Iceland review - 2014, Side 61

ICELAND REVIEW 59
just like the importance of the state of
the ocean surrounding Iceland for the
country’s fishing industry—still the larg-
est sector in Iceland today—the abundance of
water is fundamental to many other aspects of
life in Iceland.
Iceland’s energy and heat production depend
on a ready and continuous supply of water
from the island’s glaciers—which are melting
at an accelerated rate—and rivers—the source
of hydropower—as well as underground res-
ervoirs of geothermal water for heating. These
reserves also provide hot water to fill the coun-
try’s swimming pools and hot tubs, a popular
meeting place among Icelanders. Glaciers make
up 11 percent of Iceland’s surface area and the
country’s capital, Reykjavík, receives an average
of 221 days of precipitation per year. In sum,
water—whether in lakes, rivers, underground
reservoirs or stored in ice caps—is everywhere
in Iceland.
SPArklINg rESOurcE
According to the World Bank, internal re new -
able freshwater resources total 533,000 m3 (18.8
million ft3) per person per year in Iceland—
about 60 times more than in the United States,
233 times more than in the United Kingdom
and 495 times more than in Denmark. Only
Greenland has more water per capita at
10,670,000 m3 (376.8 million ft3). On the
other end of the spectrum, Kuwait has virtual-
ly no renewable freshwater resources to speak
of. Iceland’s vast water resources, some would
argue, is greatly undervalued and underex-
ploited. In 2011, annual withdrawals came
to roughly 9,000 liters/second (l/s), thereof
2,300 l/s for general consumption, 3,000 l/s
for agriculture (which includes aquaculture)
and 3,500 l/s for industry (which includes
water used for central heating). Combined,
this equals less than 1 percent of the available
freshwater in Iceland compared to annual
withdrawals of 12 percent in the U.S. On
the other end of the extreme is Bahrain with
annual withdrawals of up to 9,000 percent.
Icelanders who’ve spent time living abroad
often say that water is one of the things they
miss the most about their home country.
According to the European Environment
Agency, about 95 percent of the country’s
drinking water is untreated groundwater
extracted from springs, wells or boreholes
while surface water makes up less than five
percent.
Few countries have as great an abundance of
freshwater as Iceland. Plentiful, pristine and cheap,
the resource holds great potential for further
development, as Zoë Robert finds out.
Clear
Blue
Water
PHOtOS BY PÁll stefÁnssOn