Water Resources: A Determining Factor for Sustainability

Abstract

Written by an animal scientist, this article characterizes the hydrological cycle and its role in sustaining life, describing the distribution of water among oceans, continental waters, and atmospheric vapor. The author presents comparative figures on per capita freshwater availability by country, noting that Colombia far exceeds nations such as Spain or South Korea, thanks to an average annual rainfall of 3,000 mm. The text analyzes the role of vegetation cover, particularly forests, as regulators of the water cycle and protectors against erosion, contrasting this with the deterioration caused by commercial monocultures, and concludes with a critique of Free Trade Agreements as an additional pressure factor on water ecosystems.