Water - The Drink of Life
By Ashok
Malhotra
Where
there is water there is life. Without water there is no existence. Light, air
and water are basic to the creation and sustenance of life. In fact life is
mostly water. The average human is about 70% water. Several vegetables contain
an even larger proportion of water. Indeed, one can live much longer without
food than without water. The production of food itself is dependent on water.
If sometimes, we focus more attention on food than water, it is because nature
has been so enormously graceful in providing us with near unlimited supplies of
this elixir of life. Yet, water is not abundant everywhere on earth. With an
increasing population of humans, parts of the world are facing an increasing
scarcity of this essential resource. Even in places where fresh water is
available in abundance, its quality is not the best possible one for human
consumption, resulting in health problems for those who consume it.
Mankind
has recognized the importance of water and its quality since ancient times. It
has played a central role in ancient religions of the world. Descriptions of
hell and heaven are rarely complete without a description of the quality of
water that is available for drinking. The water available for drinking in
heavenly realms has been described as sweet and nourishing whereas in hellish
region it is depicted as one that burns the throat. Even here on earth there are
many places where available drinking water is unpleasant in taste and full of
disease causing bacteria or chemicals. The quality and quantity of available
water is a major index of the quality of life of different parts of our planet.
Oceans
that cover a major portion of the earth's surface are the largest reservoirs of
water on earth. However, because of high salt content, ocean water is not
suitable for drinking. Seawater is unsuitable for drinking even by severely
dehydrated persons. Persons marooned at sea for prolonged periods have learnt
to their peril that even though seawater may appear to quench thirst somewhat,
it eventually leads to a greater dehydration of the body. Water that evaporates
from the surface of the oceans gathers into clouds. Condensation of these
clouds over land masses results in rain, hail and snow over land. This rain and
snow is the source of our natural fresh water. Some of this water returns to
the sea through rivers that flow back to the oceans. Some percolates into the ground
resulting in underground rivers and reservoirs. Some remains as snow, frozen
for long periods of time in the Polar Regions and on mountaintops. The snow
that collects on high mountains melts slowly during summer months to feed
rivers through the dry months.
Only
a small percentage (less than one percent) of the total water on earth is
suitable for farming and drinking but human, animal and industrial activity has
led to its pollution. Some treatment of water is usually necessary to improve
its quality. The River Jamuna flowing through the capital city of India is a
mass of seething, filthy froth at the time of writing this.
Water
starts to dissolve whatever it comes in contact with. A spoonful of salt will
dissolve quickly in a glass of water. If we place a piece of metal such as
silver or copper in water, we cannot see this dissolving action. Nevertheless,
a microscopic part of these materials also dissolves. This is just as well,
because if larger quantities of metals such as copper dissolved, then the water
would become poisonous. Different materials have different degrees of
solubility in water. Nature has been immensely wise in this respect. Materials
generally found in nature, that could be poisonous to living creatures often
display a low degree of solubility in water. However, in modern times the use
of man made chemicals has become more and more common. Many of these dissolve
rapidly in water. Most are harmful. Agricultural pesticides that dissolve in
water percolate to underground reservoirs contaminating these as well. If the
degree of contamination is not of a critical kind, it may not lead to fatal
consequences, but it will probably lead to lower levels of health and vitality
for persons who consume it.
The
quality of water may be improved by treatment. The methods of treatment can be
as simple as mechanical filtration or boiling. Modern science has yielded more
sophisticated methods of purification ranging from chlorination and ozonation
to the use of ion exchange, reverse osmosis and ultra-violet irradiation.
Distillation can produce completely pure water. However the purest water is not
the tastiest or healthiest one to drink. Water containing beneficial minerals
improves the taste of water and nourishes life.
Fresh
water is frequently classified into two broad categories - surface water and
ground water. Surface water refers to the water in lakes, rivers, snow and ice.
Water that percolates below the surface of the earth is referred to as ground
water. Ground water can be a flowing one like a river or it may remain
stationary in bodies such as lakes. Water that has entered the earth's surface
at one location may also emerge as an underground spring at another location.
Surface water is usually not very high in mineral content, and often it is soft
water. Surface water may get contaminated from animal wastes, agricultural
chemicals, industrial chemicals and wastes as well as sewage and other
discharges from human habitations. Even remote mountain streams may contain
harmful bacteria from the feces of wild animals. Boiling or disinfecting by
chemical means is recommended to eliminate the risk. In the populated Himalayan
regions of India, epidemics of cholera have not been uncommon, and there have
been occasions when health regulations have required outside visitors to get
inoculated prior to a visit.
Water
supply is one of the major problems facing mankind at the present time. The
existence of large cities and excessive use of chemicals in agriculture and
industry pollutes both surface and ground water. Thus, on the one hand,
industrialization is helping to improve the quality of life; on the other it
has worsened it as far as the quality of water is concerned. If the population
growth continues unabated it will increase difficulties faced in maintaining
adequate quantities of water supply in reasonably good quantities.
Whenever
the question of conservation of water is raised, it must be remembered that
except through rare chemical processes water cannot be destroyed. It merely
moves from one place to another. Water is constantly in motion through nature.
Therefore, we need not be concerned if we use copious amounts of water for our
needs. The water we use does not leave our planet. It remains with us forever for
further use in future. Water conservation is not about reducing the use of
water but about its proper use and about maintaining its quality. Seawater
although abundant is of little direct use for human, plant and animal life.
Nations facing a shortage of fresh water should pay attention to the fresh
water that returns to the sea through both surface and underground rivers. If
the same water is collected in ponds, lakes and dams it remains as fresh water
on land and serves to enhance ground water reservoirs and streams. Countries
such as India that loose a large fraction of its fresh water to the sea,
especially during the monsoon season should consider the creation of more
inland reservoirs whenever the opportunity arises. Small reservoirs do not
cause disruption of the environment as compared to large dams. Rather, they
enhance the quality of environment. In fact no human settlement - villages,
town or and city - should be considered environmentally congenial unless it
contains a lake or a large pond. Large cities need to have several such lakes.
If you happen to live in one that does not have a lake nearby it is time to
voice the need for one. If a lake does exist near a human habitation steps are
necessary to protect it from pollution. Combined with fresh water fish farming
these reservoirs can rapidly pay for the cost of their creation. If fish start
dying in a lake then it is time for urgent action to restore its health to a
unpolluted state.
In
recent years there has been much talk of harvesting rainwater that is,
collecting water and directing it to underground reservoirs. In areas where
such water flows into rivers that flow to the sea this makes good sense.
However, in areas where such rivers do not exist the effort of harvesting water
may at times be futile. Nature is probably already doing it for free. Even the
water that is lost by surface evaporation is not really lost. It returns as
rain or dew. Another area where futile efforts are often made is in the
conservation of ground water. From time to time, government agencies consider
limiting and licensing the use of ground water. In many cases this is
completely unnecessary. Drawing water from the ground in some cases even
prevents the loss of the same water to the oceans. It may even help to improve
the water quality by reducing salinity of the water (except in coastal areas),
which develops due to long storage inside the ground. Water that is pumped out
is not destroyed. Much of it returns to the ground. All that happens is that
its location is changed. When it is pumped out in excess, the water table falls
and exercises an automatic control that does not require bureaucratic expense.
How
much water should one drink? Some doctors recommend eight glasses a day. The
amount of water one consumes varies from person to person. It depends on the
climate, activities and the extent of water consumed through food and other
beverages. The feeling of thirst is a sufficient guide for a healthy human. It
must be listened to and when thirsty it is best to drink the water slowly
rather than gulp it down. The color and quantity of one's urine can also be
used as an indicator. If it has become dark or much too yellow, it is usually
an indication that enough water is not being consumed. The urine of a healthy
person consuming adequate amounts of water is free of excessive smell and
nearly colorless. It flows freely and abundantly when the call of nature is
addressed.
Dr.
Ashok Malhotra holds a doctoral degree in engineering from the University of
British Columbia canada. For more of his activities please visit
[http://steamcenter.com]
Article
Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/Ashok_Malhotra/30930
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