We are almost helpless to produce the rain that will replenish surface and subterranean water supplies. Although most of the Earth is covered by water, not enough concentrated efforts are being made to find better ways to make that water potable. Experts tell us the best hope for assuring water supplies is through desalination, but only a tiny amount of research is being done in this area. We are also not doing enough to prevent contamination of the existing water supply, as witness the debate over pollutants that enter our rivers and bays. We have a glut of oil these days, largely because Asian and other economies have been so depressed they have reduced need for petroleum products.
Gasoline remains cheap in the United States compared with almost every other part of the world.
So no one hesitates to buy trucks, sport utility vehicles and other gas guzzlers, making us even more dependent on imports from volatile parts of the world. Those same petroleum products also are being used for home heating, manufacturing and products. Far too little is being done to assure reuse of recyclable products. Far too little is being spent on finding alternate sources of energy such as solar and wind power. We can t even rely on our power supply company when a glitch occurs in a power plant or the temperature and humidity get a little high for a few days.