The world is getting thirstier, today, nearly 1 billion people in the developing world do not have access to clean, safe drinking water. 97.5 percent of the earth’s water is saltwater and undrinkable, less than 1 percent of fresh water is usable, amounting to 0.01 percent of the earth’s total water. These astonishing statistics shock me that the clean water we drink every day is hard-won. Water is limited natural resources, also it is the most important thing to all living. If we do not conserve, recycle, and more efficiently use water, our environment would have serious ecological consequences, such as climate change. Water crisis had become the most pressing environment issue, terrible in some countries like Africa. It may not obviously affect American’s daily life, but it would be too late to think about the solutions if the same problem coming to us.
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Polluted water would undermine the ecological environment. For instance, recently, a Chinese mine spilt into the river, causing animals to die and affecting the local villages’. “Polluted water from a Chinese mining site in a Tibetan-populated area in western China’s Sichuan province has spilt into a nearby river, killing large numbers of fish and livestock owned by villagers, according to sources in the region” (States News Service). In this news, mining activities are a lack of government regulation. The similar thing happened to Tibetan villagers in 2011, local people were legal to protest against environmental destruction and complaints to Chinese authorities yielded no results then, either. Chinese-operated mines not just pollute the drinking water also had caused severe damage to local forests and grasslands. We should perceive problem severity of water pollution in our global village.
Moreover, the mismanagement mining or industrials not only issue in ecological environment damage but also waste an enormous amount of money and time for clean up the unsafe water. We will see a doctor and take medicine when we get sick, generally most of the diseases are under our control in short time; water is not alike human body, you might cannot see it from unsafe become clean drinking in your lifetime because water treatment takes over 100 years to recover the polluted water. “Computer projections in the environmental impact statement say that either active or passive water treatment will be needed for 200 years for the mine site, and up to 500 years for the metallurgical site. The document says water treatment would cost between $3.5 and $6 million per year after the mine closes” (Star Tribune). The reporter establishes that water treatment for mine and the metallurgical site will cost a lot of years and money. What if no one wants to spend money for the long-term water treatment? The answer is simple: Finally, the victims will be animals, plants, and us.
According to Maude Barlow’s article, millions of people live in countries that cannot provide clean water to their citizens, because they are burdened by their debt to the global North. More children die each year of water-borne disease than war, HIV/AIDS and traffic accidents combined. “At least 62 countries need deep debt relief if the daily deaths of thousands of children are to end” (Global Issue 217). Barlow indicates that people in poor countries have not adequate water and exploit their resources to pay their debt. Barlow argues that water is commons and public that everyone can access, no one owns it; but it does not mean that we can waste water and wanton destruction the ecosystem. In my opinion, water does free to everybody, but actuality we pay for water fee for our family every month. I think this is one of the best ways to tell people to save water. However, we should help the poor countries which cannot provide clean water to people because of financial problem.
Today, water is wasted through abuse, inefficiency, leakage, evaporation, and allocation of pure water to tasks that do not need it. The global water crisis getting worse by the day and threatening millions of more people every year, therefore, water protection strategies are needs urgently. In article “Water of Life”, Postel point out a question that why are the greater amounts of money and sophisticated engineering have not solved the world’s water problem? “We have been trying to meet insatiable demands by continuously expanding a finite water supply” (Global Issue 225). Postel emphasises that human demand too much water which is limited and unable expand resources. Postel provided some suggest for protect, recycle, and how efficiently use water can contain people’s water demands and avoid or delay an ecological reckoning. “tried-and-true measures as thrifty irrigation techniques, water-saving plumbing fixtures, native landscaping, and wastewater recycling can cost-effectively reduce the amount of water required to grow food, produce material goods and meet household needs” (Global Issue 225). The author suggestions are convincing because each example she lists are improvable base on the technology today. Another example of wasting water is every people doing every day, which is using pure water to flushing the toilet. I suggest people use dish water or the water after wash vegetables to flushing. This is kind of use up the water by the second time, better than use pure water.
In my perspective, to dealing with the global water crisis, we must leave sufficient water in rivers and lakes for ensuring their ecological health. The priority project we should do that is put investment to develop the infrastructure which can turn rainwater and stormwater harvesting, recycling, alternative energy use. In addition, only the protective measures of water are not enough, so we should create a new law to regulate human behaviours in order to protect the environment. As Martin Luther King said, the law may not change the heart but it will restrain the heartless. It is difficult or takes long-term to change human daily habits, but a law with punishments can at least restrict or let human perceive what is right and wrong.
Wherever we are, we need water to survive. Not just because sixty percent of the human body is water, also fundamental for the production of food, clothing, and cars etc. Pollute water threatens our body and the next generation health problem. None of us can live on a dry planet, we are responsible for keeping the environment healthy, and make sure every person have clean and safe drinking water.
Source Citation
“CHINESE MINE SPILL KILLS ANIMALS, POLLUTES WATER IN TIBETAN AREA.” States News Service 18 Oct. 2013. General OneFile. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
Johnson, June. Global Issues, Local Arguments: Readings for Writing. N.p.: Pearson Education, n.d. Print.
“Iron Range mine could pollute water for 500 years; StateAEs first copper-nickel mine would require billions of dollars in long-term cleanup, regulators say.” Star Tribune [Minneapolis, MN] 5 Oct. 2013: 1A. General OneFile. Web. 18 Nov. 2014.
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