WELCOME
CONSERVATION OF POTABLE WATER
Rotary International District 3020
Save Water ! Save Life !
Introduction
Life was originated from water. Without water, there is no life. Every living soul requires water for its survival. Water is the principal raw material for food production, industrial production and electricity generation etc., Water is considered the most important raw material of civilization. In fact, without water, man cannot survive. For the growing population and industrial developments, water demand is increasing day-by-day in every country. Water resources, naturally accumulated as a ground water and other water deposits for millions of years, are reducing due to indiscriminate usage of water. Indicators around the globe show that day-by-day ground water level is depleting. Due to pollution and global warming effects, principal source of water “Rains” on INLAND is dropping day-by-day. Therefore, we should think about how to increase the rains on INLAND, how to augment the ground water resources and how to conserve the water sources and the usage of this invaluable material, to save our global life system.
Occurrence:
Water is the only substance that occurs at ordinary temperatures in all the three states of matter, that is, solid, liquid and gas. As a solid, or ice, it is found as glaciers and ice caps, on water surfaces in winter, as snow, hail, and frost, and as clouds formed of ice crystals. It occurs in the liquid state as rain clouds formed of water droplets, and on vegetation as dew; in addition, it covers three-quarters of the surface of the earth in the form of swamps, lakes, rivers, and oceans. As gas, or water vapor, it occurs as fog, steam, and clouds. Atmospheric vapor is measured in terms of relative humidity, which is the ratio of the quantity of vapor actually present to the greatest amount possible at a given temperature. Water occurs as moisture in the upper portion of the soil profile, in which it is held by capillary action to the particles of soil. In this state, it is called bound water and has different characteristics free from water. Under the influence of gravity, water accumulates in rock interstices beneath the surface of the earth as a vast groundwater reservoir supplying wells and springs and sustaining the flow of some streams during periods of drought.
Water [Hydrological]
cycle:
The continuous movement of water between the earth and the atmosphere is known as the hydrological cycle. Under several influences, of which heat is predominant, water is evaporated from both water and land surfaces and is transpired from living cells. This vapor is circulated through the atmosphere and is precipitated in the form of rain or snow. On striking the surface of the earth, the water follows two paths. In amounts determined by the intensity of the rain and the porosity, permeability, thickness, and previous moisture content of the soil, one part of the water, termed surface runoff, flows directly into rills and streams and thence into oceans or landlocked bodies of water; the remainder infiltrates into the soil. A part of the infiltrated water becomes soil moisture, which may be evaporated directly or move upward through the roots of vegetation to be transpired from leaves. The portion of the water that overcomes the forces of cohesion and adhesion in the soil profile percolates downward, accumulating in the so-called zone of saturation to form the groundwater reservoir, the surface of which is known as the water table. Under natural conditions, the water table rises intermittently in response to replenishment, or recharge, and then declines as a result, of continuous drainage into natural outlets such as springs, artificial out lets like tube wells.
Conclusions &
Solutions:-
Studying the above heads, occurrence, hydrological cycle and existing climatic conditions, we can infer as follows:-
1. All states of water in its entirety on and around the earth are constant.
2. “Pollution and human induced global warming have been altering the natural hydrological cycle and adversely effecting the precipitation (Rain, Snow etc) around the globe. We face drought if rains are less & scarce on inland”.
Solutions to the problem:-
1 ) Methods to restore the healthy Inland climatic conditions
to get more uniformly distributed rains:-
1.1.
Pollution control: Industrial revolution inducing so many
artificial material and non-biodegradable materials into the atmosphere, surface
of land and oceans, the complex and toxic action of the pollutants cause
hindrance to the natural water cycle. We should take initiative steps to stop
the production of non-biodegradable materials and take pollution control
measures to nullify the pollution levels.
1.2.
We
should take steps to reduce man made global warming. Reports tell that
indiscriminate usage of foci fuels and chlorofluorocarbons are warming the
global average surface temperature and it will increase by between 1.0 and 3.5
Celsius degrees (between 1.8 and 6.3 Fahrenheit degrees) by the year 2100. If
such a warming occurs, sea level will rise by between 15 cm and 95 cm (6 in and
37 in) by the year 2100, and the most likely rise will be 50 cm (20 in). Such a
rise in sea level might have a damaging effect on coastal ecosystems and
collapse the delta irrigation systems, spoil the ground water resources and
drinking water resources. Other changes brought in by this warming might include
a shift in the world’s wind and rainfall patterns.
Methods to reduce global warming:-
We should frame standards on international level to
control the burning of foci-fuels, To balance the green house gasses. In
addition to this, reduce the global warming .
Reforestation and
Conservation of forests to regain the healthy condition of our
planet
Reduction of nuclear
tests, doing away with the wars and unnecessary usage of dynamite and RDX
.
1.3) 
Research and development
of artificial rains.
1.4) 
Study the obscure methods
like “YAJNA” for rains, which were described in “The
Bhagavad-Gita,” The Karma yoga Stanzas No. 14 & 15 and other
mythological books of India, and Egypt.
2.) Improvement of water Storage: -
A.
The
construction of big dams and reservoirs on all the major rivers has made floods
a rarity and has made available enormous quantities of water for agricultural,
industrial, and municipal use.
B. Removal of sludge and filled material from reservoirs, rivers and lakes to enhance the storage capacities.
C. Construction of new lakes and Tanks.
D. 
Inter
linking of major Rivers.
3) Methods to recharge the ground water reservoirs:-
A) Removal of impervious material deposited on pervious layers time to time.
B) Conservation of Sand and other pervious deposits and Impose restrictions to the removal of sand beds.
C)
Construction of percolation tanks at every house to collect
rainwater and recharge the ground water reservoirs.
4.) Discriminate usage of water:-
A)
Use of drip and sprinkler cultivation systems.
B) 
Introduction of
Water monitoring systems to check the unnecessary usage of water in
cultivation.
C) Usage of treated sewage water in cultivation.
D)
Research and development of new variety of seeds by using
biotechnological methods which they take small quantity of water and more yielding.
E) Check the unnecessary wastage of water in domestic purposes.
· Design: The design of layout of distribution system should be such that every branch line serves about 2000 to 3000 persons only. Such a design of layout makes it easier to locate the points of leakage of water.
· 
Fittings: The fittings used in jointing
the pipes should confirm to standard requirements. The governments should ban
the manufacturing of low-grade fittings.
·
Vigilance: A vigilance gang should be
maintained by local authority for house-to-house inspection and heavy penalty
should be imposed on careless consumers.
·
Meters: The supply of water should be
preferably through meters the installation of meters help in two ways 1) the
consumers tend to realize the importance of water and they do not make
unnecessary wastage of water. 2) The wastage of water in a locality can easily
be detected and necessary steps to prevent such leakages of water may then be
taken.
· Service connections: All the service connections of distribution system should be carried out only under the skilled supervision of authorized plumbers.
·
Public
outlets: Usage of automatic cut off bib cocks at public taps to prevent the
wastage of water.
· Public education: The public mind should be trained to use the water in a civic manner. A regular campaign should be arranged for this purpose and it may take various forms such as articles in local newspapers, posters at public places seminars, discussions, and lectures by leaders through television and radio talks etc., Incorporate the subject of "conservation of water" in a science subject from 1st standard to S.S.C. level.
F) Population control:
According to the availability of water, We should frame standards on international level to Control population; every country should follow the standards to regulate their population.
Author:
Tirumala Srinivasa Reddy, Dwarampudi, B.E. (civil)
Chairman : Water Management in Rural Areas RI district 3020
E-Mail: dtsreddy@yahoo.com
Water Conservation Mission - Andhra Pradesh
Rotary International District 3020 - Water Resources
