Water scarcity

• Title of extract: China’s Climate Emissions Are Global Issue, But Water Scarcity Is Greater Domestic Priority
• Source of extract: Circle of Blue Water news
• Date of extract: October 7, 2010
• Categories: scarcity

Key Points:

• Quick economic expansion in China has pulled about 400 million out of poverty
• China has about 163 trillion gallons of water available
• Projected demand for water in 2030: 215 trillion gallons
• “Rising water consumption associated with socio-economic development increasingly strains China’s freshwater ecosystems, challenging traditional water resource management.”
• “..the most critical economic and environmental question in China today, said Yang and Kejun, is whether there is enough water for China to continue its stunning modernization.”
• Coal production and consumption account for most of the increase in demand
• “…more investments in wind power and solar photovoltaics, which do not use water…”

Economic Connections:

• Concept of Scarcity
• Economic Growth and Development