Today fully one-sixth of the world's human population lacks access to clean drinking water, and more than two million people—mostly kids—die each year from water-borne diseases.
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Dear EarthTalk: I saw a cover line on a magazine that said, “The next world war will be over water.” Tell me we’re not really running out of water!
-- Nell Fox, Seattle, WA
Today fully one-sixth of the world’s human population lacks access to clean drinking water, and more than two million people—mostly kids—die each year from water-borne diseases. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), an independent organization that provides economic, development and humanitarian assistance around the world in support of the foreign policy goals of the United States, predicts that by 2025, one-third of all humans will face severe and chronic water shortages.
Needless to say, water is of primary importance to our survival, and protecting access to and the quality of fresh water supplies will likely become more and more of a challenge in the coming years. According to the non-profit World Water Council, the 20th century saw a tripling of the world’s population while freshwater use grew by a factor of six. With world population expected to increase as much as 50 percent over the next half century, analysts are indeed worried that increasing demand for water, coupled with industrialization and urbanization, will have serious consequences both for human health and the environment. Access to freshwater is also likely to cause conflicts between governments as well as within national borders around the world.
According to USAID, the world’s “water crisis” is not so much an issue of scarcity as it is of poor management and inequitable distribution. The hardest hit regions have been countries in the Middle East, North Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. Worldwide demand for water is presently doubling every 21 years.
Water-related problems are not the sole purview of the developing world though. We here in North America have polluted and diverted our fresh water supplies far beyond nature’s capacity to restore the flows, notably in the West where sprawling, thirsty metropolises have grown up in deserts where the only way water can be provided is to siphon it from other regions.
So how do we fix the world’s water woes? The key lies in using water more efficiently—especially in agriculture and industry, which together account for over 90 percent of the world’s total freshwater use. But changing the practices of millions of farmers and businesses around the world is a Herculean task.
Irena Salina, director of the award-winning documentary film, FLOW, about the world’s dwindling water supplies, thinks it can be done if world leaders, international banks, the United Nations and other governmental organizations establish cooperative agreements for the use of bodies of water, including groundwater, and economic mechanisms to make sure those who need access to water can get it.
As for the developed world—where we use 10 times the water as do developing countries—Salina remains pessimistic. “If our own leaders were serious about solving problems, we would not allow corporations to discharge pollutants into our water sources,” she says. “Instead of spending billions on technologies that clean up pollution, we would be using resources to prevent water pollution in the first place.”
For more on the water crisis see our in-depth report
CONTACTS: World Water Council, www.worldwatercouncil.org; USAID, www.usaid.gov; Flow the Film, www.flowthefilm.com.
EarthTalk is produced by E/The Environmental Magazine. GOT AN ENVIRONMENTAL QUESTION? Send it to: EarthTalk, c/o E/The Environmental Magazine, P.O. Box 5098, Westport, CT 06881; submit it at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/thisweek/, or e-mail: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Read past columns at: www.emagazine.com/earthtalk/archives.php.
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22 Comments
Add CommentThis is not 'new' news. We have been aware of our water shortage problem for quite some time. GE has already been looking into technologies to renew water we use, and they predict by within 50 years (!) we will see water shortages in major cities of the US, as well as in dry areas. Not to mention competing with the rest of the world.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisEverytime someone mentions/complains that we are running out of oil I tell them we have bigger problems. We can do without oil, but not without fresh water!
agenthucky, I agree this is not new news. Still, in some ways, exposure of this issue via media outlets is imperative. I would venture to say that the majority of people, and equal number of govenmental offials, are either unaware of the issue or its magnitude.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisMaybe people shouldn't be living in the desert. How many more years of proof do you need. At least begin a migration closer to the coasts where the costs of desalinating water start to make sense.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI absolutly agree with the exposure comment. It is great to expose this issue. My problem is that someone had to ask to get it exposed. We should be hearing this in the news (like 10 years ago) as well as plans on how to deal with it. I understand not everyone is aware, but thats a huge problem. Is it going to take until water is traded at over $100 a barrell to get people to pay attention to it?!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisEither way, good on SCIAM for talking about it, bad for the rest of the world that hasn't read this little online article.
While we all can agree that this is not a new issue, we should also recognize that it is not a simple issue with simple solutions. I don't agree the problem is only associated with quantity of water, but rather the main issue are the quality, and the privatisation of water. Basically in the future if you want good quality water, you will have to pay a premium price. If you can't afford it, then you'll have to drink water that may have contamination issues, i.e. low levels of pharmaceuticals, plasticizers, etc.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisExcellent article, building on the great section in the August issue and the Earth 3.0 special issue. As the Marketing leader at GE Water & Process Technologies, I applaud Scientific American's outstanding effort to educate the world on the serious water scarcity challenges that we all face.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIn addition to the solutions mentioned in the article, we at GE believe that there are seven key policy elements that governments should support:
1. Infrastructure and Services: Governments must ensure that that sufficient water infrastructure and services exist to provide clear water to their populations, through wholly-public, wholly-private or public-private options.
2. Value of Water: Governments should ensure that the price of water reflects its true economic value, thus promoting rational decision making.
3. Drinking Water and Wastewater Regulation: Governments should set water and wastewater quality standards reflecting the levels of performance achievable using best currently available technologies that are cost-effective on a total life-cycle basis.
4. Recycling and Reuse: As climate change and other factors are driving increased scarcity in many regions of the world, governments should promote greater recycling and reuse through one or more of the following: (a) Requiring more recycling and reuse; (b) Providing financial, regulatory or other incentives; (c) Removing regulatory and cost barriers; and (d) Education and outreach.
5. Technology Development: Governments should expand funding for advanced water research. Governments should also make funding decisions with a view towards ensuring the development of commercially viable solutions.
6. Desalination: Governments should encourage and/or invest in desalination where environmentally sustainable and cost-effective compared to other available alternatives, including efficiency, reuse and recycle options.
7. Business Engagement: Doing the right thing with regard to solving water scarcity is not only good for the enviroment and the inhabitants of our planet, it is the right thing for the economy. Business and the economy can only prosper if there is adequate clean water for all. GE is committed to investing in new and better technologies to help meet global water and sanitation needs. We are also committed to working with governments and other stakeholders to increase their water recycling and water reuse efforts. We are leading by example, commiting to reduce our own global water footprint by 20% by 2012.
Very important issue. IMHO, every discussion of water should mention the energy crisis, and the energy-water nexus: we need lots of water to produce electricity today (Electricity production from fossil fuels and nuclear energy requires 190,000 million gallons of water per day, accounting for 39% of all freshwater withdrawals in the nation). Conversely, much power is needed to distribute clean water. If we had all the [clean] energy we needed, there would not be a water problem.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWe can solve a great deal of the water crisis by changing our eating habits to a [at least mostly-] plant-based diet. Agriculture is a major user of ground and surface water in the United States, accounting for 80 percent of the Nation's consumptive water use and over 90 percent in many Western States. Plant-based diets solve many health and environmental problems, to say nothing about moral or ethical issues.
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Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisBack in the old cowboy days there used to be killings over water by ranchers and farmers who desperately needed large amount of it for farmland and animals. You can't live without water and don't think you can live off coke, it takes water to make it too!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI think everyone should have a sense of water conservation!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"We can solve a great deal of the water crisis by changing our eating habits to a [at least mostly-] plant-based diet. Agriculture is a major user of ground and surface water in the United States, accounting for 80 percent of the Nation's consumptive water use and over 90 percent in many Western States. Plant-based diets solve many health and environmental problems, to say nothing about moral or ethical issues."
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisGreat comment, I myself try as hard as possible to sustain off mostly veggies (chicken for protein every so often). BUT. What if everyone thought like we do. Would there be enough water to sustain the amount of plant material that would be needed to feed this whole nation? World? We would save water, but irrigating to dry arid places so they can grow crops isn't going to help the situation out.
But in all seriousness, we need to worry about our biggest problem. When the shortage of water reaches new heights, what is going to happen to all the beer!
Isn't our planet mostly water? If I'm not mistaken it is 2/3 water! I do not think this will be a problem unless you think that our oceans are going to run out of water any time soon. There has been water since the time of the dinosaurs and so far we haven't had any problems. I know that it is mostly salt water but there are ways to make it good water.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisYes, our planet is composed of about 2/3 water, but a very very small portion of that is drinkable. Either too salty, or too dirty, most of it isn't fit for human consumption.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisWe can't just say, hey, lets desalinate all of the ocean water. We are using water faster than we can clean it. It takes a HUGE amount of energy to apply reverse osmosis on sea water, and a good amount of energy to transport the water to the places that don't have it. Using more and more water is not the key to solving this problem. We have to reuse and recycle our water and be much more efficient with the amount that we have. If placed in the middle of the country could support the rejuvination of their current water waste, it wouldn't require all the effort to get them new water.
Also, do you want to pay out the ass to get water from the atlantic/pacific to your doorstep?
I mean hello, we have had all this water on the planet for billions of years, but there are still people suffering from poor quality drinking water right as we speak. If the problem was that easy to fix, everyone would be drinking Poland Spring.
Running out of water on the 'water planet' isn't going to happen, but running out of clean drinking water (at least enough to sustain our population) is not just plausible, it is probable.
I have invented a new way to move water. It combines pipes and wires. The wires carry electricity for electric booster pumps which move the water over long distances. The pipes do not have to be buried, but can sit above ground.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe system can be used to bring water, electric power, and communications to poor villages that are suffering from droughts caused by climate change.
Please see my website www.safersmallcars.com
I need help developing this idea.
I have invented a new way to move water. It combines
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thispipes and wires. The wires carry electricity for
electric booster pumps which move the water over long
distances. The pipes do not have to be buried, but
can be placed on the ground.
Communication wires are also combined with the pipes.
They support a data network which montitors and
controls the pumps.
The system can be used to bring water, electric
power, and communications to poor villages that are
suffering from droughts caused by climate change.
Please see my website www.safersmallcars.com
I need help developing this idea.
Fresh water crisis ?, well the answer is "Yes" and also " No".
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to this"No " because there are many way we can convert waste water into fresh water .. we have our oceans with plenty of water.
I have invented a new way to move water. It combines
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thispipes and wires. The wires carry electricity for
electric booster pumps which move the water over long
distances. The pipes do not have to be buried, but
can be placed on the ground.
Communication wires are also combined with the pipes.
They support a data network which montitors and
controls the pumps.
The system can be used to bring water, electric
power, and communications to poor villages that are
suffering from droughts caused by climate change.
Please see my website www.safersmallcars.com
I need help developing this idea.
Sorry I sent my message so many times. My bad.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe water crisis has as much to do with how we use and waste water than in the resource availability. Our use of water as a waste stream transport medium to flush away everything we see two related crisis, often viewed as unrelated. Truth is that by really treating the wastewater and eliminating the "waste" we can create an available "alternative" water resource in recycled water. In many of todays communities, including most coastal communities wastewater treatment is critically needed to mittigate current non-point source pollution. The conventional approach to doing as little as you can get away with in treatment to save money just creates to subsequent crisis which will continue to worsen until we deal with the underlying sustainability issues. I can make the above assertions because I have personally utilized advanced treatment systems to create building that recycle close to 100% of their water. The conventional approach to segmentation and specialization has resulted in fragmentation in our community infrastructure planning and development. The need exists for us to transition to a more holistic focus in determining our community infrastructure development course. Included in this holistic approach should be the efficiency by which we consume all of our natural resources.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI have invented a new way to move water. It can be used as a low cost method to bring water, electric power, and communications to villages that are suffering from droughts caused by climate change.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisElectric wires are coupled with PVC pipes. The pipes can be placed on the ground. Booster pumps are added as needed and are powered via the wires. Water can be pumped over many miles.
Communication wires also are coupled to the hose, and a data network monitors and controls the pumps.
The scheme can be used as a new way to fight wildfires. The electric pumps can replace fire trucks for "relay pumping". I have designed a helicopter based system for deploying hoses that can deliver water to fires that are many miles from a source of water.
The invention can also be used for irrigation systems.
I need help developing these patent pending ideas.
Please see my website www.safersmallcars.com
To the geniuses who ask how we can "run out of water" when the earth is covered in it, please drink only seawater. Thank you so much for your cooperation.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisDear 3 spokwash... The problem is the same whether the human being who is thirsty lives in the desert or by the ocean coast. He/she needs potable water. Living in the desert has the advantage of not using agricultural land to build cities.. I should know since I am an Egyptian-born american. Locating people is not the problem... cheaper desalination is , cheaper than reverse osmosis . Also using non-potable water for other usage such as flushing toilets may help.
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