World Running Out of Water
The world is running out of potable water and a major policy initiative to guarantee freshwater as a human right is required. In a most interesting article from the Guardian, Jeffery Sachs of the UN's Millennium Project notes the world simply has "no more rivers to take water from". And the near total lack of basic water policy for the future is noted, such as how are aquifers to be recharged and how to sustain ground water use? For some time I have thought that a major water shortage crisis [search] that ravishes millions may, even more so than climate change (though it may be the cause), galvanize the world to realize the extent to which the global biosphere teeters upon the edge of ruin. Then we may see the surge of personal lifestyle changes and policy prescriptions from governments and businesses adequate to achieve global ecological sustainability. The article notes that not only are China's and India's water supplies threatened but their food production as well. These "economic miracles" have largely been built upon the back of unsustainable water and other resource use - a deck of cards waiting to fall. In closing Sachs is quoted as making a point I have harked on for years, that "for the first time humans were shaping the environment rather than nature". Where does your water come from? What happens if it runs dry? What will you do, where will you go?
Comments
There was a big initiative in the planning to inter-connect all the rivers in India, a few years back. Not sure what happened to it.
Posted by: Rajeev Singh | January 25, 2007 11:51 PM
Some people just don't care about the world today. They think it would probably be better if they threw out alot of stuff instead of recycling like WATER!!!!!! Some people just waste water!
Posted by: Tiffany | February 5, 2007 3:52 PM
Perhaps you and your colleagues can assist me and my generation of elders to understand what behavior changes might be required of us so that a good enough future can be granted to our children by responding to the following questions.
Please take a moment to explain what you expect will occur that results in the stabilization of population numbers of the human species on Earth in the year 2050, given the fully anticipated young age distribution of a global population of 9+/- billion people at that time? What do you suppose billions of fertile young people, who are expected to be capable of reproducing in mid-century, will be doing with their sexual instincts and drives other than what human beings have been doing during the past several thousand years?
Will there be enough water?
Thanks,
Steve
Posted by: Steven Earl Salmony, Ph.D., M.P.A. | February 7, 2007 9:00 AM
please send me all information about conservation of water
Posted by: kibriya siddiqui | February 22, 2007 12:24 PM
It seems we're runnning out of everything! Clean air, clean water, and we're doing global warming! I'm 12 and I know about it! This not conserving thing can and probobly will cause catastrophie! For everyone's sake , we need to CONSERVE OUR WATER!
-Angelscarab.
Posted by: Angelscarab | March 4, 2007 7:17 PM
I have just established UK Water Saving Week for anybody interested in finding out more...you can make a pledge and work out you Water Footprint please visit www.watersavingweek.org.uk
Posted by: Shawn Coles | March 31, 2009 2:06 PM