Global Thirst

“To know a man, observe how he wins his object, rather than how he loses it; for when we fail our pride supports us; when we succeed, it betrays us”- Charles Caleb Colton. By far an anecdotal masterpiece in terms of what should be described as human success, excess, and the subsequent failure that tends to evolve from decisions made during this said prominence. Perhaps one of the greatest paradigms of our modern epoch associated in part by such behavior is the grossly unjustified squandering of Earth’s most fundamental resource, water. Where better to start than by fulfilling an understanding of the current levels of mismanagement/waste; then give a realization of consequential events that will inevitably occur and how they can be incorporated with projected water consumption levels in ratio with projected reserves, and finally present possible solutions that will afford not only water relief and security but create a social evolution in the way which we interact with our planet in effort to enhance her natural resources.

In terms of water mismanagement the current situation has certainly been brought forth by numerous antecedents both in and out of direct control. Certainly one factor is how humans directly control, and thus affect, the entirety of our planet’s water supply (Duncan). This leads to the issue of 3^rd world governments, especially those located in water starved regions, and how they have neglected the upkeep of their corresponding water infrastructure. To make a volatile situation worse these nations greatly subsidize the distributed reserves to their citizens, creating a culture of waste and misuse (Darity). Appreciate the true scarcity of water in disparity with demand for the substance. The Earth is involuntarily short of fresh water. In natural sequence, 97% of water is saline and stored in the oceans; of the remaining 3%, approximately 2.97% is locked in glaciers or deep underground reservoirs, though this circumstance may fluctuate in the future. Therefore this constitutes that only 0.03 percent of total H2O is surface based and accessible; navigating down our chief waterways or residing in lake basins (Darity). Compile the fact that in our age humans direct the flow, distribution, and allocation of all the worlds surface waters, save a few isolated cases. Even so “this inherent scarcity has been worsened by the accelerated diversion of water for agricultural, commercial, industrial, and residential uses, which has greatly increased in response to a growing world population reaching 6.5 billion in 2006 (Darity).  

A developing theme here is more stipulation in conjunction with a gross mishandling of current water capital. At the very least this system is not sustainable, and more likely it is damaging our ecosystems globally in manners that may not be repairable. Statistics provide an immaculate and undeniable picture, and thus for a greater perception look at the places on Earth that will be impacted the most by water deficiencies.  The United Nation reports that “only Iraq and Sudan will pass the [water] scarcity test by 2015, with more than 1000 cubic meters per person per year. However, supply could be adversely affected by policy in Turkey and Ethiopia (Smith)”. A separate finding conducted by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development states that “13 of the 19 most water scarce nations are Arab states. Within five years all Arab countries will fall below the level of severe water scarcity at 500 cubic meters per person per year (Smith). The significance of such information will become blatant as further information is discerned. Recently, these states are experiencing what many intellectuals and scholars alike in the west are calling the “Arab Spring.” With political instability emerging in this region of the world if these figures are correct the two could very well vortex into a very desolate and degenerate reality in this part of the world. Yet the Middle East will not be the only area jeopardized by such occurrences; all nations, regions, and continents will experience some type of negative consequence whether it consist of water discrepancy or invasions due to the necessity of water. Even after describing this, the most drastically affected constituency on Earth by far will be the continent of Africa; a place particularly vulnerable to water variances due to many factors.

Move on to the wider world and get a dawning sense of this problem in its entirety. The consequences will be historic. In the next century a complete redrawing of not just the political maps but the social framework that retains society together is quite possible. Some pieces of commentary may help one truly visage what is in store if current practices are continued to be adhered to. The present situation (in the Middle East) where water use is unmetered, priced low, or subsidized by government agencies contributes to the wasting of existing resources and discourages private sector decision making. Demand management initiatives tend to be more dispersed and less amenable to central control than most decisions made on supply. And even without the politics, demand management involves a suite of complexities (Brooks). Again we know that this region is experiencing a political upheaval the likes of which have not been seen since the Communist uprisings of the later 20^th century. Demand management options are too often neglected. One reason for this is the entrenched "supply bias" of traditional water agencies. But this is only part of the story. While demand management may typically be better, it is not obviously easier. Few demand options are energy-intensive or environmentally disruptive but, like supply options, they can be capital-intensive and politically complex. For this segment there are two main antecedents supporting the prior statement. The first actually incorporates another human miscalculation/error of biblical proportions: carbon initiated global temperature rise and more important the effect of such rise on glacier cap of both poles. The predicted consequence of such events is estimated to be one meter of sea rise distributed evenly across the coastlines on all continents. The total population affected; between 25 million and 1 billion. Why such an inconsistency in statistics? It is because scientist don’t know if sea-levels will rise even higher than this [one meter is a conservative estimate.] Natural disasters (including ones related to climate change) destroy strategic infrastructure while there is a lack of requisite insurance to cover the loss. It is estimated that the cost of disasters over the next 20 years will be from 6-10 trillion (Smith). 

Thus this human entailed mismanagement of nature may have disastrous consequences separate from the current water consumption issues. The second antecedent is a possible desertification of all the agrarian centers on planet Earth. A quick lesson is contemporary agricultural practice is first in order. We have a severely carbon based and water aloof agricultural system, globally. Countries like America have since learned from experiences like the Dust Bowl of the 30’s or the USSR from droughts caused by collectivization and water depletion, yet a calamity not since on any historical scale may be heading right in our direction. Couple this with the undeniable ecological mechanics of nature such as rivers are fed by snow melt in the northern areas and once destroyed cannot feed major rivers (Middleton. Miller). This is a small example really, once underground reservoirs like the Ogallala Aquifer in the Midwest United States are depleted and mountain caps are burned off by the extensive heating of globally temperature rise and the soil retention of nutrient will be shattered unless hydrocarbon fertilizers are reintroduced every year, a complete crash of not just agriculture but the biosphere of most areas right now deemed as water safe shall occur. Even so there will not be any water to grow crops or any subsidiary plants besides from the ocean in which no modern nation has the infrastructure to utilize economically or even fast enough to stave off major drought. Once rivers and lakes are dried up, vegetation will follow suit. With such degraded soil and water deprivation it will be near impossible to revitalize any areas affected, and immediately desertification will set it. Since rain is cause by evaporation of major surface water sources in continental areas the only areas that will receive substantial rainfall will be coastal areas which will be near inhabitable due to the intense storms created by an expanded ocean face (Laurie. Minehardt).  If you need more evidence look at the Aral Sea impact zone, the drought in Southwest China as of 2011, or the East African crisis which is continuing today. A little known fact is these droughts have the possibility to compound and completely alter the natural pattern of water flow throughout a region. Unless water, the key ingredient in all this, is managed properly we will certainly see this intensify. Instead of the water circular world that humans and all other land based life forms rely on, a static water reality could develop. And another catastrophe that could happen is oxygen liquidation due to a massive die out of Earths vegetation, creating a carbon rich atmosphere and subsequently the advancing of already high temperatures. The planet could literally because so hot that water would continually evaporate and never condense except at the poles, and this water would just continually circulate in the oceans and never make landfall. Since humans have no conceivable way to utilize this water, most vegetation between the polar zones would die; and with it all other biological organisms. The only place abundant with life will in fact be the oceans.

Now this is a very extreme, yet furthermore a very real, scenario. A complete extinction of our species is actually entirely possible, let alone a crash of society as we know it. However, realize that the solutions to this issue lie all around us; it only requires a new perspective on the matter at large. First appreciate the overall human aspect of a sophisticated water culture. The economic benefits of safe drinking water in terms of health, longevity, and time saved in fetching water range from 300 billion to 400 billion USD a year. There are a number of technological means to augment water resources, including but not limited to cloud seeding, desalination, and wastewater reuse, rain harvesting, and importing water from relatively wet zones (“Darity”). Incorporate a strategic system of pipelines and desalination plants, center hubs and router lines and you not only solve a great deal of the water shortage issues of the coming decade, or the agricultural de-evolution that may come with it, but to create an grand economic opportunity comparable in terms to China’s Great Leap Forward. Is it possible to take sea water and convert it to a usable substance in which biological life forms can use? Without doubt yes. In the UAE [United Arab Emirates], Abu Dhabi has launched a scheme to create the world’s largest underground reservoir, which is to be filled with 26 million cubic meters of desalinated water (“Smith”). If developments resembling this are undertook the possibilities are endless; to reverse the spread of desertification throughout Sub-Saharan Africa and prevent it globally, all my mean of responsible water management, could be the largest economic boost in human history.

Without a doubt in the event of massive infrastructure projects the likes of which required hundreds of thousands of jobs would be created in the construction sectors alone, not to mention the myriad amount added in the service, financial, government, and protection services sectors. And this should be done renewable to ensure a further sustainable future. New technologies for producing for producing desalinated water could combine abundant sources of wind and solar energies with sea water to create [Artificial Aquifers] in the deserts of the Gulf States allowing for sand to used to lower desalination costs. Now take that further. Humanity could ultimately reshape the entire biosphere of planet to adjust to high carbon saturation in the atmosphere. With a developed system to distribute water in areas where natural rainfall is limited, it is actually quite possible to reverse desertification and begin land reclamation. The Israelis successfully accomplished this and that is partly why they enjoy the most organically diverse landscape in there region. The two significant benefits are a mean to lock excess water in an ever expandable biological system, water that would otherwise contribute to sea level rise. The later is the untold implications on human society. The possibly trillions in economic maturity, the assurance of growth for further generation, and the impact on struggling people in our own time (“Duncan”).

                Joerg Tremmel, a researcher at the London School of Economics and Political Science, suggests that in spite of the difficulties such as opportunity cost, restricted human ability and foresight, modern collective agencies (present governments and leading industrial companies) have to take their responsibilities for future generations seriously (Byravan. Sudhir). In the utmost he is right. It is the responsibility of the generation in control to sort out the questions that may affect those of tomorrow. A water secure world is something we owe not just to the people today, the ones whose lives revolve around the substance not yearly but daily. To those who will come to inherit this world and can hopefully enjoy a better standard than what preceded them. This undertaking will not be easy. It will be hard work, expensive, and exceptionally complex on more than a few levels. Yet to achieve the mission, like mankind has done so many other times, advantages by which no one in history has experienced shall be brought forth. In the end it is our choice.  

Works Cited

Brooks, David B. "Against the flow: a better response to the coming world water crisis is not expansion of supply but less waste and fairer allocation." Alternatives Journal (2003) Global Issues In Context. Web. 18 May 2011.

Byravan, Sujatha and Sudhir Rajan. “The Ethical Implications of Sea Level Rise due to Climate Change.” Ethic of International Affairs. (2010) Global Issues in Context. Web. 17 May 2011.

Darity, William Edward Jr.”Water Resources.” International Encyclopedia of the Social Studies. Macmillan Reference U.S.A. (2008) Global Issues in Context. Web. 18 May 2011.

Duncan, Laurie and Todd Minehardt. “Hydrology and Hydrogeology.” Encyclopedia of Water Sciences. (2005) Global Issues in Context. Web. 17 May 2011.

Ed. John Middleton and Joseph Miller. “Desertification, Modern.” New Encyclopedia of Africa. (2008), Global Issues in Context. Web. 18 May 2011.

Smith, Pamela Ann. “Water Offers Huge Investment Resources.” The Middle East. (2011). Global Issues in Context. Web. 17 May 2011.