World Water Day
As every team member at Plastic Free North Devon is a lover of the ocean, World Water Day is pretty important to us. Thinking a bit less specifically about plastics this time, we wanted to frame why World Water Day, and what it stands for, is so important in a global context.
WORLD WATER DAY 2020
This year World Water Day is about water and climate change – and how the two are inextricably linked. Adapting to the water effects of climate change will protect health and save lives. Using water more efficiently will reduce greenhouse gasses. We cannot afford to wait. Everyone has a role to play.
Extreme weather events are making water more scarce, more unpredictable, more polluted or all three.
Humans need water to survive, as do all the systems we rely on: sanitation, healthcare, education, business and industry. Action plans to tackle climate change need to be integrated across different sectors and coordinated across borders. And they must have one thing in common: safe and sustainable water management.
WATER PRIVILEGE IN NORTH DEVON
Firstly, lets recognise that 1 in 10 people worldwide lack basic drinking water sources, and a further one in four people worldwide lack access to basic sanitation services. The privilege of clean running water in our homes, work places and community spaces (not to mention the soulful joy of getting in the sea, or enjoying the coastline) is something that can often be taken for granted, and it’s easy to forget that such a delicate and intricate system allows this to be the case. A complex combination of waterways, water treatments and weather patterns allows us access to freshwater every day. But this is threatened by climate change and pollution.
THE WIDER PICTURE: recognising how climate change threatens water and sanitation globally.
Water is a renewable, but finite, resource. There is the same amount on earth today as there as when the dinosaurs roamed. As our population grows, pressure on our limited available supply is mounting. This is exacerbated by pollution and the fact that there are seasonal and geographic differences in the amount of water available. Today, in many locations, we are using more fresh water that the earth’s natural limits can sustain.
The Right to Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation is recognised as a Human Right by the UN General Assembly. Climate change poses a threat to water and sanitation for all. A quarter of the world’s population is currently under water stress, a situation that will be exacerbated by growing climate change. Sudden-onset natural disasters (such as flooding, wildfires, heatwaves and hurricanes) as well as slow-onset desertification, loss of biodiversity, land and forest degradation, sea level rise and salinization) can exacerbate water scarcity, the most severe effects of which are often felt by vulnerable communities.
North Devon, thankfully, is not one of those communities, but we recognise that equity and environmental justice are a key part of the picture when moving towards a lower carbon and plastic free future.
WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN GLOBALLY
Fighting climate change will open up vast opportunities for the economy in many areas. We need to embrace circular production systems and use water much more efficiently.
As the global population grows, so does the demand for water, which depletes natural resources and damages the environment in many places. Solutions include protecting carbon sinks such as oceans and wetlands, adopting climate-smart agricultural techniques, and increasing the safe reuse of wastewater.
Water is our most precious resource – we must use it more responsibly. We must balance all of society’s water needs while ensuring the poorest people don’t get left behind.
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said: “Warnings are necessary. But fear will not get the job done.”
Yes, climate change can feel scary and daunting. But there is one simple step you can take immediately that will make a big difference: don’t waste water. Thousands of people are logging their climate actions on the United Nation’s Act Now website. Check out all the easy lifestyle changes that will help save the planet.
OUR VISION FOR WATER IN NORTH DEVON:
Continued affordable clean water for all homes and all people in North Devon.
Well managed waterways, minimising polluting items and fluids from entering the water system.
Flourishing wildlife and biodiversity in both freshwater bodies and in the Atlantic Ocean that borders our little bit of earth.
Easy access to water out and about – without the plastic. We would love to see the restoration and/or installation of accessible water fountains in every town and village in North Devon, so that it is easy for people to access drinking water, without purchasing a single use plastic bottle.
WHAT YOU CAN DO:
Learn about your water footprint
Understanding our water consumption can help us to provide a solution to one of our most pressing problems: making sure there’s enough water to sustain all living things on our planet.
Your water footprint is the amount of water you consume in your daily life including the water used to grow the food you eat, to produce the energy you use and for all of the products in your daily life, your books, music, house, car, furniture and the clothes you wear.
Be mindful
If you have taken the time to learn about your water footprint, take that knowledge with you into your everyday decisions and actions. Try to be a fair consumer of water, and recognise your impact with your purchases, consumptions and your life choices.
Wildcard: Twin your toilet
If this article has made you think about water as a human right, and made you wonder how you could have an impact, a tangible thing that you can do is get your toilet twinned (at home or in your workplace). This project is an amazing awareness raiser for issues around water and sanitation equity.