Water is one of very few chemicals that is found as a liquid, solid and gas at any time on Earth. These three states of water help explain why ice makes a cracking sound when water is poured over it.
We all know that tap water is better than buying bottled water, from an environmental standpoint at least. But what should you drink it out of? A single-use bottle, used multiple times, might be best.
While it is true that the poorest residents of the city are not connected to the piped water network, neither are the richest. Then what causes water inequalities?
Perth is looking at recycling all its sewage in the city’s future water supply. But many Australians’ drinking water already contains indirectly recycled treated sewage.
We think of Canada as a water-rich country, but we are not immune to water shortages or disasters. With some advance planning, Canada can avoid a water catastrophe.
Perth, unlike Cape Town, faces no prospect of its tapwater running out. But other problems lurk beneath the surface, as the city’s drying climate puts increasing pressure on irrigation and wetlands.
Professor of Civil, Environmental & Ecological Engineering, Director of the Healthy Plumbing Consortium and Center for Plumbing Safety, Purdue University
Professor in Practice on Environmental Innovation, School of Social and Environmental Sustainability, University of Glasgow, UK, National University of Singapore
Associate Professor of Environmental Economics and Policy, School of Environment, Science and Engineering, and Fellow of the Marine Ecology Research Centre, Southern Cross University