Renewable Energy Desalination

Renewable Energy Desalination 

Article Link: http://water.usgs.gov/edu/drinkseawater.html

Water desalination isn’t so much new or modern in terms of how to desalinate salt water so it becomes drinkable. The process on what is used and how it's used to create freshwater makes and creates this need to commercialize seawater to freshwater. that's needed for the water to evaporate, and provide these renewable resources effectively. 

Majority of the world needs access to fresh water and developing ways to create ease in accessibility to resources to be able to take sea water, or applying the same method in areas that are in arid regions of the world.

Some desalination facts (from the USGS Water School)

• It is estimated that some 30% of the world's irrigated areas suffer from salinity problems and remediation is seen to be very costly.

• In 2002 there were about 12,500 desalination plants around the world in 120 countries. They produce some 14 million cubic meters/day of freshwater, which is less than 1% of total world consumption.

• The most important users of desalinated water are in the Middle East, (mainly Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain), which uses about 70% of worldwide capacity; and in North Africa (mainly Libya and Algeria), which uses about 6% of worldwide capacity.

• Among industrialized countries, the United States is one of the most important users of desalinated water, especially in California and parts of Florida. The cost of desalination has kept desalination from being used more often.

Questions:

How can we make freshwater more accessible worldwide?
How does the commercialization of freshwater affect its accessibility?
How can we utilizing these renewal resources that generate the energy that is needed to supply freshwater, to make it accessible around the world?