In July of 2010, the United Nations declared access to safe drinking water a human right. This resolution follows years of global campaigning to bring recognition to the problems of safe water and sanitation access. About 884 million people cannot access safe drinking water, and more than 2.6 billion people cannot access basic sanitation. More than two million people die annually due to a lack of clean drinking water and diseases caused by contaminated water. Diarrhea caused by drinking infected water is the second largest cause of the death of children under five years old.
The Importance of Water and Sanitation Access
Improvements in water and sanitation systems in developing areas of the world are directly linked to improvements in overall quality of life. Implementation of closed sanitary systems decreases child mortality by one-third. Access to clean water increases human productivity and overall health. Also, since access to water is often subject to discriminatory practices based on class, race, or gender, wider access to water can aid social equality in developing regions.
International Policies
Both the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations (UN) have begun programs to improve global access to drinking water and sanitation. The UN has declared the time period between 2005 and 2015 an International “Water For Life” Decade, during which massive educational and developmental programs have been implemented to increase the world’s access to water and sanitation. The WHO also has several programs in place that intervene in areas where water access is at risk; these programs educate people about water management and sanitation.
Education
Education is vital to the drive for water and sanitation access. Undereducated populations need to understand the risks of using contaminated water. Local and governmental authorities need to learn the costs and advantages of developing new water distribution programs. People need to learn techniques for harvesting rainwater, creating wells, and treating, storing, and distributing water. Programs that help to build and install these systems are also very helpful.
The discrepancy between clean water access in the industrial world and in the developing world is alarming. Although this discrepancy has tapered in recent years, the problem of water access continues to plague much of the world’s population. People in privileged parts of the world continuously need to assist the less fortunate in their struggle for health and dignity. People who wish to help the UN and WHO to meet their goals can visit their websites for more information on how to donate time and money to their cause.
Access to water has always been an important factor in the location of settlements, whether primitive or modern, human or animal, and the need for water is a universal part of life. Unfortunately, billions of people around the world still lack access to potable water. Water shortages are usually defined as third-world phenomena, but shortages of clean water are also prevalent in the United States. As the world’s population grows, humanity must recognize that water access is becoming an increasingly global concern.
Access to Clean Water
Access to water is vital, but access to clean water is even more critical. Today, approximately one billion people do not have access to clean water, which has severely harmed the health and economic development of the most affected regions. Further, according to UNICEF, lack of safe water is the world’s single largest cause of illness. Lack of clean water can cause afflictions such as river blindness, cholera, diarrhea, dysentery, and a number of other diseases and infections. The global water crisis is not unsolvable, though. Countries around the world are actively pursuing solutions such as reduction of pollution, infrastructure building, desalinization, improved irrigation, and more.
In man’s effort to stay safe, he has found ways to treat water. Water treatment occurs before the water enters a house. Unfortunately, water treatment is so simplistic that many people are still concerned for population safety. Sewage treatment is done on used water before it re-enters the source, such as a river or under ground supply. Sewage treatment speeds the process of eutrophication, or the aging process of water, and creates favorable breeding grounds for disease that would not be as concentrated if nature took care of itself. Taking the larger particles from sewage water is acceptable, but the later-stage biological processes are what cause eutrophication.
Access to water and particularly, clean water will always present a major problem to the human race. Unfortunately, there are too many people needing too many resources from the planet.
It’s easy to not think about how much water is used to make things that we use everyday. However, besides implementing tips for water conservation, understanding how water is used to make things is important in our goal of reducing water consumption. It’s not just the water used to make stuff but also the water used for growing, processing and transporting. For example, cotton uses a tremendous amount of water to grow and to eventually become a pair of stylish jeans. Those morning lattes from the local coffeeshop use more water than is served in a given cup. And given the huge amounts of water used in manufacturing, many companies are looking for ways to reduce their water footprints.
How Much Water Does Agriculture Use?
It takes much more water to make things for the American dinner table than one would imagine. Obviously food crops need water to thrive, however, many people would be surprised to learn how much water is used to grow our food. It takes almost 20 gallons of water for one apple, 4,000 gallons for one bushel of corn and 11,000 gallons for one bushel of wheat. It takes over 15,000 gallons of water to raise a cow from birth to slaughter.
How Much Water Does It Take to Make Food?
It takes an amazing 53 gallons of water to make a latte. This figure may be hard to believe given that most lattes are just over a cup. Planet Green’s Brian Merchant states in a recent article that each latte requires water for the cane sugar’s growth, the plastic lid’s manufacture, the paper cup and sleeve’s manufacture, as wells as for the transportation costs for all of the above. Hamburgers take a whopping 634 gallons of water to make mostly given the cost of raising beef.
How Much Water Does It Take to Make Clothing?
According to OnEarth.org, it takes over 1,500 gallons of water to produce the cotton in one pair of jeans. And that’s just for growing the cotton, it doesn’t include the water used to dye jeans or to ‘weather’ them so that new jeans look and feel ‘broken in.’ It takes 400 gallons of water to grow the cotton to make one shirt. Water consumption for growing cotton crops is huge and cotton is the largest natural fiber textile in the world accounting for 40% of textile production.
How Much Water Does Our Corporate Footprint Reflect?
Most companies know how much water it takes to make things and are looking for ways to decrease water consumption for their products and for their supply chains. For example, Levi’s has recently introduced a new brand called Water less, that reduces water usage by an average of 28% and up to 96% for some products. Water Footprint Network recommends that companies complete their water footprint assessment manual to review their water usage. It provides for a global standard on definitions and calculations how how much water we’re using.
