Contributor: Roxann Penny. Lesson ID: 12766
We can only survive a few days without drinking fresh water. There is just so much water to go around, but we can recycle "bad" water! See what it takes to go from flush to fresh and how you can help!
Did you know that water, like paper and plastic, can be recycled? Explore this lesson to learn more about water recycling and its importance to the Earth and all of us!
What is water recycling?
Water recycling is the process of treating wastewater for reuse. Wastewater is water that was once used in homes, businesses, and industrial plants, to name a few. This water is collected and treated in special treatment facilities that process the water to make it safe for reuse. Take a look at the images below. They show a waste water treatment plant.
Share your thoughts with your parent or teacher:
Although Earth's surface is mainly made up of water, only a small amount of this water is fresh water. As a result, water recycling is an essential part of conserving, or protecting, Earth's natural freshwater supplies.
Recycled water is used in many ways. For instance, recycled water is used by farmers for irrigation (watering crops), by landscapers to maintain lawns, in construction projects to control dust, and by large industries to keep machinery cool.
The recycling process for wastewater is very rigorous — this means that before wastewater is considered safe for reuse, it must meet very high safety standards, so no need to rethink that next glass of water!
Consider the following questions:
Share your ideas with your parent or teacher. Once you have completed your discussion, Tour a wastewater treatment plant in seven minutes from Wally Waterdrop. This particular plant is part of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, but is similar to other plants:
Discuss these questions with your teacher or parent.
After, your discussion, move on to the Got It? section to test your knowledge about water recycling.
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