7.1.8

Water

Test yourself

Water

Arguably, the most important natural resource is water. Without it human and animal life would not be possible on Earth. However, there is a limited amount of water on Earth and in many places, water stress is increasingly a problem.

Illustrative background for Will we run out of water? Illustrative background for Will we run out of water?  ?? "content

Will we run out of water?

  • Some people think that the planet will never run out of water because of the water cycle.
  • Whilst in some ways this is true, what they mean, is that we may run out of fresh water that is suitable for our usage.
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Water supply

  • Another big problem is the issue of water supply.
  • In many countries (like the UK), the places that receive the most rain are sparsely populated and so have a low water demand.
  • In contrast, the areas that are more densely populated receive less rainfall yet need more water to meet demand.
  • This involves a complex system of pipes, reservoirs and dams to solve this problem and ensure that the water is able to get to the people who need it.
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Where is the world’s water?

  • 97% of the world’s water is found in oceans.
  • The other 3% is found in glaciers and ice caps, below the ground or in rivers and lakes.
  • That means that less than 3% of the world’s water is fresh water or suitable for drinking.

Jump to other topics

1Geography Skills

2Geology of the UK

3Geography of the World

4Development

5Weather & Climate

6The World of Work

7Natural Resources

8Rivers

9Coasts

10Glaciers

11Tectonics

12Climate Change

13Global Population & Inequality

14Urbanisation

15Ecosystems

16Life in an Emerging Country

17Analysis of Africa

18Analysis of India

19Analysis of the Middle East

20Analysis of Bangladesh

21Analysis of Russia

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