Uses of available water resources from a Maltese perspective

Abstract

Water resources occupy a specific place among other natural resources. Water is the most distributed substance on. our planet, in different amounts it is available everywhere and plays an important role in the surrounding environment and human life. Of most importance is freshwater which only amounts to a minimum percentage of the available local water supply as the remaining is salt water. The title of my dissertation relates to the local use of available natural water resources such as groundwater, to supply potable water as well as water for other uses, whilst showing the limitations of these natural resources particularly in view of the always increasing local population also due to tourism. I also intend to speak about other methods which are available to complement and or replace these resources such as the desalination process relating to the Reverse Osmosis and the environmental impact caused by the energy required to make them operate. Lastly I will discuss how to avoid the contamination of water resources and how to make proper use of water to avoid water wastage and also to propose alternative methods to increase the local water supply such as rainwater harvesting.