Botkin Environmental Science Earth as Living Planet 8th txtbk

CHAPTER
18
Water
Supply, Use,
and Management
LEARNING
OBJECTIVES
Although water is one of the most abundant
resources on Earth, water management involves
many important issues and problems. After reading
this chapter, you should understand . . .
Why water is one of the major resource issues of
the 21st century;
What a water budget is, and why it is useful in
analyzing water-supply problems and potential
solutions;
What groundwater is, and what environmental
problems are associated with its use;
Great blue heron and young in Wakodahatchee Wetlands near
Palm Beach, Florida.
How water can be conserved at home, in industry,
and in agriculture;
Why sustainable water management will become
more difficult as the demand for water increases;
The concepts of virtual water and a water footprint
and their link to water management and
conservation;
The environmental impacts of water projects such
as dams;
What a wetland is, how wetlands function, and why
they are important;
Why we are facing a growing global water shortage
linked to our food supply.
People around the world are wearing masks
to protect themselves against swine flu.
(Source: http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/
nation-world/ny-swineflu-photos,0,859331.
photogallery [Getty Images Photo / May 2,
2009].)