World Water Day 2023: Parched! The drying future of water

It was only a few years back that Cape Town, South Africa, was headed towards what local officials labelled as “Day Zero” for drinking water, in an area that has 97 per cent salt water. The crisis would have appeared analogous to the helpless situation described by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in his poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner - “Water, water, everywhere, and not a drop to drink”. Even though the city survived the scare with the help of its contingency plan, the threat of “Day Zero” still looms not only over Cape Town but many regions and cities across South Africa.

Numerous discussions and debates have been held on how important is water for human survival and that it is the quintessential element needed for life on planet Earth. Today to find signs of life on other planets, scientists look out for water, as its mere existence increases the chances of finding alien life. However, as the world, which has only 2 per cent frozen freshwater and 1 per cent liquid freshwater, battles water scarcity, it is high time we must ask ourselves where are we headed.

Survive or perish – the question that the past holds for us

Open a tap and water gushes out – availability of water has been made so easy that we take it for granted, in most parts of the human-inhabited world. It is this casual availability of water which blinds us from seeing the depleting groundwater levels, soil compression due to which Mexico City is reportedly sinking, and rain and snow failing to fill in surface water like lakes and rivers we rely on.

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It also makes us forget the quest for water, which has been one of the defining struggles etched in human history. Past always holds lessons for the future to learn and save humanity from the calamity which may befall us someday. With respect to the water crisis, we must remember how many strong and established civilisations perished due to drought and water scarcity. Civilisations which were successful in harnessing water thrived and those that failed disappeared in the dust of time.

One of the greatest civilisations of all time, the Mayan civilisation, despite surviving 100 years of drought with the help of its rainwater collection systems and rivers, finally collapsed. The great Akkadian Empire also met with a similar fate due to the arid conditions. 

What lies ahead?

According to the United Nations, around five billion people are likely to face water shortages by 2050 as freshwater sources continue to drain faster. Out of 37 major aquifers in the world, 21 are receding in the United States, India, France and China. With an increase in population and irrigation demands, India's mighty river, the Ganges is depleting every year by an estimated 6.31cm.

With the water table dropping all over the world, countries receiving irregular rainfall and global warming disturbing the ecosystem, the world doesn't seem a happier place. The realities can turn even harsher compared to the crisis the world is witnessing at the present. The earth is parched, dying with receding water levels as scientists scramble to find water on the moon in their quest to make the satellite a habitable place. The time calls for adaptation of better saves to save water and save the earth.

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A sobering warning

In a report published on Wednesday, the United Nations (UN) warned that the 'vampiric' overconsumption of water by humans is putting the resource at risk. According to the report, about 10 per cent of the "world's population lives in a country where water stress has reached a high or critical level".

The report further warned that "scarcity is becoming endemic" because of pollution and overconsumption. It added that seasonal water shortages will be further increased in areas with strained as well as abundant water. In the report's foreword, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated that the world is "blindly travelling a dangerous path" as "unsustainable water use, pollution and unchecked global warming are draining humanity's lifeblood”.

"If nothing is done, it will be a business-as-usual scenario — it will keep on being between 40 per cent and 50 per cent of the population of the world that does not have access to sanitation and roughly 20-25 per cent of the world will not have access to safe water supply," Richard Connor, lead author of the report, said.

This, if nothing, sounds like a warning bell for the world to wake up and recognise the calamity that stands ahead of us.

(Disclaimer: The views of the writer do not represent the views of WION or ZMCL. Nor does WION or ZMCL endorse the views of the writer.)

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