Introduction

Water collection for domestic use can be traced back to 560 BC. In those days, rainwater was collected and stored in ponds for agriculture and water supply purposes. Evidence for this is in documented literature and may be observed in visible remains of ponds.

In Study Session 1 you were introduced to the three main sources of water: groundwater, surface water and rainwater. In arid regions where seawater is accessible (such as in the Middle East), desalination (the removal of salts from water) is used to generate drinking water. Another potential source of water is treated wastewater – you will learn more about this in Study Session 11. In practice, the term ‘water source’ can be used to mean both the origin of the water and also the place where people get their water (spring, piped supply to household tap, water point, well, etc.).