Natural Resources and energy paper Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Natural Resources and energy paper - Essay Example However, although there are benefits of extracting water for use as energy, there are certain risks and challenges as well that are associated with the extraction of this source of renewable energy (NRCan’s Role and Freshwater, 2010). Fresh water is one of the prime necessities for all living beings and in particular for human beings. Human beings living in the cities, or for the purposes of farming and agriculture, and in the industries, require freshwater which is the main cause for extraction of freshwater from the aquatic ecosystems. Freshwater systems provide control of floods, transportation facilities, recreation, as well as waste purification (Baron et al, 2003, pp.1-15). Extraction of freshwater includes benefits for the landscapes on earth. Freshwater aquatic ecosystems are comprised of such organisms that form the food web for other living beings. These organisms available in the freshwater are both ecologically and economically important as they are diverse in form and nature. Benthic communities refer to the lives available at the bottom of the freshwater systems constituting organisms like algae, bacteria, fungi, and other invertebrates that are capable of transforming substance and energy into livi ng forms, thus proving to be sources of food and energy of living beings on earth (Benefits of Freshwater Systems, 2013). However there are certain risks associated with such extraction of freshwater from the aquatic ecosystems as well. The benefits for the society has led to overlooking the benefits that freshwater has for the aquatic ecosystems and the living organisms present in there. With more and more extraction of this source of life and energy the quantity of freshwater required for the aquatic systems as well as for human beings is becoming limited. There is a huge demand for freshwater while the