Energy and Water are Linked

As I was standing in line last night waiting to vote I decided to make use of my time and think about the water crisis that is emerging on our planet. The Earth has plenty of water, just not much water that you can drink. Desalinization would seem to be the answer. The problem is that it is energy intensive. Presently it is difficult to justify the cost of desalinization when equated with the world’s growing energy demands and the need to reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. I recently just heard the news that China will pass the U.S. in greenhouse gas emissions by 2009. So as I see it energy and water are the two most pressing technological issues that we currently face.

Our natural desalinization process uses energy from the sun evaporate water from the oceans and form clouds that subsequently rain down fresh water for us. We already have a system in place. The problem is that the water is not getting to the places where we need it. What we need are water pipelines just like we have oil or natural gas pipelines. We need to value water as much as we value fire. Perhaps this would restore some balance and improve the quality of life for so many around the globe. I think the key is that we need to recognize the link between water and energy and create cyclical system for the two to feed each other, for example, generate energy from water and water from energy.