Demand for water

Demand for Water

Factors that cause demand for water to change

Change in population size

• population may grow because of birth rate higher than death rate and immigration
• migrants may move from other countries or within a country

Change in living standards

• in poor countries where no piped supply, domestic water use may be limited to the amount that can be carried from the source (could be nearest river)
• as piped water becomes available + people become more affluent, they buy more appliances which use water e.g. washing machines and dish washers or recreational uses e.g. swimming pools.
• although modern appliances designed to use less water still link between affluence and water consumption

Industrialisation

• 
  different industries have different water requirements e.g. irrigation uses more water than all other human uses combined
• subsitence agriculture uses water naturally available, adapting type of farming if water is problem e.g. nomadic herding rather…