Global Water Crisis: An Editorial of Thirst during the World Water Day

Do you have any access to clean drinking water? Are you able to consume at least eight (8) glasses of clean cold drinking water a day? If you're answer to these two (2) questions is "yes", then you're very lucky. 

22^nd day of March is the annual celebration of the International World Water Day, which serves as an avenue to raise everyone's awareness towards the importance of clean water, alongside its sustainable management. With this being said, have you ever been curious if do all people in the world have the capability of drinking eight (8) glasses of water a day or if are there any individual who cannot quench their thirst with a glass of cold clean drinking-water?  

According to the United Nations Environmental Program's Annual Report for 2012, one-fifth (1/5) of the world's population encounters physical water scarcity, while about one-fourth (1/4) suffers economic water shortage. Well, in fact, by 2030, UNESCO (2015) projected that the world will be facing a forty percent (40%) water shortage under a continuously increasing consumption and demand scenario.

In addition to that, according to the World Health Organization's 2015 Report and Millennium Development Goals Assessment, 663 million people have still no access to improved water sources. While, 2.4 billion people, worldwide, have no access to basic water-treatment and sanitation facilities, such as toilet, which makes around 1.8 billion people utilize a drinking-water source contaminated with feces. Thus, a total estimate of 2.5 billion people has no access to clean and safe water-derived goods and services, worldwide. 

Globally, 1 out of 10 people lacks access to safe water and 1 out of 3 people has no access to toilet, as well as to other sanitation facilities. What makes it worse is that a child dies every 90 seconds due to water-related diseases (WHO & UNICEF, 2015).

In the case of the Philippines (Greenpeace, 2007), "1 out of 5 Filipinos does not get water from an improved source."

Outrageous numbers appear to deliver a momentary tremor to the public, yet a deadening agent to a population bombarded with terror of extinction brought by the drastic and abrupt changes in the surroundings we are not used to.

The Philippine population is exponentially increasing, which makes it difficult to sustainably manage natural resources, in order to provide the basic needs of every Filipino citizen.

According to Philippine Statistics Authority (2013), water supply in the country is far from being scarce, both in physical and economic standards. However, it calls to a question of equal access and distribution of country's resources. Irony pounds hard – How can a country very rich in natural resources be comprised of a population where most people are living in poverty?

Addressing this issue calls for a holistic, integrated, and collective action from multiple sectors and different disciplines that uphold values which promote ecologically-sound and cost-effective approaches. Water services, both supply and distribution, economic and resource regulation, and management and development planning, alongside policy formulation, must be thoroughly tackled and be resolved.

Cliché as it may sound, change must start within us. Collective action formed from the smallest movements that are magnified by numbers and not by scale, will surely create a ripple effect in a globally-competitive ground.

Water should be valued just like how we value our own lives. Even if there are still a number of pitchers of water in your refrigerators and tap water strongly flows within the pipes as it goes out on your faucets, each drop should never go to waste.

Conservation and sustainable management of our remaining clean water is urgently called for. Do not wait for thirst and drought to prevail. 

References:

Greenpeace Organization. (2007). The State of Water Resources in the Philippines. Greenpeace Southeast Asia, East Kamias, Quezon City, Philippines. Retrieved on March 22, 2016 from http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/ph/Global/seasia/report/2007/10/the-state-of-water-in-the-phil.pdf

Philippine Statistics Authority (2013). 2010 Annual Survey of Philippine Business and Industry. Water Supply: Sewerage, Waste Management, and Remediation Activities Sector. Retrieved on March 22, 2016 from https://psa.gov.ph/content/2010-annual-survey-philippine-business-and-industry-water-supply-sewerage-waste-management-0#sthash.K7xrZzHW.dpuf

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (2015). World Water Development Report 2015. Water for a Sustainable World. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, 7, Place de Fontenoy, 75352 Paris 07 SP, France. Retrived on March 22, 2016 from http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0023/002318/231823E.pdf

United Nations Environmental Program (2013). UNEP Annual Report 2012. Retrieved on March 22, 2016 from http://www.unep.org/pdf/UNEP_ANNUAL_REPORT_2012.pdf

World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP). (2015). Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation. 2015 Update and MDG Assessment. Retrieved last March 22, 2016 from http://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/10665/177752/1/9789241509145_eng.pdf?ua=1

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