Water: Data Quick Sips
Did you know that 22 March is World Water Day? Find out what was done in 2000 ...
The UN has designated 2003 as the International Year for Freshwater Resources!
A water crisis is in the making in most of the developing world. Some 1.2 billion people - nearly one out of every three in the developing world - do not have access to a safe and reliable supply of water for their daily needs.
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Signs of water stress abound. Existing patterns and levels of water consumption are just not sustainable - water consumption levels have been growing faster that population growth rates.
| Country |
Supply
m3/capita |
Canada
Brazil
Australia
Hungary
Mexico
France
China
India
Egypt
Israel |
98.5
42.9
19.0
11.9
3.8
3.4
2.3
2.2
0.9
0.4 |
While a US family may rinse and flush away as much as 2,000 litres of water a day, families in some parts of the developing world survive on as little as 150 litres a day.
About 25% percent of what we consume goes to industry, while 70% more supports farms and ranches (irrigated land makes up only 17% of all farmland, but produces 40% of the world's crops).
A 1996 report by China's National Environmental Protection Agency concluded that 78% of the water in rivers flowing through the Chinese cities was no longer drinkable. The Yangtze River, for example, is being polluted with 40 million tons of industrial and sewage waste a day.
Of the 25 countries listed by UNEP as having the least access to safe water, 19 are in Africa.
An adequate supply of safe drinking water is one of our most basic needs. But almost half of the population of developing countries have neither the quantity not the quality of water they need, and even fewer people have access to suitable disposal facilities for sewage, faecal matter and solid waste. The dangers of unsafe drinking water and poor sanitary facilities often lead to insupportable living conditions, especially in densely populated areas. ... GTZ
Urban drainage, water supply, solid waste and sewage disposal are components of urban water management that must be adequately integrated in order to cope with these increasing demands for municipal and industrial water uses. Integration must involve other levels of planning, including the transportation and urbanisation sectors ... UNESCO
Do you have short write-ups like the one above that can be added here? Please send it by email to: Hari Srinivas - hsrinivas@gdrc.org
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