The World's Water Crisis

The United Nations has estimated that by 2015 at least 40% of the world's population will lack an adequate supply of water.  Even now, one person in five does not have access to safe drinking water.  1.5 billion people today do not have ready access to potable water.  2.4 billion live without proper sanitary services.  And 3 billion people are without wastewater treatment facilities.  As a result of these deficiencies, 30,000 deaths are caused each day due to lack of clean water.  How can this be?  Isn't water one of the most common chemical compounds on the Planet?

Yes, in fact 2/3 of the Earth's surface is covered by water, but this is mostly salt water in the sea, unfit for either agricultural irrigation or human consumption.  In fact, only 2.5% of the Earth's water is fresh water theoretically available for human consumption.  Reality, however, is even more restricting.  2/3 of the Earth's fresh water is locked in polar ice caps and glaciers, and of what remains 20% arrives at the wrong time or in the wrong form as floods or monsoons.  In all, less than 1% of the Earth's water is actually available for human use.  Over the next two decades, it is estimated that this relatively small amount will decrease by 40%.

Why is Usable Water Shrinking?  The fundamental reason for the world's growing water shortage is rising human population combined with the wasteful nature of much modern agriculture.  Humans have to eat and as human numbers grow so must agriculture.  Today, fully 87% of fresh water used globally goes to farming.  However, modern commercial farming tends to be very wasteful of water, losing much in uncontrolled run-off and often resulting in mineralization of the soil.  Modern industry, which is rapidly expanding with the industrialization of China, India and other formerly ‘third world' nations, also consumes vast amounts of water, diverting it from human use and rendering much unfit through toxic pollution.  When these two processes are taken into account it is easy to see why less and less clean water is available for simple human :needs such as drinking and keeping clean.

Water "Hot Spots":  A list of some water "hot spots"-locations of special stress-gives a more concrete picture of what is happening to the Earth's water supply. Mexico City:  Mexico City, one of the world's most populous urban areas, draws 80% of its water from aquifers below it.  As a result, the city has sunk an estimated 9 meters since the 1900s.  27% of Mexico City's water is wasted through leaks. Spain:  Due to protests by environmentalists, a plan to spend 2.4 billion euros to divert water from the Ebro River to the water scarce Valencia was recently dropped.  The plan was to allow the development of tourist facilities and golf courses in the desert-like Valencia region.  The Ebro's sensitive delta ecosystem would have been endangered if the plan had been allowed to proceed. Chad:  Once huge Lake Chad in Central Africa has shrunk by 95% since the 1960s.  Oil has recently been discovered there.

Nile River:  Egypt has depended on the Nile for agriculture since prehistoric times.  Today this is threatened by Tanzania's plan to build a pipeline to extract drinking water from the Nile, and by Ethiopia's plan to use the Nile's water for irrigation.  In the past, Egypt has said it would use force to protect its access to the Nile's water.

Israel:  Both Israel and Jordan rely on the Jordan River , but Israel controls access and cuts supplies during times of scarcity.

Iraq:   Drainage and irrigation projects carried-out by the Ba'th government have led to the loss of an estimated 90% of significant wetlands.

Aral Sea:  The Aral Sea in Central Asia was once the world's fourth largest inland lake.  Today, after Soviet era industrialization in the region and the two main rivers feeding the Aral diverted to grow cotton, it is a toxic desert.

China:  The lower reaches of the Yellow River run dry for 200 days every year. In the north China plain, more water is being pumped from the ground by farmers than is replaced by rain.  As underground water is used to produce 40% of China's grain, water shortages could make the country dependent on grain imports.

France:  80% of France's rivers are polluted due to excessive use by agriculture and industry.

United States:  95% of US fresh water is underground.  The 800 mile Ogallala Aquifer which runs from Texas to South Dakota and provides roughly one third of US irrigation water is suffering serious depletion.  In some areas it may be exhausted within 50 to 60 years.

These conditions exist with a 6 billion plus world population.  Before population growth levels towards the end of the century, the world's population will probably be 8.5 to 9 billion.  A very large number of homes around the world do not have running water, even those with electricity; carrying water in buckets from the village well or pump is a common practice.

Given the world water situation and that we live in a capitalist economy, it should be of little surprise that water is fast becoming a market commodity like grain or shoe laces.  In many countries, the decision has already been made to sell control of national water resources to "water king" corporations such as SUEZ, RWE Thames Water, Vivendi and Bechtel through the privatization of water service.  Paired with this is the growing role of corporations such as Nestle, Coca-Cola, and Danone in the merchandising of container water.  Backed by the World Bank and other international financial institutions, Gerard Mestrallet, President and Executive Director of SUEZ, has moved his company initiate "Public-Private Partnership agreements" or similar activities in more than 130 countries.  SUEZ activities in Latin America, Asia and Africa affect the lives of 70 million people.  Mestrallet was head of Emos, a consortium controlling Santiago, Chile's water and sewer.  He is advisor to the mayors of Shanghai and Seoul, Korea and a member of the European Roundtable of Industrialists.[1]  If anyone is "Mr. Water" it is Gerard Mestrallet.

Can you spare a dime?

For a glass of water.

(1) Source:  The Green Cross OPTIMIST, Spring, 1, 2004, page 35