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Desalination and water reuse to address global water scarcity

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Abstract

The act of ensuring freshwater is considered the most essential and basic need for humanity. Although the planet is water-rich in some terms, the freshwater sources available for human consumption and beneficial uses are very limited. Excess population growth, industrial development coupled with improving living standards have caused an unprecedented need for freshwater all over the world. Regions once rich in water resources are struggling to meet the ever increasing demands in recent years. In addition, climate change and unsustainable management practices have led to a situation called “drought” in many regions. Water supplies in drought conditions can be addressed by taking two major approaches related to management and technology development. The management approaches include demand mitigation and supply enhancement. Demand mitigation can be done by implementing water conservation practices, and by enforcing a mechanism to influence user-responsible behavior through higher water fares and other billing routes. Supply enhancement can be achieved by utilizing the methods available for water reclamation, reuse and recycle including rain harvesting. This paper provides a critical insight of the causes for drought and the issues caused by persistent drought conditions followed by discussion of management and technological approaches required to maintain adequate water resources around the world. Challenges and opportunities involved in implementation of desalination and water reuse technologies in addressing global water scarcity are discussed in detail with case studies

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Acknowledgements

This research was partially supported by the Grant, SU 836130 from the United States Environmental Protection Agency and research grants from the United States Geological Survey, and New Mexico Water Resources Research Institute. The author appreciates the support received from the Office of Research and Economic Development (ORED), Bagley College of Engineering (BCoE), and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) at Mississippi State University.

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  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Mississippi State University, 501 Hardy Road, Mississippi State, MS, 39762, USA

    Veera Gnaneswar Gude

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Correspondence to Veera Gnaneswar Gude.

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Gude, V.G. Desalination and water reuse to address global water scarcity. Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol 16, 591–609 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-017-9449-7

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