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Water is a basic necessity of life, and it may seem inconceivable to imagine living without it. But the stark reality is that many people around the world do. The availability of fresh water for drinking and sanitation poses an urgent and challenging problem, particularly in many developing countries.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported in March 2010¹ that over 2.6 billion people, or about 39 per cent of the world's population, live without improved sanitation facilities; in other words, without a proper latrine. Furthermore, WHO estimated that about 1.1 billion people across the globe -- approximately 17 per cent of the world's population -- lacked access to safe and improved sources of drinking water.
The scarcity of potable water sources and the absence of adequate sanitation in many rural areas have led to a host of potentially fatal health problems such as dysentery, cholera, and other diarrhoeal diseases causing an average of 1.6 million deaths per year. Children under the age of five are especially vulnerable and account for about 90 per cent of these deaths.² In fact, diarrhoeal diseases kill more children than HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined.³ Other problems from unsafe drinking water, such as trachoma-related blindness and intestinal parasitic worms, are rife in developing countries, totalling several hundred million cases annually.⁴
According to the United Nations Millennium Development Goal 7, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation should be halved by 2015;⁵ in numerical terms, 88.5 per cent of the world's population should have accessible drinking water by 2015. It bodes well that we are prepared to achieve this goal with sustained effort, but it must also be acknowledged that this progress is not uniform across the globe. Our goal for improving sanitation is further from attainment. Compared to the current 61 per cent of the world's population currently living with improved sanitation facilities, our target of 75 per cent would require a momentous effort as 2015 draws near. In addition to introducing and supporting inexpensive systems and technologies that are environmentally friendly, WHO is working towards this goal through the monitoring of global water supplies and sanitation facilities. An innovative example is water disinfection, using ultraviolet radiation from the sun to deactivate diarrhoea-causing organisms in plastic water bottles made from polyethylene terephthalate, commonly known by its acronym PET, which is a cheap and effective solution viable for many developing countries facing a shortage of potable water.⁶
As the world's population increases, the rising demand for food would accompany a corresponding need for fresh water for agricultural purposes. Many equatorial regions, such as sub-Saharan Africa,⁷ face an acute water scarcity and extended drought which are known to be exacerbated by climate change and deforestation, thereby adversely reducing short-term crop yield. Even more worrisome, over the long term, droughts transform arable farmland into large barren areas, further squeezing the already limited food supply. This chain of cause and effect illustrates that human activities are environmentally linked and, therefore, environmental conservation is our only hope to lessen the seemingly never-ending cascade of problems.
It is unforgivably grim that something that is sorely needed by so many people in the world is taken for granted by others. Many live under the misconception that fresh water is an abundant resource, but the reality is that fresh water is finite and susceptible to depletion. Water scarcity cannot be ignored. What triggers more concern is that our high water consumption, partly due to both the growing world population and ever-increasing consumer needs, necessitates massive energy consumption for water treatment and purification.
Higher water consumption, combined with its wastage, is not the only link between water and other environmental issues. The high-profile case of the BP oil spill crisis in 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico once again brought the issue of water pollution back into the limelight. The explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig resulted in widespread and disastrous effects on marine habitats in the Gulf. The vast amount of petroleum that leaked into the sea has directly harmed marine creatures such as fish and seabirds, while the digestion of oil by microbes has contributed to lower oxygen levels in the water. Researchers also discovered the presence of massive oil plumes in the sea that were not visible on the surface. These are only some of the many ecological consequences of the BP spill. Families dependent on the fishing and tourism industries around the Gulf have also felt the economic fallout of this accident.
Media-worthy catastrophes like the BP oil spill are not the only causal agents of water pollution. With increasing urbanization and industrialization, water bodies such as the Ganga River in India are being severely polluted. Defiling the river considered holy by millions of Indians, tanneries in Kanpur, for example, channel sewage and toxic chemicals into the Ganga.⁸ The water of the Ganga, once a symbol of life, and where many Indians still drink and bathe, has become a turbid and toxic vexation for India.
Yet, countries have responded to address the world's energy and environmental concerns by using water in more innovative ways. Hydroelectric dams produce electricity through the force of water flow, in most cases involving a turbine and a generator. In China, the construction of the Baihetan and Wudongde dams to accompany the soon-to-be operational Three Gorges Dam represents the country's push towards renewable energy by harnessing the power of water. The dams are slated to be completed by 2015.⁹
As the most widely used form of renewable energy, hydroelectric power just might be the energy wave of the future, provided that governments exercise care with regard to the potential alteration of ecosystems resulting from the creation of artificial reservoirs. The difficult circumstances we face today are inextricably linked to other societal and environmental problems related to resource allocation, energy consumption, and pollution. The lack of access to safe drinking water and improved sanitation that many people experience on a daily basis illustrates the problems with building infrastructure, preventive health care, and proper resource allocation in many parts of the world. And with our world population growing, the negative impact on our environment is similarly amplified. The habits of modern man, including water wastage and pollution, have already led to disastrous consequences for the environment and, in turn, for us. Water is a resource that we must learn to regard with sanctity. The future, however, is not necessarily bleak. We have responded with solutions to achieve our goals through spreading awareness, humanitarian aid, and the production of clean energy.
Our dependence on water underscores the need for conserving it, not just in terms of reducing wastage, but also in terms of saving our rivers, lakes, and seas from further harm. Throughout history, water scarcity has symbolized the ebb of life for many great civilizations. Water will always be a basic necessity of man, regardless of era and creed, and our collective future depends on its sustainability today. Water, in essence, represents life. By saving water, we save lives.
Notes ¹ WHO, "Health through safe drinking water and basic sanitation." . ² Water.org, "Water facts." . ³ WaterAid, "Second biggest killer of under-fives being ignored." ⁴ WHO, ibid. ⁵ UNESCO, "Facts and Figures: The Millennium Development Goals & Water." . ⁶ IDRC, "Water Disinfection Using Solar Radiation." . ⁷ UN, "Water Scarcity." . ⁸ J. Thottam, "How India's Success Is Killing Its Holy River," Time, 12 July 2010: 16-21. ⁹ "Hydropower Stations Dot Yangtze River." .