Conservation of water: Importance, Occurrence and Pollution

 Importance of Water:

    Water is a vital medium of life. Approximately 45-75% of the human body is made of water. In the human body, brain cell 75%, blood cell 85% and bone cell contain 22% water. In every organism cytoplasm is 90% water. All metabolic processes occur in cells in the presence of water. Water has a great importance in ecosystem due to its qualities.

Protection:

    Water provides protection against friction in various organisms. For example, on the outer covering of earthworm, a fluid is present made up of water protects from friction and abrasive damage. It also provides a protecting covering around our organs.

Stabilizing temperature:

     Beyond protection, water also plays a crucial role in regulating temperature. Water has a great capacity for absorbing heat. Water has 4.2Jper g per K. Due to this property water acts as a temperature stabilizer. Water absorbs a large amount of heat from sun. It is thought that without water , daytime temperatures would rise to 110°C and at nighttime temperatures could fall to -18°C. So, water protect us from sudden thermal changes.

Universal solvent:

    In addition to water stabilizing effects, water's chemical properties also make a vital component of life. Water is a universal solvent, due to its polarity and hydrogen bonding. Almost all polar compounds especially ions are dissolved in water. It is used as a solvent in the lab to form solutions of different substances. water ionizes into  H+(aq) and OH- ions. One negative end of ion attaches to H+ and other positive end attaches to OH-. The electrostatic forces between ions bind them into a compound.

Domestic and industrial use:

    A large amount of water is used for agriculture and domestic purposes. Water is a necessary component of life for plants in agriculture. It is also used in washing, cleaning and cooking.

Occurrence of water:

    Approximately 97% of water is found in oceans and sea, 2.1% is present in glaciers and ice caps, 0.6% ground, 0.2% inland and 0.001% in the form of vapors. Seawater contains a high concentration of dissolved salts, making it unfit for daily use. Only about 2% of water is potable (fit for drinking). 

Conservation of water:

    Nowadays fresh water resources are limited for humans and ecosystem. It provides support to biodiversity. Researchers thought that there will be water resources gone out from world. Unlimited use of water threats to its resources. Now it is necessary to minimize use of water. 

Practices for everyone:

  • Check your sewage and pipes everyday and fix leakage.
  • Close tap while water is not used.
  • We should use low flow shower.
  • Use dirty and muddy water for watering.
  • Get a water meter for check daily use of water.   
  • Wash vegetable in a bowl instead of  under the tap.
  • Introduce 3R cycle (reduce, reuse, recycle).
  • Collect rain water.

Agricultural techniques:

  • Produce crops nearby the natural water resources and reduce use of ground water.
  • Grow trees because they produce coolness and minimize evaporation.
  • Use pesticides and fertilizer, which moisturize soil for long time.
  • Avoid watering crops at noon as a large amount of water will evaporate.
  • Improve soil absorbing capacity.
These are some techniques for conservation of water. The major cause of water shortage is pollution.

Water pollution:

     The contamination of water sources (lakes, rivers and sea) by pollutants is called water pollution.

Causes of water pollution:

    There are number of sources of water pollution. Major causes of water pollution are described below:
  •  When acid rain fall on water bodies it carrying heavy metals (Al, Hg, Cr) which dissolved in water.
  • Sometimes oil tanks are leaked and oil dissolved in water.

  • The use of plastic bags made of polymers has a negative impact  if they are thrown into water.
  • Industrial wastes contains heavy metal, chemicals and other toxic substances are diffuse in water bodies. 
  • Uses of nonbiodegradable detergents had bad impact when they are discharge in rivers and lakes.
  • Fertilizers and pesticides contain chemicals (which kills bacteria and algae) dissolve in ground water.

Effects of water pollution: 

    Water pollution has bad impact on marine ecosystem as well as human health. Some are:
  • It damage aquatic life.
  • Uses of polluted water causes dangerous disease  such as diarrhea, typhoid, cholera  and hepatitis A and E.
  • When fish respire in polluted water, metal ions can clog their gills, leading to death.
  • Decomposition of organic matter in water produce methane which cause climate change.
  • It causes rapid growth of algae. Algae trap sunlight to reach aquatic life.
  • It break food chain lead to deficiency of food.

 


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