Everything you thought you knew about water conservation is wrong. Shorter showers and bath's are not going to help make up the 4,400 gallons of virtual water lost in our making your shoes. Virtual water (pdf) is the amount of water it takes to produce a product. Right now we lose 30 to 50 percent of the food we grow and the water in it by the time its ready for consumption. Our demand for virtual water, however, can be saved by growing crops in places that are more humid and by being more conservative with the food we consume. Throwing away food is wasting all the water it took to produce it. The reason we should grow crops in more humid areas is because it takes almost 3 times the amount of virtual water to grow crops in dry or arid places like Jordan than it takes to grow them in a place like Puerto Rico. In that way, the water saved will be tripled. Another concern about water in the U.S. is that it is a leading water exporter. An estimate of about one third of our water supplies have been exported as virtual water. Most people ask why the united states is shipping away its water when it's water sources are at a catastrophic decline. However, if we increase education to the public about saving water, we can avoid a crisis. Labeling the amount of water used in products and eating in accordance every day would be a huge help. That kind of thinking to take effect is what we really need.
Article by Thomas M. Kostigen, 2008 edition, www.discovermagazine.com
-This article is an example of discovery based science. It is discovery based because no hypothesis was made. Only observations.
-It is important for humans to know this information in order to avoid running out of water to drink. If we run out of water, billions will die. It is necessary for people to be informed on how to reduce the amount of virtual water wasted by them as an individual and how to conserve it.
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