Left with Only a Drop

You strut confidently over to the sink and the glare of sunlight reflects off of the polished

facet head. You grasp the sleek stainless steel handle and lift upwards. Your glass awaits the

rushing torrents of water that will surely come. Except this time it doesn’t. Only a single drop of

clear, life giving water plunks into the bottom of your dry glass. Imagine the feeling of being

betrayed by something that you take for granted. It is a simple cause and effect relationship; if

you pull the handle on the facet up, then water will immediately come spewing out. If only it

were that simple.

This scenario will play out all over the world if something is not done. The issue is so

pressing because our lakes, rivers, and aquifers have been slowly shrinking for decades and

continue to do so at an intensifying rate. Water is one of the foundations of life and is needed by

all organisms to survive. Access to fresh water is directly linked to food production, generation

of usable energy, more stable ecosystems, and economic growth and development. The crisis

will continue to worsen unless solutions are put into place immediately.

Causes of the Freshwater Crisis

Earth’s surface is composed of about 70 percent water. Of that 70 percent, only 2.5

percent is freshwater. This percentage gets smaller when the unaccessible water is accounted for,

such as deep underground aquifers. Another portion is frozen in glaciers or snowfields. The

brutal irony of this is, that of the 70 percent of water that composes Earth’s surface, the

percentage for total drinkable and accessible freshwater is a meager 0.007 percent (Society). This

water is all that we have. The question now is: how are we going to use it?
 Population growth rests atop the apex of the freshwater crisis. Not only does it present a

large issue itself, but it is the root of a variety of problems ending in insufficient freshwater

levels. The current human population is 7.5 billion. The sum of the amount of water that the

human population needs just to survive day to day is astounding. All of these people need and

use several gallons of water a day. Howard Perlman from the US Geological Survey states that

the average person (in a developed country) “​uses about 80-100 gallons of water per day.​”

Irrigation, climate change, deforestation, and pollution are all amplified as the human population

grows. For example, as the population increases, more food is required to support additional

people. More water is required to grow this food, increasing the effect agriculture has on the

fresh water supply. The human population is projected to increase by 2.3 billion people by 2050

(Schleifer). Will our water supply be able to support this extra strain? According to the Circle of

Blue, “Because of the accelerating growth in global population, parts of the world could see a

supply-demand gap of up to 65 percent in water resources by 2030” (Experts). Additionally,

expanding cities and increasing incomes contribute to the growing demand of water. The 1996

UN report assessing the world’s freshwater resources concluded that “water use has been

growing at more than twice the rate of the population increase during this century” (Water for the

Future). This disproportionate growth is the result of overall economic growth and

industrialization on Earth. More countries are becoming further industrialized and their standards

of living are trending upwards. As an area becomes industrialized and more money is in

circulation, water is used in all new buildings built, production of specialty foods, factories, etc.

Irrigation and agricultural practices draw vast amounts of water from Earth’s fresh water

stores. According to the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage, “agriculture is the
single largest user of freshwater resources, using a global average of 70% of all surface water

supplies.” Irrigation takes water from where it naturally falls and moves it into a designated area.

This results in one very specific water abundant area and a surrounding area that is now water

deficient. Often, an irrigation scheme will draw water from a river. This alters the natural flow

and integrity of the river. When this happens, downstream river discharge is reduced,

evaporation is increased, and groundwater recharge in the scheme is increased, causing the water

table level to rise (ENVIRONMENTAL). The net effect of using a river or similar body of water

as a source of irrigation is an overall decrease in its water level.

Pollution is a rampant issue in the world today. In numerous rivers, lakes and streams,

one can see chip bags, plastic, packaging, and other waste floating downstream. When bodies of

water are polluted, it makes them unfit for human consumption, thus limiting the amount of

available, drinkable water. Agents of water pollution can include plastic, packaging, oil, human

feces, and pesticides. Pesticides are an extremely unnerving pollutant. As first discussed in

Rachel Carson’s book ​Silent Spring​, their intended purpose is to harm only insects and pests that

hinder agricultural practices. However, most of the methods in which they are administered are

irresponsible and dangerous to the surrounding environment as well. They are entirely

undetectable, barring specific chemical tests, and extended exposure can harm and potentially

kill those who consume them.

Another cause of the water crisis is deforestation. Logging companies clear cut large

swaths of trees to be used for houses, furniture, and countless other uses. Aside from other

ecological impacts deforestation has on the ecosystem, ​trees and other large plants play a large

role in water retention. Deforestation is directly linked to the loss of freshwater because without
the presence of plants and their root systems, water simply runs across the ground. Plants help

the water sink into the soil and hold it there. In the past 14 years, watersheds have lost 22% of

their forests (​Schleifer​).

Effects on the Human Population

If sustainable water practices are not put into place, water will eventually become a

density dependent factor on the human population. This means that because of limited amounts

of freshwater, the human population will begin to level off. In the drier parts of the world,

humans will begin to die from dehydration and reproduction rates will plummet. Then, the

human population might enter a logistic growth model which means its carrying capacity has

been met or exceeded. Once the carrying capacity has been met, due to the large population size,

the ecosystem won’t be able to sustain any further population growth. ​The U.S. Intelligence

Community Assessment of ​Global Water Security​ predicts that by “2030 humanity's annual

global water requirements will exceed current sustainable water supplies by forty percent”

(Patrick).

The water crisis will sharply impact another life sustaining basic need of humans: food.

The agriculture industry accounts for 70% of usable freshwater. When water supplies dwindle,

this vast amount of water will be stretched thin and food production and quality will decline.

According to Lenntech, it requires 1.5 m³ in order produce a kilogram of cereal. A 200mL glass

of orange juice entails 170 liters of water. The 150 gram hamburger you ate last night requires

the equivalent to 2,400mL of water to be produced (Uses). It is misleading how much water goes

into producing the food we eat everyday. Water has a direct impact on the production of food; as

water levels decrease, food levels will also decrease.

 The lack of fresh water is a frightening notion. If the volume of freshwater on earth drops

to a level where there is not enough for everyone to be satisfied, then people will be competing

for this basic resource. Before humans get to this point however, the world’s economies will be

impacted. Ada Carr discusses The World Bank’s reports and states, “The World Bank also

reports that water scarcity could cause certain regions to see their growth decline by as much as 6

percent of their gross domestic product (GDP) by 2050 due to weather-related impacts on

agriculture, health and incomes.” Carr also warns that “Water scarcity could become such an

issue that it hinders economic growth, spurs migration and sparks conflict, creating large and

uneven consequences across the globe” (Carr).

Explicit effects of the lack of freshwater are already being seen across the world. Many

countries are experiencing worse than usual droughts. 33 countries have recently been denoted as

either water-scarce or water-stressed. India’s fresh water supply is depleting the fastest in the

world. According to Leah Schleifer, “54 percent of India's groundwater wells are decreasing,

meaning that water is used faster than it's replenished. Unless patterns shift, in 20 years, ​60

percent​ of India's aquifers will be in critical condition.” Many countries in the Middle East and

Northeastern Africa are experiencing similar situations. The southeastern United States,

especially California, is another area where lack of water is apparent. The drought was caused by

limited amounts of precipitation over the past three years. This caused the Colorado River, which

is California’s main freshwater source, to dry up. They are now experiencing the destruction of

many primary producer species. Moreover, wildfires have occurred with a greater frequency and

ferocity than before. Californians are restricted to minimal amounts of water in an attempt to

ease the effects of the drought.

 Potential Solutions

The water crisis is a dire situation, however, if various solutions and efforts to use water

sustainably are put into place, the crisis could be averted. One very promising solution is

desalination. Desalination is the process of drawing out salt and other contaminants from

seawater. The output of this process is drinkable freshwater. Given that 70% of the Earth’s

biosphere is saltwater, this is a solution that has great potential. Desalination was one of man’s

earliest water purification techniques. Humans have used desalination on their ships to gather

freshwater since ancient times. Through a process of heating and cooling, the contaminants in

water are drawn out when the water is converted into steam and then back into its liquid form

(Perlman). According to Howard Perlman and the US Geological Survey “In 2002 there were

about 12,500 desalination plants around the world in 120 countries. They produce some 14

million cubic meters/day of freshwater, which is less than 1% of total world consumption.”

While the large water desalination plants are effective, they can be quite expensive. However,

there are more economically effective ways to implement these large facilities as well. The

Circle of Blue has noted some alternative ways to implement desalination plants; “Desalination

plants have a high cost in energy to run. For this solution to be feasible, innovation is required.

Saudi Arabia has dabbled in desalination and are using a more realistic amount energy by

incorporating solar panels into the desalination plants design. Britain on the other hand, is using

smaller scale plants specifically for agriculture” (Experts).

Recycling waste water is another encouraging solution to intelligently use the finite

amount of freshwater we do have.. This process allows us to reuse water from showers, sinks,

toilets, etc. Anything that goes down a drain is fair game. Similar to desalination the process for
recycling waste water includes purifying the unhealthy water. Water purification systems collect

and separate all of the wastewater from an office building, for example, and cycles it through a

system that removes any contaminants to make that same water available for use again. This

process has the potential to immensely cut down on the water used in populated areas.

In developed countries, water usage is often wasteful, unnecessarily drawing on the

area’s water stores. Regulations and government enforced policies need to be put into place to

keep this wasteful use of water in check. California is a great example of how small lifestyle

changes pushed by government regulations can lead to the increase in a state’s once drought

ridden water stores. In an attempt to ease the effects of the drought, the state of California has

implemented strict water restrictions on its citizens. For example, California residents have per

capita water usage limits and are not allowed to water their lawns or wash their cars. These

efforts have cut their usage significantly (Water Shortages). Policies that require buildings to

report their water usage and review their water system should be implemented. In the United

States, 6 billion gallons of treated water are lost per day from leaky pipes alone (Schleifer). This

is a staggering statistic that could be reduced if a mandatory review of pipes and water transport

systems is implemented.

The world’s freshwater supply is in a calamitous situation due to a combination of

anthropogenic factors. Humans are living unsustainably and this needs to be noticed with

corresponding action taking place. Solutions such as new technology including desalination,

government regulations, preservation of water catchment areas, more efficient irrigation

methods, and reduction in pollution would all assuage the effects of the freshwater crisis. If the
human population is willing to work towards these goals then the dark, dry path we are currently

headed down can be avoided.

 Works Cited

Carr, Ada. “Water Scarcity Due to Climate Change Will Have Severe Consequences, World Bank

Warns.” ​The Weather Channel​, 5 May 2016.

“ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF IRRIGATION.” ​International Commission on Irrigation and

Drainage​, Madhu Mohanan, 2012.

“Experts Name the Top 19 Solutions to the Global Freshwater Crisis.” ​Circle of Blue​, Circle of

Blue, 21 Aug. 2017.

Patrick, Stewart M. “The Coming Global Water Crisis.” ​The Atlantic​, Atlantic Media Company, 9

May 2012.

Perlman, Howard. “Saline Water: Desalination.” ​Desalination: Drink a Cup of Seawater? - US

Geological Survey.

Schleifer, Leah. “7 Reasons We're Facing a Global Water Crisis.” ​World Research Institute​, 24

Aug. 2017.

Schuster-Wallace C.J. and Sandford, R. 2015. Water in the World We Want. United Nations

University Institute for Water, Environment and Health and United Nations Office for

Sustainable Development.

Society, National Geographic. “Freshwater Crisis.” ​National Geographic​.

“Use of Water in Food and Agriculture.” ​Lenntech Water Treatment & Purification​, Lenntech B.

“Water Crisis - Learn About The Global Water Crisis.” ​Water.org​.

“‘Water for the Future: The West Bank and Gaza Strip, Israel, and Jordan.’” ​National Academies Press:

OpenBook​, The National Academies of Sciences Engineering Medicine.

“Water Shortages: Causes, Effects, and Solutions.” ​Water Filter Answers​, 20 June 2017.