The Future Of Water And Its Impact On The Future

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The environment, particularly water, is often overlooked when analyzing economic growth, however due to the steady decline of the world’s water supply; many are beginning to see its impact on all economic markets. The economic future of the world with less and less water presents many challenges to both small businesses and large governments and will change the economic market at both the microeconomic and macroeconomic level. A world with an extreme water crisis is not a far-fetched thought, especially well into the future like the year 2116. A study group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology expect “5 billion (52 percent) of the world’s projected 9.7 billion people to live in water-stressed areas by 2050”, and coupled with a larger …show more content…

Companies rely on water just as much as the individual person does, water is essential to not only life by how a company runs, which is why it will have a drastic impact on economics at the lowest level. A water decreases in supply, businesses will have to place a higher priority on the management of their water resources. Initially water was seen as a “free raw material”, but now that the “marginal cost of water is rising around the world” many companies have begun to shift their perception of the commodity. Christopher Gasson, publisher of Global Water Intelligence stated, “Previously, water was treated as a free raw material. Now, companies are realizing it can damage their brand, their credibility, their credit rating and their insurance costs. That applies to a computer chipmaker and a food company as much as a power generator or a petrochemicals company.” These consequences may also apply to individuals as well. As the water supply drops, governments and companies will begin to change individual incentives to promoting water preservation and reuse. However, one benefit that may come about from the declining water supply will be the demand for individuals with a background in environmental engineering, as more companies will seek to lessen their negative environmental footprint. By doing so, this again changes individual

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