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23 March 2010
Posted in
SustainaBlog
I recently attended the screening of Waterlife, a documentary directed by Kevin Mcmahon, touted as one of Canada's most innovative filmmakers. It’s easy to see why he earned the honor when watching this film, and not surprising that Waterlife was awarded the Special Jury Award at Hot Docs 2009.
Per Gisele Gordon (Hot Docs 2009), "This stunning ode to the last great supply of fresh water on earth, the Great Lakes, immerses us in their extraordinary beauty, ecological complexity, and extreme state of distress. Under assault on all fronts by a deadly combination of industrial toxins, sewage, invasive species, climate change, and profound apathy, they are on the verge of irreversible collapse". (Website: www.waterlife.nfb.ca
& Official Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWTu_fXgaqM)
Aside from being incredibly eye-opening experience regarding the condition and challenges facing the Great Lakes, quite frankly, for me, Waterlife was a little sad. I had no idea the situation with the Lakes was so terrible. In fact, the more I delved into facts about Waterlife, the more I thought about water in general, and problems with quality and quantity, near and far. In fact, it was no small coincidence that the Waterlife film was shown by the EAC on March 22nd, since that was World Water Day, an annual event celebrated around the world.
UN Statement Regarding World Water Day
In case you missed the “memo”, the United Nations Secretary General stated the following in a World Water Day 2010 statement:
“Our indispensable water resources … are increasingly vulnerable and threatened. Our growing population’s need for water for food, raw materials and energy is increasingly competing with nature’s demands for water… Recognition of these links (between) improved… health… food security, sustainable development and climate change adaptation and mitigation led to the declaration of 2005-2015 as the International Decade for Action ‘Water for Life’. …The theme of this year’s World Water Day, ‘Clean Water for a Healthy World’, emphasizes that both the quality and the quantity of water resources are at risk.
More people die from unsafe water than from all forms of violence, including war…. These deaths are an affront to our common humanity, and undermine the efforts of many countries to achieve their development potential. …Day after day, we pour millions of tons of untreated sewage and industrial and agricultural wastes into the world’s water systems. …the poor continue to suffer first and most from pollution, water shortages and the lack of adequate sanitation. The world has the know-how to solve these challenges and become better stewards of our water resources.”
Several comments stick with me from the statement. But it’s the last sentence that really resonates… the fact that “we have the knowledge to solve these challenges” and change our current conditions and more importantly, our future. Admittedly, the UN points to world-wide problems, which in some cases, are not those with which we are faced daily here in our pampered North American lives. However, are we really that that far removed?
Although we may have clean drinking water to our heart’s content when we turn on the tap (limited only slightly by our ability to pay for the subsidized service), like many places around the world, and due to some unfortunate (and mind-boggling!) circumstances with our Water Treatment efforts, we too dump domestic waste into our waterways.
You won’t find our local politicians swimming in Black Rock Beach (Point Pleasant Park) and Dingle Beach (Sir Fleming Park) any time soon. That said, on 2 separate recent occasions, I suggested to young families whose toddlers were playing in these waters, that they might want to wash their children’s hands before they stick them in their mouths. They admitted missing the somewhat out-of-the-way sign posted suggesting possible bacteria in the water.) HRM’s website http://www.halifax.ca/rec/Beaches.html has postings regarding accessibility of local beaches. But I digress…
The point is, water quality and quantity is of the utmost importance, near and far. Just because we can get water when we turn on the tap, doesn’t mean we need to do so without giving it a second thought. The human, economic and environmental resources required to treat water, especially when it’s used unnecessarily, is taxing. And how we use/ misuse water is of great consequence, even where water of good quality is abundant.
There are some simple tendencies and habits we can develop in our daily lives to greatly enhance a reduction in water use &/or an enhancement of water quality. See our CRUSISIS Everyday Environmentalist for Water Use for everyday tips on how to:
- Reduce Water Consumption & Limit Waste While You Wait
- Eliminate Unnecessary Usage & Ideas for Re-using/ Recycling Water
- Ensure Your Water is Clean
World Water Day was celebrated around the world for the 18th time since the United Nations General Assembly designated March 22nd, 1993, as the first World Water Day, in response to a recommendation at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) to allocate an international day to celebrate freshwater.
There’s a huge difference between freshwater and what makes up the majority of our planet’s water resources, saltwater, and how we can use each. A few noteworthy statistics from UNEP (UN Environment Program) & WWAP (World Water Assessment Program) include:
- The total volume of water on Earth is about 1.4 billion km3. The volume of freshwater resources is about 2.5 percent of the total volume or around 35 million km3. (UNEP)
- Of these freshwater resources:
- About 70% is in the form of ice and permanent snow cover in mountainous regions, the Antarctic and Arctic regions. (UNEP)
- Around 30% is stored underground in the form of groundwater (shallow and deep groundwater basins up to 2 000 metres, soil moisture, swamp water and permafrost). This constitutes about 97 percent of all the freshwater that is potentially available for human use. (UNEP)
- Freshwater lakes and rivers contain an estimated 0.3% of the world's freshwater. (UNEP)
- The Earth's atmosphere contains approximately 13,000 km3 of water. (WWAP)
- The total usable freshwater supply for ecosystems and humans is about less than 1% (200 000 km3 of water) of all freshwater resources.
- Freshwater use distribution is as follows: (WWAP)
- about 70% for irrigation
- about 22% for industry
- about 8% for domestic use
- Water use has been growing at more than the rate twice of population increase in the last century. (UN-Water & FAO: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations)
- The world's 6 billion people are appropriating 54% of all the accessible freshwater contained in rivers, lakes and underground aquifers. (WWAP)
- Water withdrawals are predicted to increase by 50% by 2025 in developing countries, and 18% in developed countries. (GEO-4: Global Environment Outlook)
- Over 1.4 billion people currently live in river basins where the use of water exceeds minimum recharge levels, leading to the desiccation of rivers and depletion of groundwater. (Human Development Report 2006)
- In 60% of European cities with more than 100,000 people, groundwater is being used at a faster rate than it can be replenished. (WBCSD: World Business Council For Sustainable Development)
- By 2025, 1 800 million people will be living in countries or regions with absolute water scarcity, and 2/3 of the world population could be under stress conditions.
Small planet-friendly choices and changes you make every day, can have a big impact on water, this life giving and precious natural resource.
Thoughtfully,
Sylvie
CRUSISIS Sustainable Living
Sylvie is the Founder of CRUSISIS Sustainable Living. She is an engineer, currently staying at home to raise her young children, and managing the operations of CRUSISIS. CRUSISIS is your on-line and community-based resource for sustainable living in the greater Halifax area and beyond. Visit us at www.crusisis.ca to find out how to make your lifestyle a little more sustainable, every day... for People, Planet & Community
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