Today thousands of bloggers from over 125 different countries come together to write about water issues in their communities around the world today. Please visit change.org - a really interesting website. Some interesting facts from the website:
- Every WEEK nearly 38 thousand children under the age of 5 die worldwide from unsafe drinking water and unhygienic living conditions.
- Unsafe water and lack of basic sanitation cause 80% of diseases and kill more people every year than all forms of violence including war.
In Canada we do not have true poverty. We are fortunate to live in a country that does not lack water and the water that we do have is filtered through sanitation filtration systems. A study conducted last year in a Toronto paper investigated whether the municipal water supply is safe - some municipalities had "safer" drinking water than others. Some had lead in the water due to old lead pipes in the older homes, prescription drug toxins and bacteria were found at different levels, but the overall message was that the water was safe to drink.
I read these facts today that really blew me away: The basic water requirement for one person is 50 litres. The average Sub-Saharan consumption is 10 to 20 litres per person/per day. In Europe it's 140 litres per person/per day. In Canada, the average consumption is 335 litres per person/per day. I was reading all the "tips" to conserve water. I absolutely understand the need to conserve and I understand that we waste a lot of water here. Bring in the rain barrels! I swear I will turn the water off when I am brushing my teeth, but I cannot turn the water off in the shower when I "lather" - that ain't happenin'!
In most of the world, water is not in such plentiful supply.
It's trivial, but in El Salvador, we couldn't even use the running water from the faucet to brush our teeth. The smell of the water and the warnings of impending "yellow teeth" from Americans were heeded.We also would never have ice in a drink, shaved ice treats or anything that was washed in water that was not from a bottle. (The latest movement in diminishing plastic bottles, thereby reducing oil consumption etc) is not even on the radar in El Salvador. Bottled water is a necessity in this country.
In wiki - it states that 90% of the surface water is contaminated and that the industrial waste water spews into the creeks and rivers without being treated. The photo above is where the locals do wash their clothes and themselves. Running water is not available in the shanty villages. There are some wells, but most women and some men can be seen walking along the roadsides with their vessels on their heads carrying water back to their homes.
If you are lucky enough to have running water - it's not unusual for it to be turned off for days - especially during the rainy season. The limited filtration systems can't take the muddy waters, so hence the water turn offs.
To turn your water off for a couple of days is to experience a fraction of life experienced by most of the world's population. In the first world countries, we should be very grateful for the running water in plentiful supply.
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