Thirst...

Thanks to my mom for sending me this video. These things always make me think, so of course I need to comment... or at least record my thoughts.

The video is pretty good! I believe that being more efficient is always a good idea. However, the pessimism makes me want to seek solutions. While they point out how much water is wasted in the US - because we take its availability for granted - we have a lot of room for conservation without great expense.

If conservation fails or comes too late, several technologies are waiting in the wings. These technologies are currently cost prohibitive because water is still highly available. Once fresh water becomes too expensive or impossible to extract from the traditional sources, desalinization becomes one attractive option. Here is another clever, simple, and cheap technology for collecting freshwater:

watercone

I think that many continental water issues can be solved through more efficient means of distribution. While the Los Angeles basin can only support 1 million people, it supports far more with help from the Colorado River. Perth receives much of its water from reservoirs, but has also begun to desalinate seawater.

Being right next to the Great Lakes spoils us in the midwest. Water is rarely a concern in Chicago, but without a way to share our water with Los Angeles (or Perth) there is little incentive to conserve.

It's a good thing people are thinking about this stuff!