Energy & Water
IS THE PROBLEM ABOUT ENERGY? OR IS IT ABOUT WATER?
The truth is, it’s about both of them. It’s about global warming too. They all add to each other, like a circle going round.
Having no fresh water means we have to use lots more energy. Using too much energy contributes to global warming. Global warming means we need more fresh water. See how it goes around?
How is electricity generated?
First, the electricity needs to be made somewhere.
Power plants make electricity by using generators. These generators use coal, gas, water or wind to produce it. Once the electricity is produced, it’s sent through a transformer, which increases the voltage so that it can be sent long distances. The transformer then sends it over high-voltage transmission lines, which run all through the country.
How is electricity generated?
And we need it an awful lot,
whether it’s for turning on the lights, watching TV, taking a shower or keeping our homes cool with AC. Without electricity, we just couldn’t live like we do today.
But have you ever wondered
where the water we use comes from?
About 75% of the surface of the earth is covered by water, but less than 3% of the water in all the world is fresh – the rest of it is salty! The sun’s heat makes water vapour evaporate from the oceans and seas, and when it reaches cooler air it condenses to form clouds. When the clouds are full of water, they release some of the water as rain, which fills rivers, lakes and streams.
With so much water in the world,
why do we need to save it?
Well, here in the UAE we hardly have any rivers, lakes or streams. Every year, we only get a tiny bit of rain. We do have some water under ground. But we’ve been pumping so much of it out that nature can’t keep up. Which means we have to look at other ways of getting water.
What is energy?
Energy is the stuff that keeps things alive and makes them go.
There are different types of energy. Electricity is only one of them, but here in the UAE, it’s the one we use for almost everything we do.
How is electricity generated?
When the electricity nears its destination,
it goes through a substation that returns it to low-voltage electricity so it can be sent over the smaller power lines that run to homes, schools and businesses. The electricity enters the building through a service panel, which is usually found in the basement or garage. This panel uses breakers or fuses to protect the wires from being overloaded. The electricity then travels through the wires in your home to the outlets and switches. So there’s always electricity for you when you need it!
Why do we need so much?
Well, it’s because our country has a very hot dry climate,
and because it’s growing so fast. As more people come to But we must remember that it doesn’t last forever. Everybody, grown-ups and children together, need to look for ways to use less of it, or one day we might very likely run out of it. Try to imagine what one single day would be like with no electricity, no AC and no lighting. We wouldn’t last long, would we?
With so much water in the world,
why do we need to save it?
So we use salt water. As we’ve said, most of the water in the world is salt water, which is not safe for drinking. To make it safe, it has to go through a very expensive process called desalination. In the UAE, all our drinking water and tap water is desalinated, which uses up a lot of electricity.
IS THE PROBLEM ABOUT ENERGY?
OR IS IT ABOUT WATER?
The truth is, it’s about both of them. It’s about global warming too. They all add to each other, like a circle going round. Having no fresh water means we have to use lots more energy. Using too much energy contributes to global warming. Global warming means we need more fresh water. See how it goes around?
With so much water in the world,
why do we need to save it?
What’s more, fresh water and salt water can’t live together – the salt water always takes over the fresh water and makes it all salty. Using all that desalinated water is likely to pollute the little bit of fresh water we have left underground. This has a serious impact on places, people and wildlife. In the UAE it will make our beaches disappear, kill our marine life and wildlife and make the nation even hotter!
IS THE PROBLEM ABOUT ENERGY?
OR IS IT ABOUT WATER?
Energy and water are so important in our lives, we really couldn’t live in the UAE without them. But we hardly ever stop to think of what life would be like without them. We take them for granted, and we waste them a lot. That is why we now have an energy and water problem and it’s getting worse. So we must learn to use energy more wisely. Have a look through this website to see how you can be a hero by helping to save energy and our planet.
