Water water everywhere
A report last week from the World Resources Institute said 17 countries around the world, accounting for 25 per cent of our population, are using almost all the water they have and are experiencing “extremely high” stress on their baseline water levels, meaning that between agricultural irrigation, industry and cities, more than 80 per cent of available supply is withdrawn, on average, every year.
They were arid countries to begin with or have misused what they have. They rely too much on groundwater and instead of saving for a rainy day, they have not saved the rain that has fallen — if any has. An additional 44 countries were rated as putting “high” stress on those levels, i.e., withdrawing 40 per cent to 80 per cent yearly.
Countries in the Middle East and North Africa are among the most severely affected, but water-stressed regions include great swaths of India and Mexico, a significant part of the United States, plus the oilsands and prairies regions of Canada.
Such stress, the institute pointed out, poses threats to our lives, our livelihoods and the stability of the countries we live in. Population growth, socioeconomic development and urbanization are partly to blame, and the climate crisis adds extra pressure: Unpredictable rainfall increases the unreliability of water supply generally and increasingly hotter days means reservoir water evaporates quicker.
The World Resources Institute data showed that among cities with more than 3 million people, 33 were in the “extreme” stress category. Those 33 cities combined for a total of 255 million people. The number will rise to 45 cities with about 470 million people in 10 years. Public health crises and social unrest are expected. A rise in emigration from affected countries is not out of the question.
It’s easy to glaze over such doom-and-gloom stories, but their importance should not be taken lightly.
While highlighting the most seriously affected countries, the WRI pointed out the pockets of extreme stress in countries that have low overall water-level stress. The United States was one standout example that could affect many Canadians.
The U.S. was ranked 71 out of 163 countries, but the map tells a more complex story. New Mexico is in extreme water stress. California, Arizona, Colorado and Nebraska were on the high end, and a further 11 states, ranging from Nevada to Florida to Massachusetts, were listed as putting medium to high stress on their water.
Why do Canadians need to worry about water levels in California? Because we live in a global world, where an overwhelming amount of foodstuffs cross borders. Those almonds and avocados we desire come from a country (Mexico) or a state (California) that are in a bad way waterwise.
That’s not a surprise. To grow one almond requires 12 litres of water. Think about that the next time you reach for a chocolate-covered almond because that chocolate also requires a significant amount of water (24,000 litres for a kilogram of cacao, according to a 2008 Dutch report called “The Water Footprint of Food.”) As for avocados — the so-called healthy fat — 280 litres of water are needed for a half-kilo of avocados. So what to do other than wring our hands? Countries, states, provinces and municipalities can invest in green infrastructure (wetlands and watersheds) and existing infrastructure such as pipes and treatment plants to improve water supply and quality.
Farmers can improve irrigation techniques and plant less water-intensive crops. We as consumers can cut food loss.
Make informed choices about your water use. Stop buying bottled water. Use multi-use containers. Reuse, recycle. Limit your purchases of smartphones (one phone requires 12,075 litres to produce).
Treat the world like it’s something you want your grandchildren to enjoy.