ConserveOnline - Meeting Ecological and Societal Needs for Freshwater

Meeting Ecological and Societal Needs for Freshwater

View This File (PDF • 195 Kb)

(Not Yet Rated) Add A Rating

DESCRIPTION

Human society has used freshwater from rivers, lakes, groundwater, and wetlands for many different urban, agricultural, and industrial activities, but in doing so has overlooked its value in supporting ecosystems. Freshwater is vital to human life and societal well-being, and thus its utilization for consumption, irrigation, and transport has long taken precedence over other commodities and services provided by freshwater ecosystems. However, there is growing recognition that functionally intact and biologically complex aquatic ecosystems provide many economically valuable services and long-term benefits to society. The short-term benefits include ecosystem goods and services, such as food supply, flood control, purification of human and industrial wastes, and habitat for plant and animal lifeâand these are costly, if not impossible, to replace. Long-term benefits include the sustained provision of those goods and services, as well as the adaptive capacity of aquatic ecosyst

CREATION DATE	August 1, 2008
LAST MODIFIED	August 1, 2008
CREATED BY	diedre paterno pai
KEYWORDS	freshwater; human well being; sustainable freshwater ecosystems; people and nature
LICENSE	Attribution Non-Commercial