"Water costs nothing anyway" is a frequently heard comment, but that conviction is now starting to diminish for many people, because it does cost us something. Every Dutch citizen now knows how many problems their extraction poses and that natural gas will disappear in the future as our main energy source. Everyone is no longer convinced of the unlimited amount of drinking water available at home. We in the Netherlands too will not escape the water problem in the near future. The large drinking water companies have now indicated that they expect that they will no longer be able to meet the demand in the future. The demand for drinking water will also increase due to an increase in the population. An increase of 30% is expected until 2040. Luxury is partly responsible for this increase.
We shower no less and will have to pay much more for our shower in the future. Heating shower water costs energy and energy costs money. Everyone knows that the prices of gas and water will rise in the coming years, that is also the only way the government can do something if one wants to make cuts in water and gas.
Where other household appliances have started to use less water, water use in the shower has only increased. We have come to know the luxury of spacious showering and do not want to lose it. A growing world population will also want to shower in the future, just like us, but where will we get that water from?
We shower no less and will have to pay much more for our shower in the future. Heating shower water costs energy and energy costs money. Everyone knows that the prices of gas and water will rise in the coming years, that is also the only way the government can do something if one wants to make cuts in water and gas.
Where other household appliances have started to use less water, water use in the shower has only increased. We have come to know the luxury of spacious showering and do not want to lose it. A growing world population will also want to shower in the future, just like us, but where will we get that water from?
"Shower less than?"
Shorter showering, use a shower alarm clock…., showering with economical hand showers….,… .. in recent years a lot has happened to make people use less water with showering, but to no avail. People want to feel the luxury of a full hot shower. People do not want to stand under a small trickle of water and have it constantly cold ... they want the luxury of wellness at home. It is therefore not really striking that in almost all plumbing matters there is a huge choice of so-called "Showerpipes". These are shower taps with 20 to 30cm large shower heads. The water use of a "showerpipe" is between 10 and 20 liters of water per minute, depending on the hot water supply. If you have a water heater, use can sometimes increase to 20 to 25 liters of water per minute. A good watersaving shower uses approximately between 5 and 9 liters of water a minute. Remember that shower water consists of 2/3 hot water and 1/3 cold water, so you can easily calculate how long you can do with a boiler.
"How much water do we use?"
In the Netherlands, three-quarters of our drinking water goes to households, more than 60% of which goes to showering. All water using equipment in the house has become more economical in the past years, only the water use with showering continues to increase.
We are currently working hard in the Netherlands to get rid of natural gas. However, the drinking water problem will become a much bigger problem and will be at our doorstep sooner than we like
We are currently working hard in the Netherlands to get rid of natural gas. However, the drinking water problem will become a much bigger problem and will be at our doorstep sooner than we like
"How much water is there on Earth? "
left the earth with all seas and ocean. On the right all that water is summarized
Seen from space, our planet appears to be mostly water, but it is not. On average, the oceans are about 3,500 meters deep.
The water problem is even greater if you realize that there is actually not much water for consumption on earth. In this image you do not even see the earth blue, but gray .
In the big blue sphere depicted on this earth is all the salty sea water that has contracted on earth, so all the salty water from seas and oceans. The very small blue sphere to the right of the salt water sphere, which is already hard to see, contains all the fresh water from rivers and lakes. Below that, barely visible, is the water that is suitable for drinking water.
You cannot make water, so you will have to do with the water that is there. Extracting water from the air will have repercussions on nature. Desalination of sea water on a large scale does not provide a solution either. It is very expensive and one is left with a residue that contains poisonous substances that cannot be released back into the sea. Water is also sometimes called "the new gold" and for good reason. The conflict in Syria, which has been going on for years, is also caused by a drinking water problem. Water refugees will therefore always come more
The water problem is even greater if you realize that there is actually not much water for consumption on earth. In this image you do not even see the earth blue, but gray .
In the big blue sphere depicted on this earth is all the salty sea water that has contracted on earth, so all the salty water from seas and oceans. The very small blue sphere to the right of the salt water sphere, which is already hard to see, contains all the fresh water from rivers and lakes. Below that, barely visible, is the water that is suitable for drinking water.
You cannot make water, so you will have to do with the water that is there. Extracting water from the air will have repercussions on nature. Desalination of sea water on a large scale does not provide a solution either. It is very expensive and one is left with a residue that contains poisonous substances that cannot be released back into the sea. Water is also sometimes called "the new gold" and for good reason. The conflict in Syria, which has been going on for years, is also caused by a drinking water problem. Water refugees will therefore always come more
“Waterstress"
This image shows the problem areas around our future and the water supply. The world map clearly shows that the problem areas are no longer just around the equator, but also that Belgium and a large part of the Netherlands will be red in 2040. The Netherlands extracts drinking water from the soil and from the major rivers. How critical water extraction in the Netherlands can be proved in the summer of 2018, 2019 and 2020 and periods like that will not disappear.
"Water refugee"
Due to the drought, we will have to deal more and more with climate refugees in the future. People fleeing areas where little or no water is available. These people will want to settle in areas that are known to have sufficient water and will continue to do so in the future. We should not only think of masses of people who suddenly flee, but more of people who consciously choose to emigrate to areas of the world where water is sufficient for the future
Image by 272447 from Pixabay
Image by 272447 from Pixabay
"Global warming"
Often we do not believe the stories about the rise in temperature on earth and the growing problems with the climate and drought. Nothing could be further from the truth. In these graph above you can see that the population increase of 6 billion people in barely a century can be seen directly in the rise in temperature and the demand for drinking water. Everything we pollute in the air ends up in an atmosphere that is barely 80 km thick. Outside of that, “space” begins. CO2 is the biggest culprit of global warming. Oceans also absorb heat, causing the temperature of the water to rise, which in turn causes coral reefs and vegetation to die. Ice sheets, glaciers melt and raise the sea level. Everything is interrelated. The growth of the world population will cause an even bigger problem in the coming years… the demand for drinking water, because without water there is no life.
"Increasing need for water worldwide"
The need for drinking water will increase sharply in the coming years. Not only rapid population growth, but also prosperity will increase water use. More mouths will have to be fed and all these mouths will also want more prosperity. Everyone will soon need more water at home for showering, among other things. In the Netherlands, 60% of the water in the house already goes to the shower.
These images clearly show that water use continues to rise at an alarming rate. The "water consumption line" is rising faster than the line of population increase.
These images clearly show that water use continues to rise at an alarming rate. The "water consumption line" is rising faster than the line of population increase.