Raw waste water use on farms is '50% higher' than estimated. Image copyright Nana Kofi Acquah/IWMI The global use of untreated waste water from cities to irrigate crops is much more widespread than previously estimated, says a new report. According to this updated assessment, nearly 30 million hectares are now using untreated water within 40km of an urban centre Some 800 million people, including farmers, vendors and consumers are said to be exposed to serious health risks. China, India, Pakistan, Mexico and Iran account for most of the treated land. The huge populations in big cities across the developing world make very attractive markets for farmers. The lack of refrigeration and transport means that crops need to be grown close to these consumers. Image copyright NEIL PALMER/IWMI "Some might call it sewage, but it's mostly domestic waste water, although it can contain industrial effluent," says study co-author Dr Pay Drechsel, from the International Water Management Institute (IWMI).
Image copyright Neil Palmer/IWMI. End Plastic Waste, Inc. - A Nonprofit Corporation Dedicated to Removing Plastic Waste; End Plastic Bags and Industrial Plastic Pulltion, Stop Plastic Waste, Remove Plastic Trash and Contamination, Educate the Public about Alternatives to Plastic. Global food - Waste not, want not | Institution of Mechanical Engineers. Feeding the 9 Billion: The tragedy of waste By 2075, the United Nations’ mid-range projection for global population growth predicts that human numbers will peak at about 9.5 billion people.
This means that there could be an extra three billion mouths to feed by the end of the century, a period in which substantial changes are anticipated in the wealth, calorific intake and dietary preferences of people in developing countries across the world. Such a projection presents mankind with wide-ranging social, economic, environmental and political issues that need to be addressed today to ensure a sustainable future for all. One key issue is how to produce more food in a world of finite resources. Today, we produce about four billion metric tonnes of food per annum. Yet due to poor practices in harvesting, storage and transportation, as well as market and consumer wastage, it is estimated that 30–50% (or 1.2–2 billion tonnes) of all food produced never reaches a human stomach. Developed Nations. Litter on British beaches at highest level for five years.
Overfilling kettles wastes £68m a year, says report. 3 July 2013Last updated at 23:06 ET Some 40% of people boiled water five times a day or more, the study found Three-quarters of British households overfill their kettles, wasting a total of £68m each year, an Energy Saving Trust (EST) report has suggested. The study of 86,000 households also found the average shower lasted seven-and-a-half minutes. A minute less and £215m would be saved, the EST said. Washing clothes at 30C and filling kettles to the required amount were among ways to save money, it added. It said people must not think they were "powerless to control our water use". The EST found British homes collectively used nine billion litres of water a day with showers using a quarter of that and toilets using 22%.
Kitchen appliances, such as kettles, dishwashers and washing machines - together with taps - also used 22% of household water, the report said. The study found 95% of people boiled the kettle every day with 40% boiling water five times a day or more. “Start Quote. Record breaking demolition of viaduct in China.