Fresh water resource, scarcity, water salinity challenges and possible remedies: A review

Abstract

Water is one of the natural resource due balance if our planet and the life on it have to sustain and economic development to be expected in the future. The increase in population of the world and level of wealth of humans is expected to withdraw more freshwater. However, since water is already one of the limited resources, global per capital water available surely drops and water shortage happens. Pollution of ground and surface water by dissolved salts are increasing and exacerbating this water shortage situation. The sources of these dissolved salts (such as primary and secondary salinity-causing agents) are known to change the chemical constituent of water. Once contributing factors for water scarcity are identified, future man should work on it to overcome the challenge. This paper therefore began with global water resource information and indicated different levels of scarcity to give overall clues on the situation. Salinity description, its global status, causative factors and challenges were revised before possible recommendations were indicated as indispensable solution.

Keywords: Fresh water; Salinity; Water per capital; Water salinity; Water scarcity; Water withdrawal.

Fig. 1

Global water resource distribution [1,6,7].

Fig. 2

Water resources at (a) continental; (b) regional levels [21].

Fig. 3

Water resources and per inhabitants' status at different regions [22,23].

Fig. 4

Population increment and its forecast in different regions [26].

Fig. 5

World available water up to 2017 and forecast to 2025 [5].

Fig. 6

Global and continental water withdrawal in (a) amount; (b) percent by sectors in 2010 [31].

Fig. 7

Water withdrawal and its forecasted trend of (a) continents; (b) sectors [30].

Fig. 8

World water withdrawal and consumption trends [30].

Fig. 9

Water withdrawal and consumption trends in (a) Europe; (b) S. America; (c) Asia; (d) Africa; (e) N. America; (f) Oceania [30].

Fig. 10

Irrigation water consumption and withdrawal (a) continents; (b) regions [21].

Fig. 11

Some countries experiencing water scarcity and projections [12].

Fig. 12

Population and per capital water status around Euphrates, Nile and Okavango [50].

Fig. 13

Water desalination (a) technology; (b) capacity at different regions (c) feed capacity and (d) feed distribution at different regions.

Fig. 14

Water desalination share in some countries [12].