Global Access to Clean Water


 


            Water is life. It is essential for sustaining basic human functions, health and food production, as well as for preserving the integrity of the world’s ecosystems. Access to safe drinking water is a basic right for all human beings (United Nations Environment Program, 2002).


Two thirds of the surface of the earth is made up of water yet this water is not potable. There are billions of people around the world who do not have clean water for drinking, cooking, cleaning or bathing. More than one billion people worldwide lack access to safe drinking water and more than two billion people lack access to adequate sanitation due to lack of water (The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, 2006). This shortage of clean water directly threatens human health, agriculture, and economic development. There is therefore a need to find solutions for this pressing problem of shortage of clean water.


The lack of clean water could have serious consequences on a human being, biologically speaking. The maintenance of a relatively constant volume and a stable composition of body fluids including water is essential for homeostasis. Some of the most common and important problems in clinical medicine arise because of abnormalities in the constancy of body fluids. Remember that 80 percent of our bodies is composed of water (Guyton & Hall, 2000), and at worst, the lack of water could produce death in an individual.


According to the U.N. report, the main causes of water scarcity include the destruction of river basins, deforestation, harmful agricultural practices based on the heavy use of pesticides and other chemicals, and the dumping of toxic wastes (Capdevila, 2002). Because of these, governments need to use the help of private water sources, thus making water more expensive. Many poor families could not afford to pay for expensive water. From all these, we could conclude that most if not all the reasons for the scarcity of clean water is man-made. If these were man-made, then for sure man could also find solutions to undo what has been done.


            It is a responsibility of governments to find ways to be able to supply clean water to its citizens. But this is easier said than done. Providing clean water to millions of people requires many things, the most important of which is money. No wonder there are many poor countries that could not supply clean water to its citizens. Such situations could not be blamed solely on irresponsible governments but to lack of funds as well which is beyond the government’s power.


Many poor countries would have to wait for funds from the generosity of other governments, contributions from private sectors, and leadership of other governments. But when clean water access is being managed by private sectors, the tendency is for water to be a business matter. It cannot be argued that people have to pay in order to have access to clean water. And even if these are considered clean water, there are still many people that would buy bottled or distilled water for drinking. This is okay for those who could afford, but for many, they cannot even pay for access to clean water. These are comparisons that reflect the scarcity of clean water. In many rich and industrialized countries, the amount of water used for single flushing in the toilet is the same amount of water that is used by many families in impoverished African nations.


If governments cannot control funds that are needed to fund clean water, there must therefore be control over the private sectors’ provision of water by respective governments. Governments, according to a United Nations study, must retain control over water provision to the public and execute all measures possible to ensure that the poorest people have access to water (Capdevila, 2002). Just like the air we breathe, clean water is a basic human necessity and should have been provided for free to everyone. It can be considered a person’s right to have access to clean water. Yet, individuals can do nothing about this but wait for governments and private sectors to intervene.


Ensuring access to safe water worldwide should therefore be a priority. Water is therefore an issue that affects many individuals globally. Water is considered an economic issue because it is essential for the reduction of poverty, agriculture, food and energy production, as well as recreation. It is an issue that affects many women throughout the world, especially in the developing countries where women have the primary responsibility for household water gathering. The time spent by women hauling water robs them of getting an education or engaging in meaningful work (Eliasson & Blumenthal, 2005).


Water scarcity is also considered a children’s issue because water is essential for healthy development. A child’s well-being is highly dependent on both the quality and the availability of water and how well this precious resource is being managed (United Nations Environment Program, 2002). And water is a national security issue because some of the world’s conflicts today arise from disputes over arable land and water.


On top of it all, water is a fundamental global health issue. Unsafe water and sanitation is now the single largest cause of illness worldwide (Eliasson & Blumenthal, 2005). Poor sanitation is common in most developing countries. Human excreta contain all sorts of microorganisms from parasite eggs to viruses. Unsanitary conditions and practices at the household level, such as absence of sanitary latrines, unsafe waste disposal and unhygienic behavior in childcare and food preparation, create a dangerous environment with health risks to individuals (United Nations Environment Program, 2002).


            The United Nations have done several projects and awareness campaigns that could help in the provision of clean water to billions worldwide. One of these is the World Water Day. The United Nations General Assembly announced March 22 of every year as World Water Day. The international observance of World Water Day is an initiative that grew out of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro.


            For the year 2006, the theme for World Water Day is ‘Water and Culture.’ Since biologically our bodies are Eighty percent formed of water, and two thirds of the planet’s surface is covered by water, water is therefore our culture and our life. This theme draws attention to the fact that there are as many ways of viewing, using, and celebrating water as there are cultural traditions across the world. Water is also considred sacred as it is at the heart of many religions and is used in different rites and ceremonies. Water has been represented in art for centuries – in music, painting, writing, cinema – and it is an essential factor in many scientific endeavours as well (World Water Day, 2006).


Each region of the world has a different way of holding water sacred, but each recognizes its value, and its central place in human lives. Cultural traditions, indigenous practices, and societal values determine how people perceive and manage water in the world’s different regions (World Water Day, 2006).


True that for all of us, water is very valuable. The presence or absence of water is a matter of life and death. Individuals alone cannot control the provision of clean water. It takes more than that. Governments must therefore wisely manage water so that its citizens will not be facing the lack of scarcity of clean water. Other than that, governments also have the responsibility of controlling private run water suppliers so that even the poorest of the poor can have access to clean water.




Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com


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