Are we running out of fresh drinking water?
ByAre we running out of fresh drinking water due to corporations and population pressures? The answer is yes. As the population grows, so do our standards for our day-to-day lives which increases the water demand. Without water, there are short-term effects from this issue like typhoid and cholera fever being a higher risk because of poor sanitation in the water. Long-term effects from this ecological issue are loss of fish and sea animals which is a source of food. If the sea animals are being affected, so are the ecosystems. The lack of freshwater is caused by population and corporations polluting the water, ruining lakes, rivers, oceans, seas, reservoirs. Underwater ecosystems like coral reefs are also being affected by oil, toxic waste and littering. In long-term aspects, the lack of water can lead to economic declines because of crops not growing successfully, meaning fewer sales. Without having freshwater, it can have a decline in our health, with higher chances for diseases, dehydration and a weaker immune system. We don’t just depend on water for drinking, we also use water for cooking, leisure activities and plants/trees.
But what is causing the lack of fresh drinking water? As the population rises and time goes on, so does new technology like cars and boats. Which is polluting the air and water, which is not good for the water we rely on and ecosystems, especially if there is an accidental oil spill on your boat. As the population rises, so does the pressure that comes with it. There are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic debris that is in the ocean today. This is caused by the increase of humans over the years littering their trash and plastic pollution. Plastic pollution was first noticed in the late ’60s from the study of plankton. Humans need to be more informed about this ecological issue because if we don’t do something now, this can become more serious in the future.
As well as population, lack of fresh drinking water can be caused by corporations, this can be even worse if you live near industrial sites like oil refineries. The underwater ecosystem is being affected because of big brand corporations, industry and manufacturing. Corporations are willingly dumping toxic waste like mining and industrial waste which is polluting the water and the coral reefs. For example, in New jersey, paint sludge poisoned groundwater and now 43 years later, is threatening a reservoir that offers water to citizens or how Lake Ontario contains coal tar that covers 60 hectares, dating back to a coal gas plant and added on industrial pollution near Lake Ontario. Corporations are one of the main reasons we lack fresh drinking water because of the toxins they put in the environment which can kill Sea-Life and affect our water.
Six nations are close to two of the great lakes, Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, which can be affected by manufacturing companies and oil refineries. From indigenous views of sustainability of water, they give thanks to it for helping them quench their thirst, it gives them strength, water comes in many forms like rain or mist, fish cleanse and purify the water, the fish also give them food. This issue conflicts with their views because they say the water is pure and gives them strength, food, and water though it is being polluted by the corporations and the population.
Corporations and the population are increasing the decline in fresh drinking water. Unless we start to change our ways and decisions, the issue is only going to worsen. We must understand that this may not affect us drastically right now, but the more we push it aside the more damage it will do to the environment, our health and the ecosystem.
Sources-
https://ssec.si.edu/stemvisions-blog/what-photosynthesis
https://www.britannica.com/science/plastic-pollution/Plastic-pollution-in-oceans-and-on-land
https://www.chicagotribune.com/nation-world/ct-us-mining-wastewater-pollution-20190220-story.html
https://publicintegrity.org/environment/industrial-waste-pollutes-americas-drinking-water/
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/randle-reef-1.4706207