Aqueducts - Where do they come from?
Aqueducts have been around for a long time and they will continue to exist for a much longer time. Aqueducts were first invented by the Romans in 312 BCE. The romans invented the aqueduct system because they were originally grabbing water from the Tiber River and local springs/wells. Though as the city began to grow these water sources were becoming polluted. This is the moment that the Romans began to find the need to grab water from another source. The city was ever increasing and they had no local clean water. In this dilemma the Romans found that the near by mountains had many large clean springs of water. They thought that they could build a structure that would be able to carry this water from the mountains into the city allowing for clean water for all the citizens. They immediately went to work and through their trials and tribulations they eventually found the system of aqueduct that is known and loved today. Once the Romans fell their aqueduct systems were very rarely used again. People turned back to using wells and once the industrial revolution hit running water that entered your house began to be a more common amenity. It has to been until recently that the need to use aqueducts again has arisen. When the USA was beginning to form its more major cities like New York and Los Angeles some of these cities found that they were at a shortage for water. Los Angeles found a solution by creating an aqueduct that went all the way from the Colorado River to the city that is known today. Los Angeles also grabs water from the nearby mountains by aqueducts. Aqueducts have come a long way since they were first developed by the Romans, as modern humans have put a few bells and whistles, but aqueducts are a green technology that will hopefully continue to be used into the future. Look bellow to see a slide show on some of the aqueduct systems that the Romans built.