Microbeads are bad news, but fortunately most of us know that by now. There has been growing resistance to the miniscule pieces of plastic, added to personal care products for their ability to exfoliate skin, or sometimes just to look pretty in a see-through bottle. These microbeads, however, wreak environmental havoc as soon as they're washed down the drain. The outcome is described here by campaign group 'Beat the Microbead':
For nearly a century, Californians have drained an incredible amount of water from the ground to grow crops and water landscaping. It is not sustainable. The water has not returned. The result is a sinking state. Here are some startling facts about California's groundwater depletion:
The bottom line is that water availability will be a major investment consideration in business expansion plans around the world.
Just one example from the United States: In Chandler, Ariz., Intel has negotiated a unique relationship with the city to clean and return water tainted by its wafer manufacturing operation back to the local aquifers. Chandler owns the technology to do this, but Intel has helped make that investment possible. Both sides benefit
most wastewater is still wasted: in high-income countries, the treatment rate is 70 percent, but it falls to just 28 percent for lower-middle-income nations and 8 percent in low-income economies.
3. Utility costs are rising quickly
4. Distribution networks are aging rapidly
Overall, the World Bank estimates the annual global value of water lost by utilities at $14 billion. The average U.S. utility pours up to 30 percent down the drain through leaks or un-billed usage.