Water and the Environment

When we turn the faucet on we expect clean water to come out, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Our expectations are so high that we have built large dams and associated reservoirs, pumped large quantities of groundwater from aquifers, and constructed intricate water distribution systems to transport water from areas where it is located to where we prefer to live.

We monitor the quality of our water and spend billion of dollars to treat it. In the United States, we have come to rely on good quality water and plenty of it; after all, water is essential to life. As a society, we depend upon water for many uses including irrigation, power generation, recreation, and transportation. But what happens when there is a drought, or even times when the supply of water is less than what we have become accustomed to? Or maybe there is too much water and it floods our home, farm, or city. What if the quality of our water is degraded and we can no longer use it for a desired purpose, or what if a dam is built across our favorite river or stream, changing its characteristics? How do natural or human-induced changes to water affect our lives as well as the plants and animals that also depend upon it for existence?

This publication provides information about water, its importance, where it comes from, water-related environmental concerns, water protection, polices and regulations, and our future needs for water … So pour a glass of water and read on.