We have seen Cape town running out of water.. no rains there for couple of years.
The same situation is upcoming rest of the world.
Internationally some studies states by year 2025, 50% of the world population are going to live in water stressed areas.
The good part is the seawater is not is danger of running out, making up 97% of Earth’s water.
Developing and adopting the cost effective technology can be a solution for this issue. Countries like South Africa is already getting involved in these things.
Irrigation has enabled farmers even in desert kind of areas to grow a wider variety of crops. Some methods of irrigation are highly inefficient – in hot countries, water sprayed on crops evaporates before it can reach the roots. An alternative is drip irrigation, a system of pipes that delivers water directly to the roots of each plant, but this is also lead to wastage of water.
Science and technology can only go so far. The biggest problem is still governance . Farmers will grow what they can to turn a profit, and many have little alternative than to use scarce groundwater resources. Without strong governance, this can lead to disaster as the depletion has a widespread effect on the whole local community.
It’s a challenge for us to save water not only for agriculture but also for human consumption and to meet the rising water demand in other social and economic sectors. This demands improved water governance, management and investment in scientific knowledge, all of which entail commitment and resources.
It’s time for decisive action.
Thank you.