Annual rainfall amount of Korea (1,245mm/1yr) seems to be higher than one of the world average of 880mm per year. Nevertheless, holding rituals for rain, our ancestors have farmed so far. The reason is so simply. There have been no adequately enough vessel to store the rainwater falling down abruptly in seasonally short time (70% of annual rainfall). Fortunately, thanks to have equipped big and small reservoirs and striven in forest conservation nationally under governmental encouragement, we could escape from long repetition of ritual for rain. Even though, in order to let people enjoy more affluent cultural lifestyle, we have to provide more abundant and clean water for consumption of residential and industrial purpose.
More important reason to store much more water resource is resulted from the globally unexpected above-average temperatures and rainfall out of global warming. Since October 2009 in 5 provinces of China, 25 million people and 16 million cattle are reportedly suffering from water shortage because of extraordinarily severe drought (Bloomberg, Business Week. April 26, 2010). The Yangtze flowing along the city of Chongqing finally revealed its some riverbed; the water of reservoirs was dried up; 768 hector of agricultural land was damaged from drought. It was said that 5 million people of the Yunnan Province seemed hardly get over the scarcity of food.
Nobody knows that how hard stormy weather and burning drought would continue, and when either. This point insinuates the unpleasant future austerity that water will have been far more precious than oil. Without adequate water resource, we human being cannot do anything as well as cannot dream of building rich and powerful nation. Water cannot be substituted anything else, unlike crude oil like energy resources. Therefore the matter of securing water resource cannot be measured by money. That's why I accentuate that is crucial matter of survival like national security which we have no choice.
