Water conservation and management

Geography glossary

Topic: Water Resources of India: Availability, Use and Conservation · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Water Resources"

Meaning

Water conservation and management means a set of steps to keep enough freshwater available as demand keeps rising. The main steps are:

  • water-saving technology;
  • controlling pollution;
  • watershed development, meaning care of the whole area that drains into a stream;
  • rainwater harvesting;
  • recycling and reuse of water;
  • conjunctive use, meaning using surface water and groundwater together;
  • linking river basins;
  • above all, pricing water so that people do not waste it.

These steps matter because India's usable water is limited, and farming alone uses 89% of surface water and 92% of groundwater.

Example

Pollution control is part of the effort. The CPCB (Central Pollution Control Board) checks water quality at 507 stations. It finds that the Yamuna between Delhi and Etawah is the most polluted stretch.

Don't confuse with

  • Watershed management: it is only one part of water conservation. It focuses on stopping runoff and recharging groundwater within one drainage area.

Related concepts

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