellen, 2011). However, with the introduction of newer technologies and optimal processes, the cost is being brought down, plus the environmental harm is also being reduced. Water Transfer Water transfer from water resourceful areas to arid regions through canals, pipelines, etc., has been an earliest technique, which are being still practiced in many of arid regions, especially in African countries. This process involves building canals or pipelines from sources like lakes and rivers, and then transferring the water from those sources to the arid regions. This technique can provide quality water to the people in the arid regions, because the water that is sourced from quality sources is directly transferred to the needed regions, without major modifications. However, economic analysis in Middle-Eastern countries, “revealed that the cost of long distance water transfer can escalate to more than 0.83 US Dollars per cubic meter, and when sustainability considerations are taken into account this figure may reach up to 2.35 US Dollars per cubic meter.” (Dawoud & Abderrahman, 2006). There are also concerns regarding the engineering as well as environmental challenges this technique poses. That is, if water has to be transferred from inhospitable as well as distant sources, then it will lead to engineering challenges, which may elevate the costs further plus could impair the project as well. In addition, “there is concern about environmental impacts from water transfer projects at the source and target regions.” (“Economic Considerations”, n. d). Considering these issues, newer water transfer projects are being carried out by using correct benefit-cost analysis, taking into account both environmental impact as well as consumptive and nonconsumptive benefits for the people in the arid regions. Conclusion From the above analysis, it is clear that the arid regions of the world are experiencing fresh water shortages, and that is causing numerous problems for the people there. In order to minimize or even eliminate those problems, fresh water can be provided through desalination and water transfer. Although, both these techniques provide large quantity of fresh water, cost wise, desalination appears to be the better option. In the above analysis, the 0.83 US$ for water transfer versus 1.5 US$ for desalination appears to be competitive, the fact is, the situation has been recently shifted in favour of seawater desalination, which dropped from 5.5 US Dollars in 1979 to less than 0.55 US Dollars in 2000s. (Dawoud & Abderrahman, 2006). Environmentally speaking, water transfer could make major impacts than desalination considering the fact that it involves crossing as well as impacting sizable geographical terrain. Although, each technique has its pros and cons, both techniques appear to be feasible and effective. References “And not a drop to drink? The freshwater crisis.” (n. d). UNESCO. Retrieved from: http://www.unesco.org/bpi/science/content/press/anglo/10.htm Clarke, R. (2013). Water: The International Crisis. London: Routledge. Daniell, T. M. (2009). The Implications of a Decade of Drought in Australia (1996-2007). Retrieved from: http://www.jle.com/e-docs/00/04/49/D7/article.md Dawoud, M. A & Abderrahman, W. (2006). Water Import and Transfer versus Desalination in Arid Regions: GCC Countries Case Study. Retrieved from: http://faculty.ksu.edu.sa/72005/Papers%20of%20Interest%20Water/Water%20Import%2 0and%20Transfer%20versus%20Desalination%20in%20Arid%20Regions.pdf “Economic Considerations in Designing Water Systems for Arid Zones.” (n. d). Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Retrieved from: http://www.bgu.ac.il/cwst/water/artarid.htm “General Assembly declares access to clean water and sanitation is a human right.” (2010). UN News Centre. Retrieved from: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=35456 Nellen, A. (2011, July 28). Desalination: A Viable Answer to Deal with Water Crises? . Retrieved from: http://www.futuredirections.org.au/publications/food-and-water-crises/166-desalination- a-viable-answer-to-deal-with-water-crises.html Standish-Lee, P., Loboschefsky, E & Beuhler, M. (2005). The Future of Water: Identifying and Developing Methods for Managing Water in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions. Retrieved from: http://acwi.gov/swrr/Rpt_Pubs/wef_session107/107_0130.pdf Water Worldwide. (2011). Development Education. Retrieved from: http://www.developmenteducation.ie/8020-extracts/22-water-worldwide.pdf Read More