wind on the water.

wind on the water.

Originally uploaded by D.James.

Animals and Water

From the Washington Times:

AMBOSELI NATIONAL PARK, Kenya — Elephants, buffaloes and other animals drink water on one side of a swamp. On the other, Maasai warriors watch hundreds of cattle graze as the sun sears the parched land of this wildlife sanctuary.

Balancing the needs of both sides is becoming more complex, and environmentalists fear wildlife is losing out.

Kenyan officials recently bent stringent conservation regulations to allow cattle into the Amboseli National Park — the only permanent source of water in the region — to help the Maasai save their precious livestock from a punishing drought. . . .

Competition for pasture and water could drive wildlife out of the sanctuary and intensify conflict between wild animals and people in a region scarred by clashes over scarce resources, said Connie Maina, spokeswoman for the Kenya Wildlife Service.

The drought has begun to kill animals in wildlife sanctuaries and is driving elephants from national parks and game reserves to search for food and water near human settlements.

The scarcity of water is threatening more than just the animals. The entire ecosystem could collapse if balance isn’t restored, and the loss of wildlife means an economic loss as tourists no longer have a reason to visit the national park. Water issues are far-reaching.

Water Terrorism?

I just came across a water issue that hadn’t occurred to me before – terrorism. Fortunately this possiblity is on the minds of health officials. From The American College of Preventive Medicine:

Until recently, contamination of water with biological, chemical or radiologic agents generally resulted from natural, industrial or unintentional man-made accidents. Unfortunately, recent terrorist activity in the US has forced the medical community, public health agencies, and water utilities to consider the possibility of intentional contamination of US water supplies as part of an organized effort to disrupt and damage important elements of our national infrastructure. In his 2002 State of the Union Address, President Bush noted that confiscated Al Qaeda documents included detailed maps of several US municipal drinking water systems. Apprehension regarding a terrorist assault on drinking water has also been reinforced by news reports and recent arrests of suspects charged with threatening to poison water supplies in the US. In addition, the National Academy of Sciences reported to Congress that water supply system contamination and disruption should be considered a possible terrorist threat in the U.S. As a result of these reports, there continues to be concern that water may represent a potential target for terrorist activity and that deliberate contamination of water is a potential public health threat.

Read more on the Water Health Connection website. It made me just how vulnerable we all are to safe water issues.

Australia’s Water Recycling Efforts

Australia is plagued by drought and the Queensland government has a solution that is raising eyebrows among residents. A planned referendum will propose adding treated waste water to the drinking supply. In order to convince the public a media campaign is slated to begin. According to recycling advocate Mr Beattie, “It’s probably not so much about swaying opinion, although I wouldn’t mind if that happened. It’s more about … explaining exactly what we’re doing, explaining this is about water security, this is about drought-proofing the south-east corner as much as is humanly possible.”

London, Washington and Singapore use recycled water in their drinking supply, and in Australia the isuues is seen as “the difference between life and death.”

See “QLD govt to sell recycled water idea” in The Age for more information.

Using the sun to sterilise water

This link came from Sociolingo, and is a form of water purification I wasn’t familiar with. It is possible to sterilize drinking water by simply leaving it out in the sun. When containers of water are left on black roof shingles the heat and ultra-violet radiation destroys the bacteria that cause cholera, typhoid, dysentery and diarrhoea.

According to Pastor Moses Kwanga who is teaching villagers in Tanzania to use the process, “The technology is very easy, but up to now people have not been told about it. We can use old pieces of roofing to put the bottles on. It is also very cheap, so is accessible to everyone.” The most difficult part of the process has been to teach villagers about this form of water purification. Water expert David Makamba from Plan International says, “The big resistance from the community is cultural beliefs. People believe the water will be contaminated, or an enemy will put something bad in it, so we need to educate the people.”

With proper support this is a promising way to immediately insure a source of clean drinking water. The article “Sun and water: an overview of solar water treatment devices” from the Journal of Environmental Health gives more information on the process.

“Dirty Aid, Dirty Water”

Human rights vs Corporate rights? Water privatization is a complicated political debate in every nation. Is it the sole responsibility of a government to provide clean, running water to every household for free as a basic human right? Can this type of infrastructure be better built and maintained if it comes from a private company, especially in developing nations where the government may not have the resources to do it? This documentary looks into the issue, concluding that water privatization is failing.

Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis

The United Nations Development Program has issued it’s 2006 Human Development Report. Titled “Beyond Scarcity: Power, Poverty and the Global Water Crisis”, it details the conditions that water issues create around the world. According to the UNDP nearly 2 million children die each year due to a lack of clean water and sanitation, and “water-borne infectious diseases are holding back poverty reduction and economic growth in some of the world’s poorest countries.” Competition for water is intesifying and the ecological systems that support it are being depleted. River flows are declining and groundwater is being depleted. Conflicts and political tensions over water will only increase.

The 440 page report available for download “investigates the underlying causes and consequences of a crisis that leaves 1.2 billion people without access to safe water and 2.6 billion without access to sanitation, argues for a concerted drive to achieve water and sanitation for all through national strategies and a global plan of action, examines the social and economic forces that are driving water shortages and marginalizing the poor in agriculture, and looks at the scope for international cooperation to resolve cross-border tensions in water management.”

US$ 9.3 Billion Spent on Bottled Water

A good idea from ProgressiveU:

The United States spends around $9 billion on bottled water in a year. There are many places that do not have clean water sources for their own people in their country. In America we have plumbing and tap water that is good to drink, yet we spend time and money choosing what kind of water we want to drink. There have been experiments and the majority of people cannot taste the difference between bottled water and tap.

The fact is if everyone drank one less bottled water and gave that dollar to a water charity or any charity we could help people around the world. The plastic bottles also take up space and create problems at landfills.

Giving up just one bottle of water a week, and donating that money to charity could do a great amount of good. A LifeStraw is estimated to cost $3.00 when it hits the maket and will provide clean drinking water to one person for a full year. A donation of $52.00 will provide 17 people in developing countries with clean water for a full year, just by giving up on bottle a week. It’s an easy sacrifice that will make a difference. Contact the Rotary Club of Brynmawr to donate LifeStraws.

Charity Navigator

It can be difficult to know whether or not a charity you are interested in donating to is the right one. How do they spend their money? How much money goes directly to people in need? How much will be eaten up in administrative costs? It’s important to ask questions about anyone you consider giving money to.

Charity Navigator is an “independent charity evaluator”. Accroding to their website there are six questions you should ask before donating.

Can your charity clearly communicate who they are and what they do?
Can your charity define their short-term and long-term goals?
Can your charity tell you the progress it has made (or is making) toward its goal?
Do your charity’s programs make sense to you?
Can you trust your charity?
Are you willing to make a long-term commitment to your organization?

Charity Navigator ranks charity organizations based on their program expenses, administarative expenses, fundraising expenses and fundraising efficiency. While it shouldn’t be the sole determination for which a charity should be evaluated on, it is a valuable and unbiased look at how charity organizations are run.

Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program

“With no running water, a family in Kenya has no choice but to drink from contaminated rivers and streams. Much of their water is filled with pollutants, bacteria, parasites, and viruses. With every drink, children and adults face the risk of illnesses, such as severe diarrhea, which can result in death.”

Pur, the company that makes water filters, has started a new campaign. They are sponsoring the Children’s Safe Drinking Water Program. Their goal is to provide 50 million liters of clean drinking water to children in Kenya. You can help! Pur is donating a portion of the proceeds of sales from its water filters, up to $400,000, to the nonprofit organization PSI.

According to the website Pur, a division of Proctor and Gamble, “effectively eliminates parasites, bacterial and viral diseases and other contaminants found in water, and has been proven to dramatically reduce diarrheal illness in children.” Water filters will be donated to families who have no access to a safe source of drinking water. Visit the website to learn more. The video clip from CNN’s Global Challenges Series is an especially important introduction to the impact water filtration has on those suffering from HIV/AIDS in Kenya.