MSA-India SCOPH UN WORLD WATER DAY 1. A whopping 85 percent of the worlds population lives in the driest half of the planet. As such, 783 million people do not have access to clean water and 2.5 billion people do not have access to proper sanitation. These figures are the root cause behind the deaths of 6 to 8 million people each year, who die from water-related diseases. 2. According to estimates, if the entire world had the same lifestyle as the average European or North American nation, then there would need to be 3.5 Earths to provide water. 3. Over the course of the next 40 years, global population increases coupled with changing diets will result in a 70 percent increase in food demand by 2050. 4. The UN Water organization reports: With expected increases in population, by 2030, food demand is predicted to increase by 50 percent (70 percent by 2050) (Bruinsma, 2009), while energy demand from hydropower and other renewable energy resources will rise by 60 percent (WWAP, 2009). These issues are interconnected -- increasing agricultural output, for example, will substantially increase both water and energy consumption, leading to increased competition for water between water-using sectors. 5. More than 80 percent of the water used worldwide is neither collected nor treated, according to a 2010 study. 6. Treating wastewater requires a great deal of energy. Consider this: 9 percent of wastewater in developing countries are disposed of in rivers, lakes and coastal zones. This, in turn, creates health, food and water insecurities. 7. Climate change is a threat to water as well, as the 2°C rise in global average temperature is believed to cost $70 to $100 billion per year between 2020 and 2050, according to World Bank. Of that whopping amount, $13.7 billion to $19.2 billion would be water-related. 8. Industry dumps an estimated 300 to 400 MT of polluted waste in waters every year. The most common chemical contaminant in the worlds groundwater aquifers is Nitrate. As such, the biodiversity of freshwater ecosystems have been degraded more than any other ecosystem. 9. It has been estimated that by 2025, 1800 million people will be living in countries or regions with water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world population could be living under water stress conditions. 10. Every day, one person drinks 2 to 4 liters of water but eats 2,000 to 5,000 liters of virtual water embedded in food. I pledge to save some water every day! I pledge to save water, to treat it with care, never to waste it, I wouldn’t dare! I will not pollute it. I won’t hesitate to tell other people of water’s sad state. I pledge to conserve every drop that I can every day of the week. That is my plan! I pledge to save some water every day!
Posted on: Sun, 23 Mar 2014 10:26:07 +0000
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