What To Do About the Water Crisis That We Are All In

There is nothing more important in our world than water. However, our world, with us in it, is currently in a serious water crisis which has elicited all sorts of debates and discussions as to how we can better manage our water supplies and sources. Or whether we will be able to continue to sustain life as we know it without the water that we have become accustomed to. It is a topical issue and one that needs to be openly discussed to make more people aware of the situation and the possible solutions.

This article looks at the source or reasons for the water crisis and details a few ideas and insights that can be used to affect water scarcity positively.

Why we’re in a water crisis

Across the world, about 785 million people don’t have access to clean drinking water. Still, even those who do have access to clean drinking water are beginning to experience a reduction in water quality and a dwindling of available water supplies. In the USA, the number of people who don’t have easy access to clean drinking water is about 2.2 million, and about 44 million have inadequate water systems, which in the year 2023 is a disgrace. Therefore, something needs to be done, and the argument herein is that we can all do something positive to make a difference in the current crisis.

Americans face this water crisis for a number of reasons:-

Climate change:- the change in the seasons over time and the fluctuation of the usual and expected rainfall have affected the total amount of water available.

Increase in high water use in agriculture and industry:- agriculture that is water-intensive to produce out-of-season fruit and vegetables, as well as in industries that use a huge amount of water, such as data centers and cooling systems for EV battery production.

Exhaustion of ground water:- The increase in housebuilding and homes that need to be plumbed and tapped water has exhausted the available groundwater.

Poor maintenance of existing water systems:- There has been a poor level of maintenance of municipal water systems and water sources.

Know where your water comes from

Knowing where the water comes from is one of the best pieces of advice for those who want to make conscious and competent decisions about their water usage, whether business or home use. The fact that we drink it and use it for cooking or to make food products means that knowing where it comes from is in our own best interest. Knowing where your water comes from will allow you to be able to get involved in its maintenance as well as being able to diversify these sources.

The same should go for businesses, and regardless if it is not for human consumption and if it’s not treated, the use of water, where it comes from, and how it is returned to the water cycle must all be considerations that are made. It’s a means to develop your green business credentials.

Maintain local water supplies

Maintaining your local water supplies may seem like something that the municipalities and state governments will do. However, knowing what needs to be done to maintain good water or how your runoff can affect groundwater is important. Click here to learn more about how well water can be maintained and its importance.

Maintaining water at a local level is everyone’s responsibility. It will entail how grey water is dealt with as well as limiting paved areas to reduce unnatural runoff.

Watch water usage

Understanding what you use water for and then knowing how much you use is the start of a mindful way to use water going forward. Unless you know how much water you use, you won’t be able to make any adjustments or critique the usage itself and determine whether you need to make any changes.

You can easily read your water bill to see usage or keep a pad and track the numbers on top of your water meter. Then simply calculate exactly how much water you use every month. This will allow you to adjust the usage downwards and also see if our usage is with the tolerance of the amounts of water used by others. Leaks can also be more easily identified if you understand how much water you normally use.

Adjust your buying decisions

Its easy to be nonchalant about water as long as you can access yours or buy sufficient drinking water whenever you need it. However, if you want to be mindful and make the right kind of impact on our water supplies then you may need to adjust some buying decisions. Only buy fruit that is in season, no imported avocados, and avoid products that overuse water in their production or manufacture. You will have to do some further reading about the fruit and vegetables that use too much water and those that have been imported from places that use too much water. It’s a global problem, so your research needs to be detailed enough to understand where your food comes from and how much water it requires to produce it.

Takeaways

Everyoneis all in this together and face a water crisis that involves scarcity, the reduction in water quality and an overall reduction in the amount of water available to us. The first step is to understand this water crisis, and why it is happening, and then to be clear as to what it is that you can do as an individual household or a business to make a positive contribution to this situation. Lastly, you may find it strange that as an individual, you can make decisions that can affect water provision and availability for others and question your own local water providers as to what’s in the water you drink and use in your home, but you can, so follow up with more research and question your local governing bodies about it, and make your neighbors aware as well. People can make come together to make a difference and call for change.

Image credit: Gyan Shahane via Unsplash