Scarce Resources Sea-Level Rise

Question: Describe Scarce Resources for Sea-Level Rise. Answer: Introduction Scarcity of Water is a challenge not only in Australia but around the globe. Water being among the human basic needs plays a critical role in each and every ones everyday life. Globally water is among the most significant resource not only to human being but also to other living things that is flora and fauna. The term water scarcity can be defined as lack of safe water supply or simply lack of enough water resource to meet ones or regions demand (Barnett, 2013, pp.37-49) . From the definition its clear that water scarcity does not only result from quantity but may be as a result of insufficient quality. Water scarcity is of critical concern in Australia first because it is the driest inhabited continent in the world, and secondly the country is among the major food exporters worldwide. The demand for water in the country is accelerated by the frequent drought and flood phenomenal that befalls the country. The challenge of water scarcity is not only brought about by natural causes bu t is also instigated and accelerated by anthropogenic factors. Among the anthropogenic causes of the water scarcity is water wastage, pollution and unsustainable management (Capon, 2014, p110). Water scarcity in Australia In Australia like many other countries of the world water is a treasured resource. Australians primarily depend on water for domestic use, drinking, industrial purpose and majorly in agriculture activity (Dijk, 2013, pp.1040-1057). As mentioned earlier the country is a major food exporter in the world which is mainly grown under irrigation as a higher percentage of the land cover is either arid or semi-arid. Competition and demand for water by different sectors in Australia result to acceleration of the problem of water scarcity in the country. The other anthropogenic cause that all Australians have witnessed is overexploitation of the water sources from the surface to underground sources (Hoekstra, 2012, p.e32688). The volume of water in rivers and streams have drastically dropped, boreholes have dried up as a result of dropping water table, salt water intrusion in fresh water sources, drying up of wetlands, increased desertification, extinction of species are all examples of physic al evidence of scarcity of water in the country. A good example is Murray-Darling River whose volume as reported by geologist has been continually dropping to an alarming extent, where the in year 2007 the federal government had to take over the authority of the river from the four states that the river flows through (Wheeler, 2014, pp.28-41). Other factors includes population increase, urbanization, increased affluence among the Australians which all contribute to increased demand and mismanagement of the already scarce resource thus magnifying the problem. Urbanization also contributes scarcity in terms of quality as there has been increased waste generation rates with more and more people living in the urban area in the country. On the other hand the natural calamities befalling the country not only reduce the quantity but also affects the quality of the water resource. The main natural calamities contributing to water scarcity in Australia includes drought and floods (Kummu, 2014, pp.447-461). Climatic condition in the country is highly variable from region to another as well as from one season to another. The climate variability and change in the past few decades has been the main magnifier of the water resource availability challenge to an extent of a crisis in some parts of the country impacting on the development p rocess. There has been a major drop in the annual average rainfall since 1980 approximately by a third and stagnated there. Since rainfall is what supplements and to some extent replenish the water source, its scarcity means increased unavailability thus water scarcity throughout the country. El Nio is the other periodic weather pattern that affects Australias water availability. Simply it is the warming up of the eastern and central Pacific Ocean surface water which results to above normal average rainfall amount received in a particular region and flooding occurrences. On the other hand there is a drying condition that occurs when the humid air is carried away to cause El Nio. The dry condition is referred to as La Nia. The phenomenal occurs at an irregular interval of about two to seven years where in one case heavy rains falls and floods the coastal area in Peru, while on the other hand the south eastern parts of Australia suffers from drought occurrence. Although prediction of when it will occur is done the duration which may range from few months to as much as several years is difficult to tell. Thus the repercussions brought abought by the phenomenal is only minimally managed resulting to an accelerated water scarcity in the country. An example is the changing in volume of Darling stream which is a major tributary of the Murray river from as much as 911% to as little as 0.04% of the widely known average (Sahin, 2016, pp.348-361). Among the strategies to cub water scarcity in Australia includes maintaining the health of the river where some territories and states have begun a strategy termed as the environmental flows that entails provision and allocation of water to the environment. This plays a critical role in solving the scarcity challenge while ensuring that the society in the state continues with their economic activities that depends on the availability of clean water. Next is agricultural water management practices including removing stock from waterways, trees and shrubs maintenance, earthworks, drains and water pumping. As agriculture is major economic activity in the country, management of water ensures availability not only of water but quality water. Water trading has been widely adopted throughout the country as has been regarded to play critical role of valuing water by community, the government and all water users. Water trading ensures value addition which means an additional income. Australia has also adopted water restriction which has assisted in household water conservation. This has been enabled by provision of incentives by state and territory governments e.g. installation of water saving devices like dual flush toilets. Conservation of water has assisted the community and the government to save as less water is consumed thus reduction of expenses. Lastly is rainwater tank instillation especially in the capital cities where more than 11% source water from rainwater tanks. The rain water is the most affordable source as the expenses only includes water tank and the gutters. Rain water harvesting also helps in saving energy as no pumping is required unlike the case of underground sources. (Qureshi, 2013, pp.136-145). Conclusion In conclusion water scarcity is a challenge that can be solved and forgotten if only each and every one in Australia can be committed to ensuring its sustainable use and management. By this I mean only using the resource in the most appropriate manner only when necessary. It should be everyones business to protect and conserve the water sources. References Barnett, J., ONeill, S., Waller, S. and Rogers, S., 2013. 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