World Water Day 2019
Across the world, with global population increases, climate change, degradation of the environment, and large-scale urbanization, more and more people are coming to realize that our water is not an endless resource. Approximately two-thirds of the world’s population (around 4 billion people) encounter severe water shortages during at least one month a year.
Although more than 70% of Earth’s surface is covered in water, only 2.5% of it is fresh water and much of that is trapped in glaciers and snowfields. Agriculture uses 70% of available freshwater for irrigation. Industry uses about 20%, for energy and manufacturing, leaving only 10% for domestic use. When all is said and done, a mere 0.007% of the planet’s water is available for 7.7 (and growing) billion people. Already, 2.3 billion people in our world lack safe methods of sanitation and 844 million (1 in 9 people on the planet) are living without access to potable water. Every year, 1 million people are killed by water, sanitation, and hygiene-related diseases. “More than 700 children die every day from diarrhea linked to unsafe water and poor sanitation” (www.worldwaterday.org/theme). Last year, Cape Town South Africa was in a panic as it appeared to be very close to running out of water, due to severe drought. Rigid water restrictions, as well as substantial rains in the summer of 2018, raised water levels behind the dams that serve the city from 28.8% full to 63.1% of capacity. Although “Day Zero” was delayed by these things, a serious problem still exists and South Africa struggles to repair aging water and sewage infrastructure before the next crisis occurs. As in Sao Paolo (Brazil), Jakarta (Indonesia), Mexico City, and many other places, including Flint Michigan and other cities in the United States, Cape Town’s infrastructure is insufficient to cope with such issues as heavy metal contamination, unsanitary conditions, and is unable to deal with the number of people it needs to supply. Cape Town is one of the top tourist destinations in the world, with an increase in tourism occurring in 2017, despite the drought, causing an even greater strain on already diminished water supplies.
Mexico City already imports 40% of its drinking water but has no acceptable way to deal with wastewater. Globally, 80% of wastewater generated by society is returned to the environment without treatment or reuse. In the Indonesian province of Jakarta, half of its 10 million citizens have no access to piped water. The digging of illegal wells has almost completely drained the aquifers and because of this practice, the World Bank estimates that about 40% of Jakarta has subsided and now lies below sea level. A quarter of the world’s fresh water reserves are in Russia, but regulatory officials admit that 35-60% of drinking water reserves are not sanitary, polluted by Soviet-era industry. The list goes on and on.
March 22, 2019, marks the 26th anniversary of the United Nations’ World Water Day. This year’s theme for World Water Day is “Leaving No One Behind”, which is focused on making sure that safe water is available to everyone, especially those people who are marginalized or discriminated against, or whose access is disproportionally affected by “environmental degradation, climate change, population growth, conflict, forced displacement, or migration flows” (www.worldwaterday.org/theme). None of these issues can be solved overnight, but in order to prevent things from becoming even worse, political leaders must be willing to address the issue of water shortages in pragmatic and tangible ways. Meanwhile, individuals can still do what they can on their own, in order to save water (https://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/). CW
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