This is an essay outlining some worldwide water issues that I wrote after watching a documentary called Flow. Mostly, I just can't stand to see my last post and needed to something new on here...
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If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water, wrote the American philosopher and literary naturalist Loren Eiseley in 1957—and certainly water has a certain mystical power about it in this world we live in. Nothing evokes the same kind of intense emotion as does the sublimity of a waterfall in spring cascading down a towering rock face, or the rippling reflection of the sunset on the pulsating ocean water. Practitioners of various diverse religions elevate water to something that is sacred and an integral part of various important ceremonies, from the water baptisms of Christian denominations that are said to wash away sin and cleanse the spirit, to the Asthi Visarjan ceremony that the Hindu practice where they spread the remains of deceased loved ones into the holy Ganges river, or the ancient Mayan people who believed that natural wells led to the underworld (Stanmeyer 80). Water blesses our lives.
The human fascination with water is beyond skin deep; we have a connection to water that begins at the core of our very being. Just as the Earth is composed of approximately two-thirds water, so too is the human body (Kingsolver 44). From the moment we break free from our mothers' wombs in the fluid-filled amniotic sac to the day the rains wash away our remains and return us to the soil, water is relevant for the duration of life. It not only nourishes us, keeps our cells alive, and hydrates our parched lips from day to day, but it also is used recreationally, economically, and religiously, as previously mentioned. It cleans, sanitizes, and renews vigor. Nothing compares to the satisfaction of a long, hot shower after going a few days too long without one. With so much water covering the world, people tend to use water as if it there is a never-ending supply of it. Unfortunately, this is just simply not the case.
For such a simple chemical compound, water certainly inspires tremendous attention, and this is because it completely drives the biological world. Two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen make a molecule that turns out to be the fundamental key to Earth's fitness for life, a composition so vital to survival that every life form is dependent on the chemical. Any basic chemistry class will cover materials that illustrate the unique properties of water, going into detail about its extremely polar nature and capacity to perform strong hydrogen bonding (Campbell 47). This is the very reason that water is dubbed the “universal solvent.” Water has a high specific heat, allowing a relatively stable temperature enabling life to live in aquatic and marine environments. Cohesion and adhesion allow plant life to transport water and dissolved minerals from the ground and carry it against gravity to quench every leaf and limb above the ground (Campbell 47). Even without understanding the basic chemistry behind the molecule, one can determine the remarkable qualities of water through mindful observation. What other common substance exists in the natural environment in all three physical states of matter: solid, liquid, and gas? Water is fog, ice, rain, sleet; it is the lake we swim in, the snow we ski down, the glaciers we marvel at, and the steam we breathe in as we boil a stew on the stovetop. Water is all around us, and the abundance of water is what makes Earth habitable. However, its abundance also makes it very susceptible for overexploitation.
Though it may seem like water is an infinite resource, the truth of the matter is that only about 2.53 percent of Earth’s water is fresh (Ehrenman 1), and of that 2.53 percent, nearly two-thirds of that is unavailable for use because it is locked up in the form of glaciers and permanent snow cover (Royte 174). The remaining 0.85 percent suffers from pollution and mismanagement, meaning that the approximately seven billion people of the world (not to mention the trillions of other organisms who reside with us) subsist on a relatively small amount of fresh water overall. So how is it that despite such a limited supply the world possesses of drinkable water, pollutants like industrial trash, chemicals, human waste, fertilizers, pesticides, and so on consistently make their way to our freshwater supplies? Only human carelessness can cause this needless effluence of contaminants. According to the World Water Development Report, there are estimates that “some 2 million tons of waste per day are disposed of within waters” (Ehrenman 2). Two million tons signifies an incredible amount of toxins exposed to the water we drink, and that means that a large percentage of populations that lack an improved water supply depend upon a polluted water source. In turn, millions die from water sanitation-associated diseases annually.
Why is clean water so scarce after so many millennia of it feeding the biological world? The same water has been recycled in our atmosphere for millions of years, so any given glass of water we drink could have hypothetically at one point been a part of the blood composition that coursed the reptilian body of a stegosaurus millions of years ago. Water is ancient and has fed the Earth for a long time. Along with the pollution, overuse and drought deplete some water systems to the verge of exhaustion in many places. More than that, clean drinking water is used like it is as free as air. And it virtually is in places like the United States. According to Cynthia Barnett of UTNE magazine, "our water is so subsidized that many Americans pay less than a tenth of a penny for clean freshwater delivered right into our homes" (Barnett 2). Water is inarguably even more precious than petroleum, but we spend nearly nothing on it compared to the nearly four dollars per gallon we pay for gas. In a way, this is how it should be; water is one of the basic necessities of life, and therefore people should have ready access to clean water. Unfortunately, the low cost equates to low priority for the masses. It makes it easy to take water for granted. People think nothing of dumping gallons of water on their lawn, running the washing machine, or flushing the toilet. Backyard pools eat water like kids eat candy, and there is even more water loss because according to an article in National Geographic Magazine, “U.S. swimming pools lose 150 billion gallons to evaporation every year” (Garrett 150). Pools are by no means a necessity of life, but people have become accustomed to this certain lifestyle. Cynthia Barnett, author of “Blue Revolution,” illustrates this indifferent attitude when remarking on the continued use of water when it was scarce. She says that "even when drought conditions cut federal water deliveries to California farmers, Granite Bay residents continued to consume water as if it were as plentiful as air" (Barnett 1). At a time when farmers—the people who make food for the masses and could benefit everyone with water usage—when they are limited in water supply, the affluent enjoys the vanities of life.
The quest for the perfectly green lawn is another prime example of the frivolity of human beings. Grass is carefully sown, fertilized, and nurtured, then trimmed, manicured, and mown, often several times a week. It is said that maintaining grass uses up more water than any other crop in America, including grain, corn, soy, et cetera. Golf courses are a mode of needless water-waste. For example, in Florida, “3,000 gallons are used to water the grass for each golf game played” (Garrett 150). The cost per game per person of water is outrageous. Why strive for a green lawn in an environment where it cannot grow naturally? It would make more sense to ornament a lawn with local fauna for the landscaping, but people want what they are used to. That mentality has to change before we can work on a solution.
According to Peter Gleick president of the Pacific Institute, a nonpartisan environmental think tank, there are two paths we can take to solve the water problems. It seems we could pursue the hard-path solutions which “focus almost exclusively on ways to develop new supplies of water, such as supersized dams, aqueducts, and pipelines that deliver water over huge distances” (Royte 173), but Gleick and others agree that less drastic solutions are at hand. The soft path is “a comprehensive approach that includes conservation and efficiency, community-scale infrastructure, protection of aquatic ecosystems, management at the level of watersheds instead of political boundaries, and smart economics” (Royte 173). The latter seems like a very simple solution, but unfortunately it necessitates that individuals sacrifice a handful of life luxuries. Hypothetically, this method requires small changes and relatively very little effort. One effort in Albuquerque, New Mexico has already begun a water revolution, where “a growing number of residents and building owners funnel rainwater into barrels and underground cisterns” (Royte 173). Most everyone in the city uses low-flow toilets and showerheads, and greater water recycling methods. Realistically, many people will rebel at the idea of foregoing twenty-minute showers, luscious green lawns, and other desirable nonessentials. These sacrifices really do make a difference though. As an example, in Albuquerque, such water saving efforts as these have reduced the domestic per capita water use from 140 gallons a day to around eighty since the mid-eighties (Royte 173). Small changes can have a big impact.
There are regions all over the planet where people fight over water as if it were gold. In response to the growing water crisis, some corporations are beginning to take advantage of a situation that is desperate in many regions of the world. In theory, water privatization appears to be a great solution to a mounting problem. Private firms would deliver an infrastructure that would better regulate water management than would the government because it would be “more efficient, effective, and equal” (123), according to Mingqian Li in an article from Asian Social Science called “Walking on the Tightrope”—Can Water TNC Tackle Drinking Water Crisis in Developing Countries. There would be an emphasis on providing drinking water for the low income group, but there would have to be a balance found because “there is a risk that privatization activities are often characterized by focusing on short-term economic gains without thinking of social justice and human rights protection (Li 123). In other words, it all comes down to money, as always. According to Li, “from an economic perspective, it can be viewed as private goods with a significant profit" (123). People will always need water, so water privatization would be a lucrative and secure business. However, where there is money to be made, that will often come first before doing the right thing—i.e. allowing people to have access to a basic necessity of life. Especially when large corporations are involved, corruption is almost expected. Corporate authorities do not have to interact with the people directly, and therefore it is easy to forget humanity.
If water is potentially in peril, we must nurture it back to health. Rather than marking water as property or a birthright, we should let Ecuador be an example when it comes to interactions with the environment. It has become “the first nation on Earth to put the rights of nature in its constitution so that rivers and forests are not simply property but maintain their own right to flourish” (Kingsolver 49). This means that just as people have the right to be free from intentional harm, so too does the environment. Under these environmental laws in Ecuador, citizens may file suits on behalf of an injured watershed because its health is ultimately crucial to the common good. We live on a planet that is home to billions of human beings, and this is our house in the vast solar system. As respectful tenants of Earth we have a responsibility to maintain the upkeep of our home. We should not let the situation become desperate before taking action. As Benjamin Franklin mused, when the well is dry, we know the worth of water. We should appreciate its worth even when it is plenty. No water, no life. Period.
Works Cited
Barnett, Cynthia. Wet Dreams: Water Consumption in America. March/April 2012.
Campbell, Neil A. and Jane B. Reece. Biology, 8th Ed. California: Pearson Education, Inc., 2008. 46-52.
Eiseley, Loren. The Immense Journey. New York: Random House, 1957.
Kingsolver, Barbara. “Fresh Water.” National Geographic April 2010: 37-49.
Li, Mingqian. "'Walking on the Tightrope'--Can Water TNC Tackle Drinking Water Crisis in Developing Countries." Asian Social Science May 2011: 122-31.
Royte, Elizabeth. “The Last Drop.” National Geographic April 2010: 172-6.
Stanmeyer, John. "Sacred Waters." National Geographic April 2010: 80-95. Magazine.
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