Water Stress

Water stress is to the “ability, or lack thereof, to meet human and ecological demand for fresh water.”1

It’s been almost 30 years since the United Nations started observing World Water Day with the goal of providing worldwide access to clean water. Even though we’ve seen significant improvement, water stressed countries remain a problem in many areas around the world. Developed countries are not exempt from clean water struggles either. In fact, more than 2 million Americans lack access to indoor plumbing and running water. Another 30 million live in communities that do not have access to safe drinking water.2

How many people lack access to clean water? Several developed cities are among the BBC list of those that are likely to run out of drinking water—Cape Town, Sao Paulo, Bangalore, Beijing, Cairo, Jakarta, Moscow, Istanbul, Mexico City, London, Tokyo, and Miami.

“Cape Town is in the unenviable situation of being the first major city in the modern era to face the threat of running out of drinking water.”3

It’s hard to believe that while 71% of the earth is covered with water, only 3% is fresh. Of that 3%, 68.7% is locked in ice caps, glaciers, and permanent snow. Another 30.1% is in the ground.4 The water that’s left is what is available as surface water. We can add rainwater to that, but in many areas of the world, drought season brings seasonal water challenges.

Therefore, millions around the world struggle every day to find clean water to drink, use in cooking, bathe in, and so on. Many of us wake up each morning, grab a quick drink from the faucet, shower in clean water, and have easy access to indoor plumbing. That’s not normal for many people around the globe.

What is water stress? When water isn’t available, dehydration is the first symptom of deficiency. Then a person begins to experience headaches, dizziness, muscle cramps, and a rapid heartbeat. If the person doesn’t receive hydration, death will result.

For many around the world, water is available but it’s contaminated. When this water is consumed, it often breeds waterborne illnesses like diarrhea, dysentery, typhoid fever, cholera, Hepatitis A, and many more. Water can also be contaminated with industrial waste, which also leads to serious health problems.

In areas of water scarcity, water wells are essential to survival. They allow people to have local access to clean water, rather than having to walk miles for it. These wells need to be dug deep enough to access clean water even in the driest of months.


Click here, to read more about this article.

Click here, to read more blogs in Gospel for Asia.Org

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What Is the Poverty Cycle?

Image
The question, “What is the poverty cycle, or cycle of poverty?” is one that must be answered to address and end poverty across the globe. Put simply, the term refers to the trend where the vicious effects of poverty and deprivation pass from one generation to the next, with no seeming way out. [1] Someone born into poverty has fewer opportunities than their wealthier peers. They must focus on survival above all, leaving little room for anything else. One illness can wipe out a family’s savings, but the unclean water sources and lack of protection available to them invite sickness. Walking to retrieve water can be time-consuming yet must be a daily priority, and many children must work alongside their parents for the family to afford food. Thus, school is often a far-off dream. Having had few opportunities to acquire skills, the kids grow up to repeat the cycle of poverty with their own children. This story was all too familiar for Nalah. His father worked in the tea fields, trying to e...
Read more

Where Can I Learn How to Break the Cycle of Poverty?

Image
There are many methods for how to break the cycle of poverty which one can learn about. From education assistance to income-generating gifts like sewing machines or farm animals, there is hope for families who have been poor for generations. GFA World works in communities in all these ways through sponsorships and gift distributions, and one by one, we see lives changed as families escape poverty. Raina’s life had been dominated by poverty. She was part of a highly underprivileged people group that faced discrimination and deprivation from others in the region. Despite that, Raina had been able to attend school up until tenth grade, but she discontinued her education when it became too much for her parents to afford. Rather than receiving her certificates of completion, she had to join her parents in the field to earn money to put food on the table. After she married Ander, Raina continued to work in the fields to supplement his income with her own. In search of better job opportunitie...
Read more

What Do I Need to Know about the Global Poverty Rate?

Image
Statisticians are getting better at measuring the global poverty rate every year. The World Bank is one group working hard to accurately measure it so that the extent of the problem is fully known and so that progress can be measured. [1] Through governments and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), we can more clearly see the last decade of progress and the most recent effects driving poverty rates. Sub-Saharan Africa has been one area difficult to measure, but new data shows an overall reduction in the percentage of those in poverty. Unfortunately, there is an increase in total number of people living at or below the official poverty rate of $1.90 per day. [2] That doesn’t mean that all hope is lost. With good statistics and a clear view of the problem, countries and organizations can use the proven methods to regain any ground lost. Additionally, valuable lessons have been learned about how to protect the most vulnerable and how to prevent some of the worst effects. GFA World is un...
Read more