Living with Water: Targeting Quality in a Dynamic World

214 Pages·2013·3.68 MB·English

by  Paul Pechan, Gert E. de Vries (eds.)

L iving with Water
P aul P echan ● G ert E. d e Vries
E ditors
L iving with Water
T argeting Quality in a Dynamic World
E ditors
P aul P echan G ert E. d e Vries
Department of Communications P roBio Partners VOF
and Media Research O verschild
L udwig Maximilians University T he Netherlands
M unich, G ermany
I SBN 978-1-4614-3751-2 I SBN 978-1-4614-3752-9 (eBook)
D OI 10.1007/978-1-4614-3752-9
S pringer New York Heidelberg Dordrecht London
L ibrary of Congress Control Number: 2012951433
© Springer Science+Business Media New York 2 013
T his work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifi c ally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfi l ms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection
with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifi c ally for the purpose of being entered and
executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this
publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher’s
location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Permissions
for use may be obtained through RightsLink at the Copyright Clearance Center. Violations are liable to
prosecution under the respective Copyright Law.
T he use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specifi c statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
W hile the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of
publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for
any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with
respect to the material contained herein.
P rinted on acid-free paper
S pringer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)
F oreword
T his book is primarily about the quality of the world’s waters. It provides an overview
of the challenges of providing water of good quality to the world’s growing population.
Water resources are limited, and their proper use must cater not only to the needs of our
population but also to the needs of all other living organisms on this planet.
A t present, we use about 10% of the world’s water, sourced from rivers and
groundwater. Signifi c ant losses occur during the delivery of water to their fi n al des-
tinations. The demand for water is growing, driven primarily by global population
growth and improved living standards.
T he amount of water we use depends on the quantity and quality of water avail-
able. This book concentrates on the latter—its quality. There are many pressures
affecting efforts to provide clean water. One example is the need to explore and
harvest natural resources, such as oil or metals, with the associated risk of water
pollution. P ressure to provide clean water is further increased by the sheer size of
the human population, which is increasingly concentrated in coastal cities. Growing
demand for food also leads to increased use of pest-control chemicals for farm
crops, which can contaminate water supplies. Another contributor to large-scale
global pollution is consumer demand and countries’ buying power. The processes
involved in producing products often cause pollution. Innovative water treatment
technologies and reuse of treated waters are fast becoming a necessity to keep pace
with the need to use clean water in a sustainable way and then return the used water
to the environment in a safe manner. Climate change also contributes to pressure on
the water systems. Aside from often-mentioned problems relating to CO and the
2
warming of our planet, headwaters, rivers, and oceans are becoming increasingly
acidic and eutrophic as the result of CO , nitrogen, and sulfur overloads.
2
T his book addresses the many water-related issues at both technological and
scientifi c levels. For example, new technologies are being developed to treat waste-
water, and innovative monitoring approaches help scientists assess water quality
risks. Risk assessments are urgently needed for a variety of reasons, such as helping
to draft new legislation or assessing the impact of existing regulations.
v
vi Foreword
T he material in this book takes us on a scientifi c and technological journey from
mountain headwaters to rivers and estuaries, leading to the sea. Each of the fi v e
chapters includes background information on the water sources and the specifi c
challenges they face. The chapters then continue with a discussion of the effects of
pollution and the actions needed to address them. Finally, future trends are
discussed.
C ontents
1 Living with Water .................................................................................. 1
Paul Pechan and Gert E. de Vries
2 Mountain Waters as Witnesses of Global Pollution ............................ 31
Jordi Catalan, Mireia Bartrons, Lluis Camarero, and Joan O. Grimalt
3 Pollutants in Freshwater: The Case of Pharmaceuticals ................... 69
Anja Coors and Thomas Knacker
4 Wastewaters Are Not Wastes ................................................................ 101
Gert E. de Vries and Antonio Lopez
5 The Oceans and Their Challenge to Conserve
Marine Biodiversity ............................................................................... 143
Róisín Nash
Index ................................................................................................................ 195
vii
L ist of Figures
Fig. 1.1 Main abiotic locations of water ....................................................... 5
Fig. 1.2 Water cycle: the circle of life (Adapted from the US
Geological Survey water cycle presentation) .................................. 6
Fig. 1.3 Main effects of key drivers (pressures) influencing water
quantity and quality. ........................................................................ 10
Fig. 1.4 Water resources, taking into account local availability
and requirements (Adapted from Smakhtin et al. 2004) ................. 15
Fig. 1.5 Percentage of total water supplies withdrawn for agriculture
in relation to population growth (Adapted from: http://meat-matters.
blogspot.com/2010/10/agriculture-water-use-and-population.html) ... 17
Fig. 1.6 Water pollution sources ................................................................... 20
Fig. 2.1 Mountain waters in the water cycle ................................................ 33
Fig. 2.2 Latitudinal changes in the elevation distribution of the
main mountain belts: nival, alpine, and montane. Based on
Korner and Paulsen 2004 ................................................................ 34
Fig. 2.3 Lake sediments hold a record of the processes occurring in the
lake: the fluvial network, its catchment, and the atmospheric
influence .......................................................................................... 39
Fig. 2.4 Paleolimnological techniques make possible accurate
reconstruction of regional metal pollution. The depth profiles of
lead in the upper sediment of Lake Redon (Pyrenees)
are illustrated. (Source: Camarero et al. 1998) ............................... 40
Fig. 2.5 Temporal overview of acidification of European mountain
waters. (Source: Wright et al. 2005) ............................................... 42
Fig. 2.6 Rise and fall of emissions in Europe during the period
1880–2030. as estimated by Schöpp et al. (2003)
(Source: (Wright et al. 2005) .......................................................... 42
Fig. 2.7 Microfossil remains of aquatic organisms (e.g., diatoms)
are used for reconstructing past environments ................................ 45
ix