Recycle the Liquids

Nicholas Frey

Clean water, safe for consumption. In some countries this resource is very low and in other countries that have an abundant supply that clean, safe water means nothing to them. From the blog Recycling Water the author says that water can be recycled just like any other material. The point the author of Recycling Water is trying to get across is that recycling water is something homeowners and companies should try to get in to. The argument in support of recycling water in the article is supported by different facts and opinions that every day normal people would have a hard time to disagree with due to the moral concept of humans having the responsibility to take care of the planet. Evidence provided by the authors argument is the multiple uses water has once being recycled including real examples of where water recycling is being done and reasons why water recycling should be used.

In this argument the author first informs the reader about the topic of how water can be reused instead of letting the earth have to deal with our waste. Used water can be reused to water gardens and house plants. The author also lists that agricultural and landscape irrigation could be other ways to reuse water. This is one possibility and a great way to reuse water but there are many more ways that humans can recycle water. The author also gives notice to the fact that some companies even reuse their water onsite in cooling systems. These are all good examples for someone that doesn't know where to start with water recycling; although the author should really expand on more ways that people can keep reusing their water. Such as, using rain water to wash a car or use the rain water to wash dishes. With using recycled water there are limits though. An example of this is water sewage. People should not try to treat water that contains waste at their homes because the possible contaminations that could be involved. With that being said, the author does state that the most common way we reuse water is sending out waste water or sewage to a treatment plant where it does go undergo treatment and is purified. Overall the author could have spent a bit more time talking how we, as humans, can still do more to recycle our water.

Reusing water like sewage or waste water requires the water must be treated before it is reused or even let back into the environment safely. The author shares with the readers an example of two lakes in the Unites States of America that have treatment plants just outside of the city to help treat the water so that down the river there won’t be contamination. These rivers are the Colorado River and the Mississippi River. Treating the water is crucial for the environment because it takes a lot longer to naturally break down what humans put into the water, also what we put into our water can be dangerous for the environment. Humans also should help and speed up the process so that less worry is placed on running out of usable water. Even with the two examples, the author should have expanded on other ways that cities could be helping with water recycling. The author should have expanded on his final idea, that planning should involve a beneficial factor of recycling water. Also the author should have included different substances humans put in the water and how this waste water has damaged ecosystems. If the author would have added this extra information his argument would have came across a lot stronger in this area of his argument.

With the authors last point of his argument about water recycling the author shares where and how water recycling has helped in the environment. With this the author also shares that we should still work to cut back in waste water being let into the environment. If municipalities can fix this issue of contaminated or dirty water being placed into the environment humans can help water pollution decrease and help repair habitats. All of these issues the author touches on in his blog. These points made this part of the argument strong and easy to understand. If this part of the argument wasn't strong the author would lose the overall effect of his argument. This part of the argument was to make the readers notice that our water waste damages and even destroys habitats. So by having a strong effect the author can and did pull the whole argument together in the end making the reader think and reflect on themselves about their water waste.

This all comes to the final paragraph that pulls the author’s argument together. The author’s last paragraph summarizes into this: people should rethink water recycling and water laws because there are other people that don't have the luxury to have as much water and we should be knowledgeable about how we use ours. This is a great way for the author to conclude on because it restates that people should think and act on recycling their water. With this the author finishes the blog and the reader is left thinking about how they use water and how major this topic is.

In conclusion water recycling is something people should all look into and participate in; and this topic was successfully touched on by the author of the blog Recycling Water. The earth’s surface is covered by 75% water and of that only 2.5% of that water is fresh water (UN). Knowing the issue of water is important and needs to be taken seriously.


References

Recycling water [Web log message]. (2010, October 16). Retrieved from http://www.theenvironmentalblog.org/2010/10/recycling-water/

Water resources. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.unwater.org/statistics_res.html