Q1. Consider the following statements:
1.On the planet Earth, the fresh water available for use amounts to about less than 1% of the total water found.
2.Of the total fresh water found on the planet Earth 95% is bound up in polar ice caps and glaciers.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
1.On the planet Earth, the fresh water available for use amounts to about less than 1% of the total water found.
2.Of the total fresh water found on the planet Earth 95% is bound up in polar ice caps and glaciers.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Explanation
Statement 1 is correct: About 97.5% of Earth’s water is saltwater found in oceans. The remaining 2.5% is freshwater. Most of it is locked in glaciers, ice caps, or deep underground. Only about 0.3% of total freshwater is readily available in rivers, lakes, and accessible groundwater for human use. Since 0.3% of 2.5% is less than 1% of total water, this confirms that freshwater available for use is indeed less than 1%.
Statement 2 is incorrect: Around 68.7% of all freshwater is stored in ice caps and glaciers, primarily in the Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets. The remaining freshwater is found in groundwater, rivers, and lakes. The volume of water in rivers and lakes combined is only about 0.3% of the total freshwater available.