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Show Wherever water demand exceeds 500 gallons per dollar of value added by manufacture, the installation and operation costs for water supply become a substantial element in the over-all costs. Water quality, of minor importance in some in- dustries, is a primary factor in brewing, distilling, soft drink manufacture, synthetic fiber, produc- tion, biological and pharmaceutical manufacture, and food processing. In order to secure water of uniform quality and temperature, many industries use ground water. Serious problems have developed in areas where a number of industries with high water requirements have clustered in a compact area and have overdrawn the ground water. This has led to special studies of ground water re- sources, recharging, control of drilling, and other conservation measures that need continuing at- tention. The Geological Survey has made a significant contribution to industry and to urban communi- ties in connection with these ground water ex- plorations. Some of the States have expanded their facilities for this purpose, among them Ohio, where the pumpage of ground water by industries greatly exceeds that pumped by municipalities. Over a 4-year period data were gathered from every known industrial and commercial estab- lishment in the State where private ground water supplies had been developed. Records were made of the amount of water pumped, its use, pumping rates, depth and kind of wells, static levels, and logs of formations. Pumpage in- ventories are kept current. Universal applica- tion of this procedure should go far to warn of ground water crises in the future. Industry too frequently and for too long a period has taken water for granted. Is Sea Water Usable? Much has been said and written about the necessity for converting sea water into fresh water in order to relieve surface water and ground water shortages. There can be no question that fresh water can be produced from sea water. It has been done for years by ships at sea, on remote islands, and during World War II to provide water supply for troops. In its present state of development it is a high-cost method of securing potable water, many times higher than present municipal water costs and wasteful of the Na- tion's energy resources. This need not interfere in any way, however, with the wider use of sea water along our coasts by industries for cooling and other purposes. Inspection of figure 11 indicates that domes- tic and industrial water supply use only a small percentage of the Nation's available water supply. When need arises, large quantities of water may be conveyed long distances at relatively low unit costs. Water is brought to Los Angeles more than 300 miles from the Sierra Nevada Moun- tains to the north and from the Colorado River more than 300 miles to the east. The problems of water supply for our large cities and groups of cities can be met by long aqueducts at a fraction of the cost of distilling sea water. Purification and Contamination All natural waters contain some mineral and organic matter in suspension or in solution. While it is true that water purification processes are available to treat most natural waters and make them safe and satisfactory for domestic and industrial use, the cost of such treatment may become burdensome. Waterworks operators, therefore, are interested in all of the factors of watershed protection, land management, storage river maintenance, and best practical pollution control of both surface and ground water. Communities and industries which treat water before using it pour their wastes into streams, adding to the problems of other water users downstream. When these phases of contamination are better understood by our people, we may look forward to closer community cooperation in their elimination. If clean rivers are maintained as proper habi- tats for fish and wildlife and for recreational use, then, in most cases, the water may readily be treated for domestic and industrial purposes. It should be pointed out, however, that a uniform. 179 |
