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QUESTION 6 Lack of Access to Water for Irrigation and Drinking Is a Growing Human Problem As the human population has grown, fresh water has become scarce in many regions of the world. Additionally, contaminated, untreated drinking water is a major problem in developing countries, where over 1 billion people drink it. Impure water spreads diseases that kill millions of children each year. In both Africa and India, where water contamination poses significant threats, people are starting to use sunlight to kill disease-causing organisms. They place water in plastic bottles and shake them to increase the oxygen levels in the water. Then they put the bottles in a sunny spot, allowing the combination of oxygen, warmth, and ultraviolet (UV) light to create free radicals that kill bacteria. With no technology other than plastic bottles, these people are generating safe drinking water. Currently, about 10% of the world's food is grown on crop land irrigated with water drawn from aquifers, which are natural underground reservoirs. Unfortunately, in many areas of the world-including China, India, Northern Africa, and the Midwestern United States-this groundwater is being "mined" for agriculture; that is, it is removed faster than itis replenished. Parts of the High Plains aquifer, which extends from the Texas Panhandle north to South Dakota, have been depleted by about 50%. In India, two-thirds of crops are grown using underground water for irrigation, draining aquifers far faster than they are being replenished. One promising solution is to devise ways of trapping the heavy monsoon rains, whose water usually pours into rivers and eventually into the ocean. People of a village in India have found that by digging a series of holding ponds, they can capture rainwater that would formerly run off. Their system allows the water to percolate down into the soil and helps replenish the underground water supplies. During the dry season, the people can then tap these supplies for irrigation.

Which question would best help you find all the major supporting details of the above paragraph?
A. How is lack of access to water for irrigation different from the lack of access to water for drinking?
B. Is one country responsible for the lack of access to water for irrigation and drinking?
C. What has caused the growing human problem of lack of access to water for irrigation and drinking?
D. Is the lack of access to water for irrigation and drink a growing problem?​

User Veeman
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Final answer:

The lack of access to water for irrigation and drinking is a growing human problem. The water crisis is compounded by overpopulation, climate change, water overuse, and pollution. Innovative solutions such as capturing rainwater can help replenish underground water supplies.

Step-by-step explanation:

One of the most important environmental goals is to provide clean water to all people. Water availability is complicated by its uneven distribution over the Earth, with arid climates and densely populated areas causing water shortages. Human activities such as water overuse and pollution have compounded the water crisis, leading to millions of people lacking access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation.

The global water crisis involves both the lack of access to water for irrigation and drinking, with contaminated water spreading diseases that kill millions of children each year. Plastic bottle systems using sunlight to kill disease-causing organisms have been used in countries like Africa and India to generate safe drinking water. Groundwater is being depleted faster than it is replenished in many areas, leading to the need for innovative solutions such as capturing rainwater to replenish underground reservoirs.

User SethGunnells
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