ES2WW3

Commercialization of Water Introduction to the Great Lakes

Water as a commodity
Not just a recent phenomena Real and Virtual Water Real water is the raw resource; includes bulk water, bottled water Virtual water is the volume of water that is used to grow or create products: e.g., it takes 32,000 L of water to produce 1 car!

International Water Trading

Trade in real water driven by bottled water Increased until recently Reduction in bottled water sales Improved public supplies Canada exports more water than it imports Advantages and Disadvantages of bottled water?

Worldwide Exports of Water, 2002

Worldwide Imports of Water, 2002

Virtual Water Hypothesis

Idea that countries can overcome domestic water shortages by importing resources Problem: Over-exploitation of shared resources can lead to water conflicts May actually reduce water efficiency Encourages some countries to produce export crops which deplete local water resources

Net Virtual Water Imports

Virtual Water
Originally suggested as a means to solve water supply issues Water Footprint total amount of water used in production of goods and services Issues of water scarce regions exporting water-intensive crops (e.g. flowers) International trade creates interdependence between countries

Average national water footprint per person

Three water footprints

Green water footprint volume of rainwater evaporated. Blue water footprint volume of surface or groundwater evaporated.

Grey water footprint volume of polluted water.

The water footprint of a consumer

Virtual water flow

Farmer

Food processer

Virtual water flow

Virtual water flow

Retailer

Consumer

green grey and water blue water use

blue grey water water use

blue grey water water use

blue grey water water use

Indirect WF

Direct WF

[Hoekstra, 2008]

Water footprint of biofuels from different crops [litre/litre]

[Gerbens-Leenes, Hoekstra & Van der Meer, 2009]

Water footprint response strategies

Response Strategies for Local Water Footprint & Impacts Reduction Water Footprint Sustainability Assessment Sustainable, equitable, efficient water use; water stewardship

Instruments to Drive Water Footprint & Impacts Reduction

The Great Lakes: Introduction,

What are the main characteristics of the system?

The largest system of fresh, surface water on Earth Contains roughly 18% of the world supply Home to more than 25% of the population of Canada One of the largest concentrations of industrial capacity are located in the region Have played a major role in the history and development of the United States and Canada Home to more than 10% of the population of the U.S.

Pollution and the Great Lakes

Sensitive to the effects of a wide range of pollutants due to large surface area of the lakes runoff of farm chemicals from agricultural lands waste from cities discharges from industrial areas leachate from disposal sites fall with rain or snow and as dust on the lake surface (atmospheric) Outflows from the Great Lakes: relatively small less than 1% per year pollutants that enter the lakes retained in the system become more concentrated with time biomagnification

Lake Superior

The largest, the deepest and coldest Has a retention time of 191 years -a measure based on the volume of water in the lake and the mean rate of outflow

Most of the basin is forested, with little agriculture because of a cool climate and poor soils
Relatively few pollutants enter the Lake except through airborne transport

Lake Michigan
The second largest
Entirely within the U.S. One of the most productive Great Lakes fisheries Northern part in the colder, less developed upper Great Lakes region Receives wastes from the world's largest concentration of pulp and paper mills Southern basin: more temperate Among the most urbanized area Home to about 20% of the total population of the basin

Lake Huron

Cottage destination for many Canadians and Americans Includes Georgian Bay The third largest of the lakes by volume The Saginaw River basin: intensively farmed and contains the Flint and Saginaw-Bay City metropolitan areas Saginaw Bay: very productive fishery.

Lake Erie

The smallest and shallowest (19 m avg. depth) of the lakes

Area is intensively farmed-Greatest effects from urbanization and agriculture Warms rapidly in the spring and summer, and frequently freezes over in winter The shortest retention time: 2.6 years The shallowest of the five lakes: 19 m on average

Lake Ontario

Major urban industrial centers: Hamilton, Toronto

Discharges into the St Lawrence River

Geology of the Great Lakes

Foundation was set about 3 billion years ago, during the Precambrian era About 5/6 of all geological time a period of great volcanic activity formed great mountain systems eroded today: the Canadian Shield Paleozoic Era: most of central North America: were covered by tropical seas life forms: corals, crinoids, brachiopods and mollusks Sediments consolidated into limestone, shales, sandstone, halite and gypsum Pleistocene: continental glaciers repeatedly advanced over the Great Lakes region from the north Valleys created by the river systems formed the basins for the Great Lakes

Mineral Resources
Uranium

Copper & Zinc Gold & Silver Coal Gas & Oil Nickel Iron ore

Soils of the Great Lakes

North and South differ greatly

North: cold climate thin layer of acidic soils -terrain dominated by granite bedrock
South: legacy of glaciers South basin: warm climate beach ridges, eroded bluffs, flat plains above present lake levels deposited as glacial drift or as glacial lake and river sediments Lands: fertile and can be drained for agriculture

Climates of the Great Lakes

Affected by 3 factors:
1) air masses from other regions 2) location of the basin within a large continental landmass 3)moderating influence of the lakes themselves Prevailing movement of air is from the west Changeable weather of the region is result of alternating flows of warm, humid air from the Gulf of Mexico and cold, dry air from the Arctic

Climates of the Great Lakes (2)

Northern region receives cool, dry air masses from the Canadian northwest Temperature inversions: upper layer of Gulf air traps the cooler air below traps moisture and airborne pollutants prevents them from rising and dispersing South: tropical air masses originating in the Gulf of Mexico are most influential can result in dank, humid days in areas in the midst of the basin (Michigan and Southern Ontario) can also cause smog in low-lying industrial areas

Climates of the Great Lakes (3)

Winter: region affected by two
major air masses Arctic air from the northwest: very cold and dry when it enters the basin warms and picks up moisture traveling over warmer lakes reaches the land: moisture condenses as snow Pacific air masses that have lost much of their moisture while crossing the Rockies creates heavy snowfalls on the lee side of the lakes Less frequently: air masses from the Gulf of Mexico

Lake Effect Snow

Produced in the winter when cold winds move across long bodies of warmer lake water Effect is enhanced when the moving air mass is uplifted by the orographic effect of higher elevations on the downwind shores