Water crisis - is there one? - San Francisco Green Careers

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Experts, environmentalists, and scientists talk about ‘the water crisis’, however, most of us in North America are not aware of scarcity of clean and safe drinking water, and the overhanging crisis of long-term water shortages.

The fresh-water challenges in California are related to environmental factors where replenishment, in some years, is not as fast as the demand. The crisis in California is cyclical where there are several years of droughts and water rationing followed by years of abundance. In some dry years, Californians have faced the threat of rationing, but water price is so low that the public’s attention is not focused on the true value of water.

Water is a natural resource. We cannot make or produce water and it has no economic substitute; in fact, the water we use today is the water that has existed on Earth for millions of years, since the balance of water on our planet remains fairly constant over time.

The demand for fresh-water continues to escalate worldwide and water consumption is doubling every 20 years. By 2025, it is estimated that about one third of the global population will not have access to adequate drinking water. In addition, global climate change impacts us with droughts combined with an excess of rainfall and floods. Fresh-water availability is not always aligned with the need, therefore we must look at usage versus availability since the cost of water depends on the geographical area.

The water sector, including water management, technology and services, has been on the government, industry, entrepreneurs, and investors’ radar over the past few years. In 2008, a Goldman Sachs report stated that water was the "petroleum for the next century". The water infrastructure requires a significant investment where the US alone needs over $1,000 billion in new water-grid piping and wastewater plants by 2020.

At the SDForum’s Green and Clean Evening Series event on August 5, 2010, experts discussed the global water crisis and focused on the challenges in water efficiency and treatment technologies. The panel was moderated by Mitch Zuklie from Orrick included:
• Tamin Pechet, Banyan Water
• Bill Kocher, Santa Cruz Water Department, City of Santa Cruz
• Bruce Keiser, Cohesive Ventures
• Anup Jacob, Virgin Green Fund

The current global water market is estimated at $ 425 billion and the US at $ 96 billion.

Anup Jacob from Virgin Green Fund presented the following: The US sources of water demand are divided into
• Irrigation 34%
• Municipal %11 (residential, drinking, etc.)
• Industrial/commercial 5%
• Other 2%
• Thermoelectric power 48%

The panelists agreed that in some areas of the country there is a greater awareness of potable water scarcity and of the complexity of the subject: our dependency on water, the existing fresh-water resources, the water-grid (capturing, treating, delivery), available water treatment technologies, and financing.

The panelists noted that water has not been priced as it should be, and in currents rates it’s hard to reduce consumption.

Although water has not been an attractive sector as other new emerging markets like renewables, smart grid applications, electric transportation, consumer products, and other ‘green’ fields - investors today are more open to fund water technologies, more so than in the past.

The link between energy and water:
Water is heavy and it takes much energy to move around. Water distribution requires infrastructure of piping and other thoroughfares, which require maintenance. Water treatments, including desalination, are energy intensive. The panelists reported that 19% of the energy consumed in CA is used to move water from place to place due to the state’s water infrastructure, which was built over 100 years ago. Over the years, the existing infrastructure hasn’t been maintained as well as it should have. The old underground pipes are leaky and not only lose water but also pick up sediment and various deposits through the cracks.

Next, the panelist discussed the common misconceptions about water:

The biggest false assumption is that potable water has low cost or is free. The public expects clean and accessible water, at all times, takes for granted that water is being harvested, cleaned, filtered, pressurized, distributed, and delivered, without paying for the real cost.

Another myth is related to water availability: people believe there is enough fresh water and that all we need to do is ‘harvest’ it. We should remember that where water falls is not necessarily where people live or need it. Certain geographical areas have abundance, but we cannot utilize water everywhere, as usage depends on where people live, produce, and function.

The third misconception is that most don’t think about water in economic or business terms. However the water sector is a business of $ 425 billions a year…

There are many growth opportunities in the water space. To read more about prospects, thoughts, and direction click on Growth opportunities in the water sector.

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Tags: Water issues, management, infrastructure, treatment, and status; water conditions, the problems; future of water management, technologies and investment; water misconceptions, myths, confusion.