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> Agricultural is 80-90% in the states for instance

Actually, irrigation uses less than 40% of water in the US. The largest use is thermoelectric power generation. [0]

[0] https://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/2018/3035/fs20183035.pdf



The majority of that water is surface water - that is only used for consumption if there is no suitable groundwater reservoir, and it is returned. So the environmental impact is less that irrigation as that removes the water from the source.


Interesting. It’s not like water used for thermoelectric cooling becomes compromised. In many cases don’t they just return it directly to the supply after it cools down?




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