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Jordan: Water Scarcity: Difference between revisions
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Why is water so important to us? Firstly, it is one of the fundamental requirements for human physical survival along with oxygen, food, shelter and sleep. It is one of the basic human rights guaranteed by the United Nations. According to the UN Human Rights Council, ''"the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation is derived from the right to an adequate standard of living and inextricably related to the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, as well as the right to life and human dignity".''<ref>Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: The Right to Water and Sanitation Toolkit [online] [cit 1.11.2013] http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/ESCR/Pages/Water.aspx</ref> | Why is water so important to us? Firstly, it is one of the fundamental requirements for human physical survival along with oxygen, food, shelter and sleep. It is one of the basic human rights guaranteed by the United Nations. According to the UN Human Rights Council, ''"the human right to safe drinking water and sanitation is derived from the right to an adequate standard of living and inextricably related to the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health, as well as the right to life and human dignity".''<ref>Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights: The Right to Water and Sanitation Toolkit [online] [cit 1.11.2013] http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/ESCR/Pages/Water.aspx</ref> | ||
For basic physical survival, a human requires something between 2 and 5 litres of water per day. If we add the water needed for cooking and washing, then a Bedouin tribe from the Middle East can make do on roughly 20-30 litres of water per day, while sedentary populations require an absolute minimum of 100 litres per person a day for safe hygiene and an adequate standard of living<ref>Mohsen, Mousa S. "Water strategies and potential of desalination in Jordan." Desalination 203.1 (2007) p.32</ref> Domestic households in developed countries typically require about 250-350 litres a person in Europe and over 500 litres in North America. | For basic physical survival, a human requires something between 2 and 5 litres of water per day. If we add the water needed for cooking and washing, then a Bedouin tribe from the Middle East can make do on roughly 20-30 litres of water per day, while sedentary populations require an absolute minimum of 100 litres per person a day for safe hygiene and an adequate standard of living<ref name="Mohsen"> Mohsen, Mousa S. "Water strategies and potential of desalination in Jordan." Desalination 203.1 (2007) p.32</ref> Domestic households in developed countries typically require about 250-350 litres a person in Europe and over 500 litres in North America. | ||
But it is not only a basic factor in the maintenance of our lives and the life of every organic lifeform on the planet, it is also essential to every other aspect of human life from cooking and cleaning, to transport and energy, to climate and food production, to carbon sequestration (the oceans act as a vital carbon sink and hence are becoming more and more acidified), to our religious rituals (think of the Catholic Church's use of holy water or the ablutions required of Islam before prayer), to our physical landscape (our coastlines, lakes, rivers, glacial valleys, etc) and to our mental landscape (our art, poetry and literature is full of water images, e.g. Stauss's The Blue Danube, Smetana's The Moldau, etc). | But it is not only a basic factor in the maintenance of our lives and the life of every organic lifeform on the planet, it is also essential to every other aspect of human life from cooking and cleaning, to transport and energy, to climate and food production, to carbon sequestration (the oceans act as a vital carbon sink and hence are becoming more and more acidified), to our religious rituals (think of the Catholic Church's use of holy water or the ablutions required of Islam before prayer), to our physical landscape (our coastlines, lakes, rivers, glacial valleys, etc) and to our mental landscape (our art, poetry and literature is full of water images, e.g. Stauss's The Blue Danube, Smetana's The Moldau, etc). | ||
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==Globalisation aspects of access to water== | ==Globalisation aspects of access to water== | ||
In every corner of the modern globe, water is to a greater or lesser extent a crucial raw material for practically all economic activity. Around the planet, up to 92% of water for non-household purposes, mostly in the agricultural sector. Growing a sufficient amount of food for a human adult requires around 300 metric tons of water a year, i.e. nearly a ton a day.<ref | In every corner of the modern globe, water is to a greater or lesser extent a crucial raw material for practically all economic activity. Around the planet, up to 92% of water for non-household purposes, mostly in the agricultural sector. Growing a sufficient amount of food for a human adult requires around 300 metric tons of water a year, i.e. nearly a ton a day.<ref name="Mohsen" /> If this water does not arrive through natural precipitation, then it has to come via human constructed irrigation conduits – irrigated agriculture is responsible for 69% of global water consumption. | ||
Industry also consumes enormous amounts of water for washing, diluting, cooling and production of steam. Highly industrialised economies therefore harness most of their water for such purposes where water often also provides an important source of energy via hydroelectric power generation in large-scale dams, as well as a vital means of transport. As the natural habitat for planetary piscine life all countries that are able heavily exploit their water resources as a source of food, and for the countries with the most highly developed economies, water is a natural draw card for recreational and tourism activities. | Industry also consumes enormous amounts of water for washing, diluting, cooling and production of steam. Highly industrialised economies therefore harness most of their water for such purposes where water often also provides an important source of energy via hydroelectric power generation in large-scale dams, as well as a vital means of transport. As the natural habitat for planetary piscine life all countries that are able heavily exploit their water resources as a source of food, and for the countries with the most highly developed economies, water is a natural draw card for recreational and tourism activities. | ||
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All these activities have a great impact on the world’s water reserves and in particular on its limited resources of fresh water. As the world economy becomes more and more globalised and integrated in order to meet the demands of an ever increasing population, water consumption increases accordingly, placing pressure on the drinking water supply. In “water poor” nations, competition increases between people and commercial activity over dwindling supplies of potable water – water is diverted toward irrigation for expanded food production, to upmarket hotels and golf courses to cater to rising numbers of wealthy tourists, and to new industries to provide the consumer products demanded by the global market. But the impact is not only on the increased volume of water used. Expanded agricultural activity not only consumes more water but also pollutes remaining water supplies with the run-off of chemical fertilisers, while large scale irrigation schemes can destroy natural water ecosystems; greater industrial consumption of water creates greater amounts of waste water that can overwhelm sewage and water purification plants; rapidly expanding populations in water stressed countries place overwhelming pressure on water delivery systems. | All these activities have a great impact on the world’s water reserves and in particular on its limited resources of fresh water. As the world economy becomes more and more globalised and integrated in order to meet the demands of an ever increasing population, water consumption increases accordingly, placing pressure on the drinking water supply. In “water poor” nations, competition increases between people and commercial activity over dwindling supplies of potable water – water is diverted toward irrigation for expanded food production, to upmarket hotels and golf courses to cater to rising numbers of wealthy tourists, and to new industries to provide the consumer products demanded by the global market. But the impact is not only on the increased volume of water used. Expanded agricultural activity not only consumes more water but also pollutes remaining water supplies with the run-off of chemical fertilisers, while large scale irrigation schemes can destroy natural water ecosystems; greater industrial consumption of water creates greater amounts of waste water that can overwhelm sewage and water purification plants; rapidly expanding populations in water stressed countries place overwhelming pressure on water delivery systems. | ||
In terms of water stress levels, it is generally considered that countries with annual supplies of 1,000-2,000 m3 per person are water-stressed, with 1,000 m3 thought to be the minimum per capita requirement of a moderately developed country.<ref | In terms of water stress levels, it is generally considered that countries with annual supplies of 1,000-2,000 m3 per person are water-stressed, with 1,000 m3 thought to be the minimum per capita requirement of a moderately developed country.<ref name="Mohsen" /> Societies with less than 500 m3 per capita are said to suffer from absolute scarcity. “But lack of water then requires application of expensive technologies and becomes a constraint on food production, social and economic development, and protection of natural systems.”<ref name="Mohsen" /> | ||
==Resources== | ==Resources== | ||