Home » Home & Style » Green Home » AND WHAT ABOUT THE WATER?

AND WHAT ABOUT THE WATER?

© Linda Little

In America, Canada or most of Europe it is difficult to imagine that there are some places in the world where wars are fought over access to pure, clean drinking water. What you have you do not tend to appreciate.

Our water generally comes straight out of our taps. You turn a tap on and get as much water as you like. Water is that dull stuff that we generally heat up to make more interesting drinks like tea or coffee, or use as a base ingredient for lemon or orange squash for the kids. Water is that dull stuff we boil vegetables in or use, heated again, to wash up dishes. It is that stuff we bathe in every morning. Something we don't even really think about.

Now let me tell you what water really is. It is the vital ingredient that keeps us all alive. Without water we would all be dead in about three days. It is the base ingredient of every liquid we take into our systems: cola, soda, beer, wine, spirits.... It is a vital tool in the cooking of a huge number of food stuffs. It is essential in hygeine and in medical care. It is one of the most used resources in almost every manufacturing process imaginable. In terms of life on this planet, it is right up there with free oxygen in importance.

What is happening to our water?

It is being used up by various processes. It is being wasted because nobody seems to realise how important it is. It is being polluted and poisoned with all the health, wildlife and habitat implications.

As they say "You never miss the water 'til the well runs dry" - in these days the well is running dry globally. It is predicted by some that our worst wars in the future will be about access to water. Clean, pure drinking water is, even now, a luxury that some people do not have.

So, what do we do about this?

We need to be a lot more careful with water than we are at present. This is paramount if we are to retain adequate drinking water on a global basis.

Unfortunately, many people in civilised countries still do not pay for their water by volume, in the same way as they pay for their electricity or gas. This is certainly true of me. I get as much water as I want to use for a standard fee. If I were to leave my taps on at full blast for a whole year, I would still only be charged this amount. Not a situation conducive to saving water. It makes people take water for granted.

The copyright of the article AND WHAT ABOUT THE WATER? in Green Home is owned by Linda Little. Permission to republish AND WHAT ABOUT THE WATER? in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.