Only one percent of the total water resources on Earth is available for human use. (70) percent of the world's surface is covered by water but (97.5) percent is frozen in ice caps and glaciers.
Life on earth depends on fresh water. Fresh water includes surface waters (rivers, streams, lakes) and ground water (Stem, 1992, 143). Freshwater is really unequally distributed and consumed around the world. Fresh water is the resource that people easily take for granted. The use of water worldwide doubled between (1940 and 1980) and would also double again by the year (2000). In fact water use increased six-fold during the 20th century because of the rate of population growth which doubled.
Furthermore, the world's population in (2002) was (6.2) billion people and would increase to (7.2) billion people by (2015) (The World And Water). Nonetheless, the total world pollution will reach eight billion by (2025). Therefore, people all over the world will suffer from a shortage of water increasing from (1/3 in 1995 to 2/3 in 2005) according to the (1997) report "Comprehensive Assessment of the Freshwater Resources of the World" by the UN Secretary-General. Moreover, according to the report, the quality of water available around the world, such as river water for each person, had decrease by about (40) percent from (1970 to 1995) due to population growth. (1.1) billion people or (18) percent of the world's population also lack access to safe drinking water.
Millions of women and girls spend more house everyday to fetch water to their home (Stem, 1992, 143). In fact these people lack basic access to a sufficient water supply which is defined as a source likely to provide (20) liters per person per day at a distance no greater than (1000) meters (UN). By 2050 at least one out of four people is likely to live in countries affected by chronic shortage of freshwater. It was estimated in (1995) that about (17.6) billion people (out of approximately 5.7 billion world population) were living under severe water stress (The World And Water, 2). By 2050, nearly (7) billion people in (60) countries will face water scarcity. The present estimate shows that around (2) billion in (48) countries will experience water scarcity by (2050) (Water and the Future). Therefore, water scarcity or shortages will force people to drink water tainted by industrial chemicals.
Because Of this potential water scarcity, the World Bank's report "Earth Faces Water Crisis" released in 1995, predicated that the coming 21st Century world become the "Century Of Water". Moreover, the report also stated that whereas wars and conflicts had broken out over oil resources in the 20th Century, the 21st Century will see a multitude of conflicts over water resources. Worldwide, agriculture represents the most serious threat to water supplies. Agriculture accounts for (73) percent of consumptive water used throughout the world and irrigated land is increasing at (8) percent per year (Stem, 1997, 144).
The food we consume requires (500) times as much water as we need to drink everyday. Therefore, agriculture is the water-intensive factor. Agriculture uses more and more water every year, to meet the food demand of growing populations.
Of all water pumped from underground or diverted from rivers we see most of it being used for irrigation, (20) percent used by industry and (10) percent going to domestic residencies. Water withdrawals for irrigation have increased by over (60) percent since (1960). About (70) percent of all available freshwater is used for irrigation in agriculture (The World And Water, 2). Therefore, excessive pumping for irrigations to meet food needs today will cause a decline in food production tomorrow.
Furthermore, because of widespread over-pumping using powerful diesel and electric pumps, the water tables are falling in many countries including US, China, India, Pakistan, Iran and Mexico. This will eventually lead to water scarcity and cutbacks in grain harvest (decreases in grain production). When this happens, it will certainly drive grain prices upward.
Industrialization makes water pollution. Waste chemicals contaminated water. Moreover people move to cities in which industries grow rapidly and settle there, and this leads to pressure on water resources. It is estimated that as (60) percent of the world population will be urban by (2020), this situation will lead to water scarcity or shortages and use of contaminated water. As a consequence, people will suffer from water-related diseases. More than (2.2) million people mostly in developing countries die each year from diseases associated with poor quality of water. Every week an estimated (42000) people die from diseases related to low quality drinking water (The World And Water, 3).
Water-borne diseases are one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Especially water-borne diseases are the leading cause of death for children under age five. According to a survey by the WHO, one child dies very eight seconds due to water-borne diseases. Many countries of the world are severely affected by inadequate drinking water: (12.3) million in Venezuela, (2.7) million in Zimbabwe, (2.1) million in Tunisia and (1.2) million in Cuba (Water Crisis, 1).
As water scarcity increases, the UN set the decade from (2005 to 2015) to be the International Decade For Action Water For Life. The goal of the UN is to reawaken people to the necessity of water for a healthy and stable life (http://www.water.city.nagoya/, P3). The World Water Development Report stated that the cause of the water scarcity is the weakness of governance and lack of political will toe manage the resource wisely. Moreover, because of unequal distribution of water resources among the countries and rapid population growth, there is a significant freshwater deficit in many areas, especially during dry years. Calculations also show that in the decades to come most of the Earth's population will face a critical situation with regard to water supply.
Therefore, it will require enormous financial and material expense to eliminate the deficit of pure freshwater. At present times and for the foreseeable future, the most realistic measures will be reduction or complete cessation of waste water discharge, more use made of local waters through seasonal and long-term river run-off regulations, use of secular storage in lakes, underground aquifers and glaciers, and protection of water resources by a drastic decrease in specific water consumption, especially in irrigated land use and industry.
In conclusion, construction of waster water treatment plant and reduction of ground water overrating are obvious solutions to the world wide population for water scarcity. But waster water treatment will take more cost, thus restricting access to this technology. Moreover, reduction in ground water over-drafting is usually politically very unpopular and has major economic impacts to farmers. As new discoveries of water are unlikely and desalinization of water is expensive, human beings should stop polluting the water. Moreover, water is not finite in the strictest sense; it will take years to clean up surface in rivers and replenish underground aquifers. Nonetheless, the challenges lies in raising the political will to implement water-related commitments at the global scale.
References
- Henderson, Conway W. (1998)-International Relations: Conflict and Cooperation at the Turn of the 21st Century, Boston, Mc-Grow Hill.
- Stem, Edith Carol (1992)-The Environmental Source Book, New York, Lyons and Burnford
- The United Nations Today (2008), New York, United Nations
- The World and Water (2007), http://www-rb.com/responsibility/pdf/fact-sheet-the world and waterpdf accessed 15.10.2009
- Water and the Future <http://unesco.uiah.fi/water/material/06-water and future-html> accessed 15.10.2009
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