World Water Day 2013

Time is Running Dry

The water tables are falling in many parts of the world. The Himalayan glaciers will shrink massively in the next century, reducing in the mountains. The shortfall will have to come

from groundwater and surface storage. Many great rivers have drastically
diminished flows.

Demand for food and fiber is estimated to increase by 70% by mid-century when the world`s population is estimated to reach nine billion; without involvement untenable pressure on water resources in many areas will endanger water and food security.

Water Stats
Of all the water on Earth, 97.5% is salt water, leaving only 2.5% as fresh water.

Almost 70% of that fresh water is frozen in solid in Antarctica`s and Greenland`s ice caps, and the majority of the remainder is in the earth`s soil or lies as groundwater in deep underground aquifers.

Less than 1% of all fresh water on earth (equivalent to

0.007%) are accessible for human use. This water is

found in rivers, lakes and reservoirs as well as underground sources that are shallow enough to be tapped.

The Top 5 Countries Facing Extreme Risk of Water

Water use in many parts of the world has become

unsustainable, so much so that local populations,

agricultures and businesses are under heavy threat. The 10 countries facing the most extreme risk level are all in North Africa or the Middle East.

1. Bahrain 2. Qatar

3. Kuwait
4. Libya 5. Djibouti

Poverty/ Drought
The lack of fresh water in 3rd world countries also contributes to food

insecurity and malnutrition. This can result in poor or failed harvests which in
turn result in food scarcity and high prices of the available food. Drought is now the most common cause of food shortages in the world. In 2006, recurrent drought caused crop failures and heavy livestock losses in parts of Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya.

3rd World

Vs

1st World

The UN indicates that each individual needs 20-50 liters of water a day to make sure their primary needs for drinking, food preparation and cleaning. More than one in six people worldwide (894 million) don`t have access to improved water sources.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. households waste 1.25 trillion gallons of water each year. Around 30% of the water an average American use is used for outdoor, mainly just to water their lawn and flower bed. Garden hose spray around 10 gallons of water per minute, so using around 150 gallons of water in one wash isn`t difficult at all. More that one-fourth of all the water we use worldwide is taken to grow over one billion tons of food that nobody eats.

Worldwide, diarrhea is the leading cause of sickness and loss of life, and 88% of diarrheal fatalities are due to a lack of access to cleanliness features, together with insufficient access to water for cleaning and risky drinking water.
Today 2.5 billion people, including almost one billion children, live without even basic sanitation. Every 20 seconds, a child dies as a result of poor sanitation. That`s 1.5 million preventable deaths each year.

Water Cooperation
1989-1992- Water Convention plans negotiated. 1994 Recommendation to UNECE Governments on the Prevention of Water

Pollution from Hazardous Substances.

1996- The Water Convention enters into force First Guidelines on Water Quality-Monitoring. 1999- Agreement on the status of the International Fund for Saving the Aral Sea. 2001- Belarus-Ukraine and China-Kazakhstan agreement. 2003- Hungary-Romania and Estonia-Latvia agreement.

2006- Dam safety project starts in Central Asia.

2007- The new Franco-Swiss Genovese aquifer agreement is signed. 2008- water quality project starts in Central Asia. 2012- expected globalization of the water Convention.