WATER USES

USES OF WATER

• Agriculture
• Wells
• Dams
• Recreational/Household

USES OF WATER

• Agriculture
• Wells
• Dams
• Recreational/Household

AGRICULTURE: Pros

• About 70% of our water is used for farming and irrigation.
• Sometimes, irrigation is essential to grow crops.
• Sometimes, irrigation allows more profitable crops to be developed.
• Half of the water used for irrigation recharges groundwater/suface flows or is lost in unproductive evaporation.

AGRICULTURE: Cons

• Agriculture contributes to water pollution from excess nutrients, pesticides, and other pollutants.
• Irrigation of land cause salinization of the land that is being irrigated.
• Irrigation of cropland can increase the possibility fertilizers and pesticides will infiltrate into the groundwater or runoff into nearby streams. 

WELLS: Pros

• Some say that well water has a cleaner taste, probably because it is not treated heavily with chemicals.
• Well water is good for the environment because it decreases the amount of pollution put back into the air.
• Having a well is also financially better because you won't have a water bill and the owner has tax breaks throughout the year.

WELLS: Cons

• Wells don't have experts checking the water's source regularly before being sent through the pipes.
• Because it comes from groundwater, it can be easily polluted.
• Nitrate's runoff, in which nitrate is used as a fertilizer, can be infiltrated into our groundwater that leads to wells.
• The well water could run dry, though this is unlikely, it is possible.

DAMS: Pros

• Dams are designed to last for decades to fulfill its purposes.
• The lakes water can be used for irrigation purposes.
• Dams do not polllute the atmosphere when in use.d

DAMS: Cons

• Dams are extremely expensive to build and must be built to high standard.
• The flooding of large areas of land means that the natural environment is destroyed.
• Dams are deteriorating because of safety hazards, causing them to be removed.
• After removal, sediment can be carried downstream and affect the bitota

RECREATIONAL/HOUSEHOLD: Pros

• WE USE WATER FOR THINGS SUCH AS BATHING, COOKING, CLEANING,DRINKING, AND GARDENING.
• WE USE WATER RECREATIONALLY THROUGH SWIMMING, DIVING, SKIING, ETC.wate

RECREATIONAL/HOUSEHOLD: Cons

AQUIFER/WATER DEPLETION: Pros

• It is a source of drinking water for over half of the population.
• It provides over 50 billion gallons per day in support of the nation's agricultural economy.

AQUIFER/WATER DEPLETION: Cons

• Fresh groundwater supplies has a threat of saltwater intrusion.
• Pumping water can cause saltwater to migrate, resulting in saltwater contamination of our water supply.
• Water-well problems
• Reduced surface-water flows
• Subsidence

LINKS

• http://www.lenntech.com/water-food-agriculture.htm
• http://academic.evergreen.edu/g/grossmaz/disruddj/
• http://www.technologystudent.com/energy1/hydr2.htm
• http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/fs-103-03/