⟵ The Crisis
`Pollution ⟶
Lack of Access
Water is the most abundant substance on our planet, and yet many of us have no access to it. This is the cause of an urgent crisis in today’s world. Without clean water, communities are unable to grow both economically and socially. This is most common in rural areas of Asia and Africa
Without any running water, many women and children spend hours each day walking to streams and rivers that can be miles away, especially as droughts increase and water becomes more scarce. They haul back the liquid with containers that can be up to 70 pounds when full. This prevents women from participating in the workforce, getting an education, and completing other household chores. Many children must focus on fetching water instead of learning as well; this causes a cycle of poverty. Furthermore, the collected water is often dangerous and full of bacteria. Young children are therefore increasingly susceptible to death and disease.
The Numbers
- Over half of a billion people do not have easy access to clean water.
- 159 million people get their water from surface sources that are considered to be the most unsafe, such as rivers, streams, and ponds.
- According to the UN, 40 billion hours are spent in Sub-Saharan Africa for the sole purpose of collecting water.
- In countries such as Haiti, access to better drinking water has declined over the last couple decades.
- Full containers for water collecting can weigh on average from 40-70 pounds.
- Women walk an average of 3.7 miles a day for water.
- Around 3 million children and 14 million women collect water in Sub-Saharan Africa, which increases risk of sexual abuse.
- In Kenya, 77 percent of women worry about their safety while fetching water, and 24 percent are prevented from caring for their children.
- Almost 1,000 children die each day because of water and sanitation related causes.
- Diarrhea is the second leading death cause for children five years old and younger.
- In countries such as Bangladesh, E. coli can be found in 80% of tap water.
This graph shows how freshwater scarcity is highest in South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.
Cape Town
In many parts of the world, the issue is not a lack of access to water that is close by or not contaminated with dangerous bacteria. Rather, freshwater is scarce. Main sources of freshwater, such as rivers and streams, are drying out. Droughts are also prevalent.
Perhaps one of the easiest ways to explain the severity of the water crisis is to look at Cape Town. The capital of South Africa and its oldest city, Cape Town’s water shortage became prevalent especially in 2015. This shortage has led to the development of Day Zero, or the date when water runs out.
Speculation for the causes of the water shortage from the three-year drought include climate change, population increase, infrastructure planning, and overdevelopment. Some experts point to climate change especially, noting that more droughts are likely to occur in the future. Nevertheless, accessibility is a severe problem for Cape Town. Day Zero had been predicted to be in July 2018, but community efforts had succeeded in pushing back the date to 2019. At one point in the crisis, residents were limited to 50 liters of water per person a day. In comparison, the average amount used per day in California was 321 liters. 50 liters is only approximately one-sixth of the American daily average.
The lack of water has proved to be devastating. The agricultural sector, in particular, has taken a large hit. While some farmers have abandoned up to 25% of crops, thousands of other jobs have been lost as well. As a result, food prices have risen.
The shortage has caused a large range of proposed solutions. While some seem preposterous at first, many people are desperate for water. One proposed idea was to drag a large iceberg from Antarctica to increase water supply.
Recent efforts have made for short term solutions. Residents who used over the 50 liter limit paid fines or had automatic meters installed into their homes. The meter would shut off the water after the 50 liter limit was met. Residents showered standing over buckets to catch water, and washing machine water was often recycled. Toilets were also flushed once a day. The city also took efforts to promote saving water. The former mayor visited the houses of those who wasted water, and lists were published of these people in order to publicly shame them.
Another more sustainable solution has been to remove invasive species. Christine Colvin of the World Wildlife Fund explained that Cape Town could increase the amount of water it is getting by up to seven percent. Invasive species such as pine, eucalyptus, and wattle soak up millions of cubic meters of water every year. Cape Town has also created a water pick-up system. Among 200 sites, 25 liters will be distributed to 20,000 residents daily. However, this plan still remains a vague outline. The city also hopes to use solutions like desalination, water infrastructure repairment, and groundwater drilling.
And yet, Cape Town is not even close to being one of the most water stressed cities. According to the World Wildlife Fund, the city did not even rank among the top 20 cities. Cape Town’s problem is not unique. In 2015, Sao Paulo, Brazil, authorities were close to cutting off tap water completely. There was 20 days worth of water left before rains saved the city. Mexico City residents are already feeling the effects of water shortage as well. Many have running water for part of the day only. Melbourne, Australia could run out of water within a decade, and Jakarta, Indonesia is literally sinking from the shortage.
Water shortage is a global problem, and it is one that needs to be dealt with effectively before the consequences are too much to handle.