Abundant water from an unexpected source

A huge reservoir, partly of fresh water and partly of brackish water, was discovered under the ocean floor. When the sources of water available to the human population dwindle, the reservoir discovered will be able to satisfy the future needs of the growing human population.

Much has been said and written about the precious commodity without which there is no life. Is it possible that in the future we will have water at our disposal that until now was not known to exist? Researchers from Australia believe that the possibility exists.

A huge reservoir, partly of fresh water and partly of brackish water, was discovered under the ocean floor. When the sources of water available to the human population dwindle, the reservoir discovered will be able to satisfy the future needs of the growing human population.

According to "Nature" the amount of water is estimated at about 500,000 cubic kilometers of low salinity water buried under the continental shelf (in the oceans) around the world. This amount of water is hundreds of times greater than the amount of water that was pumped (from terrestrial sources) in the twentieth century, according to Researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia (Flinders University).

Amounts of drinking water in particular and fresh water in general are dwindling and according to the researchers from the National Center for Groundwater Research and Training "the discovery of the reservoir that is not far from the coasts is exciting and exciting", a discovery that provides additional alternatives that can be used to mitigate the effects of seasons dryness and drought.

According to the UN water agencies: in the last century, water use increased at twice the rate of population growth, mainly due to increasing demand for irrigating agricultural fields and raising farm animals for meat. Already today about 40% of the world's population lives in conditions of lack of water. According to UN estimates, by 2030, 47% of the population will be in a situation of "severe water shortage".

Before the report in Nature, underwater water reservoirs were considered rare, but according to the researchers, a combination of data and findings show that "finding living water under the seabed is not rare but common." The researchers explain that the aquifers were formed hundreds of thousands of years ago when the sea level was much lower and large areas absorbed rainwater that was concentrated underground.

When the polar waters began to melt, about 20,000 years ago, the coastlines disappeared under seawater, most of the aquas are trapped between layers of clay and other sediments and therefore remained protected and undamaged. In certain places and cases there is fresh water, but there are cases where sea water has penetrated the water bodies and then the water is brackish. Since already today residents in large areas depend on seawater desalination, it is clear that brackish water desalination is cheaper and more worthwhile. According to the researchers, the water can be pumped using the same method used today in pumping oil.

It is clear that the use of oil extraction technology makes the water expensive, and it will also be necessary to be careful not to allow seawater to enter the waters, which may harm the precious resource, since the waters are of "fossilized" water that will only be renewed when the sea level drops (which will not happen for hundreds or perhaps thousands the next few years).

When the time comes and it becomes necessary (and economically feasible) to use the discovered water, humanity must learn from the waste of the precious resource in the past and use the waters carefully. As the explorers say: "This time we must act carefully and show that we are able to be responsible in utilizing the precious waters"

And I will add (as usual) that the time has come that instead of controlling the environment for the sake of the human population, there will be control of the human population for the sake of the environment!