Increasing Scarcity Of Water And The Many Ways

Main Point: Third world countries lack accessibility to clean water exposing them to disease and harmful toxins that result in 2.4 million deaths annually (Bartram, 2010).

The world’s supply of water is in steep decline as more and more is being used each year by more and more people around the globe. Currently, 800 million people do not have access to a drinking source. At the current rate, 1.8 billion people could be living in areas of absolute water scarcity by 2025.

Clean water is essential to our basic needs as human beings and has been acknowledged as a basic human right according to the UN as of July 28, 2010. Still, 1 in 9 (782 million) people don’t have access to clean water, 1 in 3 (2.5 billion) don’t have access to adequate sanitation which results in the spread of often fatal and preventable disease. In a world where 2 in 5 people own a smartphone, it’s easy to forget that for some people even the most basic necessities are hard to come by. Approximately 3.5 million people die every year due to inadequate water supplies. Access to sanitation and safe drinking water could save the lives of 1.5 million children each year.

There is a water crisis which faces many parts of the world and it is a threat to survival of human beings since humans are primarily dependent on water. Shortage in drinking water is beginning to show its effects in first world countries, but is a current major problem facing lesser developed countries which have not taken drastic steps to harvest water and purify it to make it safe for human consumption. In developed countries the population growth has strained available water resources and stretched the ability of governments and private firms to provide safe drinking water to the vast majority of the population. Seventy one percent of

Water, like food, is a necessity for human life that is used for many purposes such as agricultural, industrial, and domestic systems. While water is a common element around the world not all of it is clean and able to be consumed or used by humans. With only a percentage of the world’s water being clean and the use of water increasing, the availability of water around the world has become a common issue in the developing and even the developed world. This may be a smaller problem in areas close to clean water sources compared to areas far from a clean water source but, the availability of water is not strictly based on location, it also depends on the specific political and social needs and issues of the area as well. These all become issues that must be accounted for when deciphering whether water is a basic human right or a commodity and what action must be taken to aid the developing water systems in community’s that lack them.

Everyday, billions of people use water all over the world. They use water in drinks and food. They use water for bathing and hygiene. They use water in agriculture and industry. They use water for so many things. However, there are many problems with the usage of water around the world. In his editorial, “Our Water System: What a Waste”, Michael E. Webber explains how America has a water problem, and how that problem can be solved.

Two out of every five people living in Sub-Saharan Africa lack safe water. A baby there is 500 times more likely to die from water-related illness than one from the United States. This is a serious ongoing issue that requires the rest of the world to take action. Water spreads diseases easily if the necessary precautions are not taken. Many developing African countries don’t have sewage treatment, or the people don’t have methods to filter and disinfect. Once a person is sick either there is no way to cure them, or medical care is too expensive, so they are left untreated with a high risk of death. Although many believe that the fight for sanitary water in Africa is insurmountable, people in these developing countries can overcome their challenge to access clean water and avoid water-borne diseases through proper sewage treatment facilities, universal water filtration and medical care.

Water covers 70% of our planet, and it is easy to think that it will always be plentiful. However, freshwater, what we drink, bathe in, irrigate our farm fields with makes up only 3% of the world’s water, and two-thirds of that is stored in frozen glaciers or unavailable for our use. Many of the water systems that keep ecosystems thriving and feed a growing human population have become stressed. Rivers, lakes and aquifers are drying up or becoming too polluted to use. Already, 80 countries suffer from water shortages that threaten health and economies while 40 percent of the world—more than 2 billion people—does not have access to clean water or sanitation

What is the one thing that all humans can agree on? Clean water. Then why are roughly 844 million people around the world living without access to clean water? (UN Water) As simple as it may seem, there are complex layers that have overlapped for generations, leading to an endless cycle of poverty. The scarcity of water contributes to issues in health, education, and poverty. Water impacts nearly every aspect of life; however, the most shocking fact is that we already have the solutions to provide safe water. The first obstacle that we must overcome is the allocation of resources. Now, more than ever, we have access to the world’s finest research and technology that could very easily end the water crisis. The solution to the water crisis starts with spreading awareness and reaching out to generous donors. Proper funding can be raised to reach the goals of charities across the globe. Sustainable clean water technology can be distributed to some of the most poverty-stricken countries in the world, such as Ethiopia, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which all have populations of over fifty percent living without improved drink water sources. (Africa Development Information) I believe we have the means to provide solutions to put an end to the water crisis, but it will require effort from donors and local communities alike. It is possible within the decade that no one will need to drink unsafe water again if we are united by this cause.

Today, nearly 1 billion people in the developing world don't have access to clean drinking water. Yet, we take it for granted, we

Today, water scarcity is one of the most serious issues in the world. With over 2 million people dying each year, the majority being kids, from water-borne diseases. Along with one-sixth of the entire population not having access to safe drinking water. “The hardest hit regions have been countries in the Middle East, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.”(Fox)

Many countries in the world today deal with countless amounts of issues that seem impossible to solve. One of these issues is clean water and sanitation. A good amount of countries in the world do not have water that is suitable for drinking. It is believed that having the access to water, hygiene and sanitation is a human right, but so many people in our world today to not have access to any of these. Clean water is considered water that you are able to use safely without worrying about the risk of health issues. About 1.8 billion people around the world only have access to drinking water that is contaminated with feces (United Nations, 2015). Sanitation can be defined as the importance of hygiene and prohibiting disease by maintenance of sanitary conditions. Around 2.4 billion people do not have access to sanitation services, like toilets (United Nations, 2015). The lack of water impacts more than 40 percent of the world and is supposed to rise (United Nations, 2015). A little over 80 percent of contaminated water comes from human activities and is dumped into the oceans and rivers without any treatment to filter it, which leads to pollution. The United Nations mentions that “water scarcity, poor water quality and inadequate sanitation negatively impact food security, livelihood choices and educational opportunities for poor families across the world. Drought afflicts some of the world’s poorest countries, worsening hunger and

The Global Water Institute stated that “approximately 700 million people in 43 countries are currently suffering from water stress and scarcity in 2013”, by 2025 2.8 billion people will face water stress and scarcity (Hameeteman, 2013, p.3). The global water supply is approximately 2.5% freshwater and 97.5% is saltwater (Hameeteman, 2013, p.4). Hence, it is crucial that the Earth’s population tries to manage the water stress and scarcity. There are many causes of water stress and scarcity, for instance: overuse of water due to economic reasons, pollution of water, drought, governmental access and policies, and many more. In Africa, many children and women are responsible in collecting water, thus, traveling large distances to collect clean or unclean water. In addition, sanitation facilities are inadequate causing “half the population” to suffer from waterborne diseases (Hameeteman, 2013, p.6). As a result, unclean water and poor sanitation are a leading cause of illness and death in this region. There are a few approaches to providing clean water to the African population, for example: piped water, stand posts and wells. Moreover, poor sanitation can be alleviated with pit latrines, urine diversion dry toilets and pour flush toilets (Septien, 2015). However, such methods can be expensive. Hence, it is important to understand the household’s income and the economic situation of the country. Contrary, different strategies are needed to provide clean water in the developed

Stan Bernstein, a senior research advisor for the United Nations Population Fund, predicted that the global population is said to reach 7.2 billion people by 2015 and almost 9.3 billion by 2050. However, more than 96 percent of the Earth’s water is unable to be consumed by the human population, only 2.5% is fresh water and only found in 0.5% of it accessible groundwater or surface water. (Bernstein, p. 150). This had led to an undeniable water crisis that is now plaguing the global community. Millions die each year because they do not have adequate clean water or sanitation. The water crisis is not something that can be fixed quickly, but rather slowly with many solutions. We can begin to fix the water crisis by recycling wastewater, capturing and storing rainwater, and desalination technology.

One of the most important natural resources we have on this planet is water. Water covers roughly 70 percent of our planet and is the very foundation for every single species on earth. We as humans, rely on water more than any other resource on the planet and we simply can’t live without it. Although water is abundant around the world, clean water for millions of people is inaccessible. Around the world, there are people struggling to get water yet along clean water and it greatly affects our health. Improving clean water supply and sanitation, and better access to clean water resources, can increase countries’ economic development and can contribute greatly to poverty reduction and overall people’s health.