Shall we be afraid that we may run out of water on Earth? This will never happen in the foreseeable future. Perhaps we are running short of usable or potable water and consequently billions of people on Earth continue to exist without equitable access to this essential natural resource.
Mismanagement of water, over exploitation of underground water, subsequent droughts, growing demand, water pollution and climate change beyond adaptation has crafted this trouble while human conflicts like the recent Ukraine-Russia war, technologies like Reverse Osmosis, water being treated as a commodity etc., have aided to accentuate the same cause.
Therefore, water scarcity can be inseparably linked to human rights and addressing the same is vital for achieving sustainable development. Women and children, are particularly, most affected by the water shortage as they are the ones responsible to collect it, covering greater distances jeopardizing their greater need to seek education or employment. Even sanitary hygiene will become a far-fetched dream.
Climate change and Water Stress:
An expected melting of ice caps with global warming may bring plenty of water to the fore but will only intensify this compounding threat. With weather beginning to power things up in the current decade and century, subtropical regions of the world will face more frequent and intense droughts.
With such deprivation, there will be easier onset of diseases like cholera, typhoid, diarrhea paired with malnutrition, wasting, stunting, heatstroke.
Types of Water Scarcity:
As per the Global Risks Report released in 2017 by World Economic Forum, water crises has been ranked as the top third global risk with respect to its impact on the human race.
Water scarcity can arise due to two factors: physical and economic. When a particular region’s demand far exceeds its potential to replenish drinking water, it’s mostly physical and can be either seasonal or absolute. FAO has estimated this kind to inflict 1.2 billion people.
With rising temperatures, currently 4 billion people or about two-third of global population face severe drought for at least a month every year while as many as 700 million are bound to be displaced in this scenario by 2030.
While the other kind called economic water scarcity arises in dearth of water infrastructure or its grave mismanagement. This happens as available water resource gets polluted or inefficient to serve people in need. More than 1.6 billion people are affected by this form of water scarcity, as per FAO and is complex in understanding or calculation as multiple factors contribute to its making.
Any urban dwelling can develop water stress with unplanned development, removal of aquifers or lakes, unsustainable water usage etc., despite abundant rainfall. Several surveys have estimated the loss of 40 percent of usable water resource through pipes. Cities like Bengaluru continue to face and fight such distress.
A district called Pithoragarh in Uttarakhand, has an ample water resource and relevant schemes yet people are struggling to get hold of it to survive.
An expert from Georgetown University explains: “Almost always the drinking water problem has nothing to do with physical water scarcity. It has to do with the scarcity of financial and political wherewithal to put in the infrastructure to get people clean water. It’s separate.”
While many others like Goa, are bracing for a probable future crisis, explains the CM Pramod Sawant: “In future we might face water scarcity. Earlier we used to get water soon after digging 5 to 6 meters. Now the situation has changed and we find it at 10 meters deep. For this we need to harvest water”.
“We have done such a unique project in Surla (in North Goa) by utilizing ‘District Mineral Fund’ and spending Rs 2.5 crore. We are pumping water from a mining pit for irrigation. Remaining mining pits (across Goa) will be used for irrigation purposes. We will use this water”.
That old familiar feeling with newer solutions?
Water stresses have found profound address in the world politics and even international relations. Solving this problem requires a multidisciplinary approach, a united attempt at the global forefront and a gamut of environmental, economic as well as technological marvels and innovations to achieve the same.
While we need to begin somewhere with ecosystem restoration of wetlands, grasslands, lakes, bogs etc., all that potentially offers water recharge with extra filtration and simultaneous addition of nutrients.
World-class solutions for local sustenance:
Improvement of irrigation technologies: More than 70 percent of usable water is usually diverted for agriculture and hence, the time is right for precision agricultural practices to take their due place. When the fields are filled with more water than needed, much of it gets lost in transportation from its source alongside evaporation and consequent increase in local temperatures.
Therefore, technologies like drip and sprinkler irrigation can do wonders by saving wasteful water, extra fertilizers and least percolation of these to groundwater resources.
Smarter agricultural practices like bioengineered crops or even the use of Artificial Intelligence (with cautious regulation) is desirable in the longer run.
Curbing Water Pollution: It all began with water pollution caused due to effluents or chemicals flowing in from industries to nearby water bodies. Mandatory installations, proper implementation and frequent audits can help arrest the release of these poisonous compounds causing kidney failure, permanent damages to Central Nervous System etc., into surface bodies.
Green Infrastructure: Rain gardens, green and blue roofs, roadside planting practices, absorbent gardens, planter boxes etc., are typical examples of water catchment systems used for collecting the water runoff and percolating it deep into the ground which will recharge the groundwater in longer run.
If not allowed to sink in, this kind of stormwater may carry trash, pathogens, heavy metals and even solid waste from the sewers. Collecting it at the first point of contact is a wiser way to save scarce resource.
A wide network of ailing pipes, gutters and tunnels has been failing to manage large volumes of such waters across the country.
This does not alone save the available freshwater but also reduces the quantity of wastewater to be treated.
Wastewater recycling: Recycling the widely available sewage water for drinking or irrigation has now taken precedence worldwide only to bolster local water stores, save energy and reduce disposal and discharge associated costs of wastewater.
In India, only 30 percent of this water gets treated.
Water tax, trade and water markets: In India, this stands at 12.5 percent of the annual rental value (ARV) of the leased premise or building imposed by a public authority.
Water trading is inclusive of any transaction buying, leasing or selling of water as a commodity. Such a free interchange will create a water market and accurately calculate water’s demand and supply in a particular region at a particular time. At a place stricken by drought, supply of water being less and demand more, the price of water will be higher. Motivated by this and a better economic profit, industries which are less water-intensive may begin selling it to those with more water requirements or facing shortages.
As the trade is in synchronization with highest valued use, this promotes conservation of water and discourages over exploitation of water that has a cost attached to it.
Water trade has been actively functioning in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia for its better chances of water allocation and at times, even a better luck at the country’s Gross Domestic Product ($4.3 billion increased with water trade). However, in practice, a few negatives have been noticed too.
Nuclear desalinization: Desalination can help solve the problem of drinking water accessibility but not the water crisis. Nuclear Desalinization utilizes the excess heat generated from a nuclear power plant that can evaporate sea water and help condense the pure water. Researches from India and Italy have argued in favor of its low energy costs and convenience.
This technique has a production capacity of 50 million gallons per day or 90,000 m3/day of drinking water, supporting a population of 300,000.
Humankind can think of probably millions of solutions more for an impending crisis but the most important one remaining will always be to conserve this miraculous compound that tastes, works and soothes like no other.