元一覧表へ戻る2003NSIII 「自然の化学的基礎」
Maya Okamoto
Since the creation of the earth, water constantly appears in our lives in countless forms: rain, snow, clouds, fog, rivers, oceans, etc. In fact, water consumes 70% of each of our bodies, and a lack of merely 12% is said to lead to death. As we have entered a new century, economical and technological development prioritizes our focus toward creating an enhanced future. Yet, at the same time we should not overlook the immense problems accompanied by these advancements. Population increase in developing countries has led to an increasing inequality in wealth distribution, largely contributing to a lack in water supply. What we have continued to take for granted for the past decades now gradually approaches us, indicating our blindness and egocentric behavior, as well as our need to seek a solution to these grave concerns.
The next world war, indeed, will be over water, and numerous reasons support this somewhat absurd prediction. At the Third World Water Forum in March 2003, approximately 150 government ministers assembled to discuss current situations concerning the worldwide water crises. Participants called for specific actions to aid the 1.4 billion people without access to clean drinking water. International organizations such as the World Bank and UNESCO demanded the necessity to form concrete plans, rather than simply discussing the topic. As French President Jacques Chirac commented, ﾒaccess to water should be seen as a fundamental right (Hiyama, 2003).ﾓ Water is a public good, a universal human right, and the world community should make every effort to provide as equal as possible of a share to everyone across the world. In contrast to such an ideal picture, the contemporary world proves to indicate a sharp difference between regions in their levels of access to safe hydration. In fact, regional and international conflicts for water continue to intensify, especially in the developing areas, largely due to droughts, floods, and other factors engendering a lack of water. Environmental pollution of rivers and lakes has not yet been ameliorated, and problems regarding water only gain seriousness over the course of time. Although projects assisting infrastructures throughout the world ought to be taking place, opposition by various groups impede these plans from being exercised. These cases of imbalance between the amount of need and the actual water supply results not only form industrial agriculture, but also from ﾒunequal development in standards of living versus sound water management (Howard, 2003).ﾓ
In addition, unsanitary water holds an extremely high possibility of carrying diseases to the drinker. As statistics by the World Resources Institute (WRI) show, around 2.3 billion people today live in ﾒwater-stressed areas (Howard, Brian).ﾓ The UN also estimates that by 2025, two out of every three people will more or less suffer from water scarcity. This naturally leads to an increased demand for fresh water, suggesting the urgency of a global access to safe water.
Global warming also emerges as a persistent cause of degrading water supply. A warmer atmosphere leads to a decrease in the level of water through evaporation and droughts, as well as increased demands and consumption due to dehydration.
Water scarcity has even turned into a threat to natural ecosystems. Along with deforestation and other natural phenomena, a wide range of bird and fish species has begun to face the danger of extinction in the near future.
The concepts of water and poverty cannot be fully realized nor explained without reference to the other. Issues of drinking water and floods take us back to the starting point, allowing us to thoroughly focus on the lives of the poor. Japan as well as other developed countries have practiced a number of water projects through the ODA and international organizations. However, creation of dams and filtration plants no longer solve this problem by itself. Plans intended for river improvement should seek not only a secure flood control, but equally importantly, the capability to provide better living conditions for those suffering the most. In order to do this, factors such as maintenance of water pipes and attempts for better living conditions in the slum districts should be incorporated into the former plans.
In addition to these large-scale action plans, with a little time and thought we are all capable of contributing to achieving this solution. Our unconscious habits to take water supplies for granted, to assume an infinite supply of it has led to such poor treatment of the earthﾕs natural resources. With a little consideration, though, we can easily cut down on our level of daily water use. We may not live right next to a developing country with the most acute need for water; however, these tiny efforts one day gather to form one massive goal, a solution we may by no means imagine of achieving at the present moment.
Pollution naturally leads to deficiencies in the water supply system. Pet bottles of water, for example, possess dual effects. While those without access to clean water gain opportunities, doing so in an area without proper structures for recycling only ends up with an increased pollution of pet bottles, damaging the environment to a larger extent than before. With regard to all trash, therefore, we should pay careful attention to how we deal with it after we release them from our possessions. The easiest thing for us to do is to speak of our discontent. Literally announcing plans merely helps in this rapidly changing world; doing so does not save any life suffering at this very moment. Recognizing what we must do as a priority, and putting it into action is what each of us need to become aware of, for what results from such efforts is exactly what those in need desire above anything else.
Today, water problems lie before us as ﾒthe greatest challenges in the 21st century (Hiyama, 2003).ﾓ Years later, whether the future generations refer to this point in time as ﾒan age which aggravated water problemsﾓ or as ﾒan age having overcome water problemsﾓ remains wholly dependent on our current actions. Indeed, the 21st century is legitimately a century of water.
Bibliography