Question

What is meant by depletion of water.

Answer 1

Water depletion means drastic reduction in the total amount of usable water due to human activities and change in the environment. This is a threat to the environment. Some of the causes for water depletion are discussed below.

CAUSES FOR DEPLETION OF WATER

• Excessive demand of water : due to over population, the demand of water has increased considerably. More quantities of water are used and wasted over the time.
• Evaporation : due to global warming and change in the climate, more amounts of surface water and ground water is being evaporated due to excessive heat. There is a decline in the level of water in the reservoir and dams due to evaporation.
• Pollution : most of the industrial waste water are dumped to these water sources. This in turn pollutes and contaminates water. This can be considered another reason for depletion of water resources.
• Deforestation : This can be considered a major cause for water depletion. Large scale deforestation considerably lowers the capacity of the soil to retain water and this affects the water table.
• Poor storage : due to poor storage facilities, lots of rain water is wasted. The technological development in procuring rain water and storing it for future use is low. A lot of water is again lost due to ignorance. This again causes depletion.
• Saltwater : deep within the ground, the water gets mixed with salt water and it is termed as saltwater contamination. This in turn reduces the availability of usable water. This is another reason for depletion of water resources.
• Low rainfall : rainfall has reduced considerably over the years. This is mainly because of large scale deforestation and drastic climatic changes. These add to the reduction in water resources.
• Agriculture : agricultural activities steadily increasing by the day which means more water is pumped for use. For agricultural use more ground water is pumped because it’s free of cost. This can be done by fixing a bore well. This reduces the levels of water leading to its depletion. [Also refer about Agricultural pollution ]
• Urbanization : the government and the people have behind urbanization. This has really affected the water resources because of mass deforestation.
• Seepage : when the collected water is transported through the canals and pumps, a lot of water is seeped into the ground and lost. This again causes depletion.