Page 16 - trends in automation 1.2013

A t first glance, water appears to
be an inexhaustible resource.
But appearances can be deceiv-
ing. Although three quarters
of the earth’s surface is covered by water,
only around 0.3 per cent of this is avail-
able as drinking water. Of the around
1.38 billion cubic kilometres of water re-
serves that we have on our planet, only
around 48 million cubic kilometres are
fresh water. Most of it is not accessible for
direct use, as it is bound up as polar
and glacial ice or permafrost. The rest of
the world’s water, around 97.5 per cent,
consists of salt and brackish water.
Growth demands responsibility
The element that keeps our world moving
doesn’t just sustain the circle of life, it lies
at the very heart of our modern culture.
Rain is the source of our drinking water
supply and allows us to grow crops and
farm fish. Rivers are still one of the
most important means of transporting
goods today. And water is one of the
key elements in industry.
Conserving water by using it efficiently is
one of the key objectives for the coming
decades. People need manufactured
goods, but the production of these goods
requires huge volumes of water, while
people also need clean water to live. In-
dustry should be urgently seeking ways
to ensure that water returned to nature
after it has been used is clean. However,
this is a complex and expensive task.
The treatment of wastewater poses major
economic and political challenges, not
just in developing and newly industrial-
ised nations.
Water consumption is rising
The General Secretary of the 5th World
Water Forum, Oktay Tabasaran, said
in May 2009 that worldwide water con-
sumption would increase by 40 per cent
over the next 20 years. With current
consumption at around 4.5 billion cubic
metres of water annually, it is set to
reach 6.9 billion cubic metres in two
decades according to Tabasaran’s predic-
tions. Worldwide water consumption
has tripled in the last 50 years. The main
reasons for this are population growth,
increasing urbanisation and industrialisa-
tion as well as global climate change.
H2O
Water is one of nature’s miracles,
and is unique in its variety of
physical forms. Water is different
from all other chemical compounds
on earth because it is the only
molecule that exists as a liquid, solid
and gas. The term ‘water’ is only
used in reference to the liquid state.
The solid state is ice, while in
its gaseous state it is called water
vapour.