The earth is mainly composed of water. If one will look in any world map, the blue part definitely outweighs the green ones. With such geographic background, it is very disturbing to find out that there is scarcity of water globally. With more than 5 major oceans and a thousand more other bodies of water, it is very surprising and alarming to know that the planet Earth is running out of an indispensable resource-water.
Man has indeed underestimated the value and limits of water supply. Undeniably, there has been indiscriminate and widespread abuse of water whether for home, industry or agriculture use. More than anything else, rampant pollution of rivers and lakes are all over the place. The growth of factories which dump toxic wastes on water has created a major havoc not only to humans, but to animal ecosystems as well. The ballooning population has also transformed clean breakwaters into filthy residential areas where human wastes and garbage are thrown without fail. Furthermore, the number of reclaimed areas are increasing, an action that will widen horizons for real estate landlords, but will pollute the affected seas.
The man-made hazards to water have turned every possible water source into useless empty land pits. As a result, more and more people are growing thirsty or are left dying in hospitals because of water-borne infections such as cholera, typhus and dysentery. The World Health Organization has already called public attention to this world wide problem. For once, efforts on water conservation and protection have been put into the global scene.
Experts point out that there are two kinds of water scarcity. The first one is the physical scarcity. This refers to the actual lack or insufficiency of safe water sources. One cause is the imbalance between supply and the escalating demands of a large population. This condition can be man made such as when overuse or misuse is practiced by the community. This can also be natural for desert or arid regions. The next type is the economic scarcity wherein ethnic or political differences have resulted into unequal distribution of water.
Man’s selfish actions of contaminating water with chemicals, garbage and human excreta have paved the way for EPA to create standards for water sanitation. The filtration and disinfection of water to treat and remove harmful particles are just few of the many ways on how people can counter scarcity. Water is life so in order to live, people must ensure water safety and availability at all costs.
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