|  |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
Printable Version
E-mail to a Friend
APA | MLA | |
Introduction
Water is one of the most important of all natural resources as it is vital for all life on this planet. Difficult to purify, expensive to transport and impossible to substitue there is a finite supply of freshwaster on earth.
At present the one issue that overarches all other environmental issues is that of population growth. (McNicol, 2000), (SIT, 2006)
As populations increase globally and water use per person rises, the demand for freshwater is increasing. 31 countries counting for 8% of the world population face chronic freshwater shortages and it is estimated that by the year 2025, 48 countries (35% of the world’s projected population) are expected to face shortages affecting more than 2.8 billion people. (PC, 2006)
India is one country that is currently in the midst of a major water crisis and the aim of this papers is to explore how the issues of access to adequate water for drinking, sanitation and producing food are related to this countries population growth and demands.
.
Population and Water Usage of India
The statistics for India are alarming. India is already the second most populated nation in the world with the human population exceeding 1 billion. Current estimates for population growth indicate that the human population of the region will double in the next twenty to forty years, while global demand for dwindling water resources will continue to rise at almost twice that rate. It is estimated that by the year 2030 India will have surpassed China (refer figure.1).
In India, overall water demand will increase from 552 BCM (Billion Cubic Metres) to 1050 BCM by 2025, which will require the use of all the available water resources in the country. Of the present water usage, 92% is devoted to agriculture, with roughly 3% used in industry and only 5% for domestic purposes like drinking water and sanitation. Demand from the industrial and domestic sectors is expected to increase with the growing
population, urbanization and industrialization.
In the country, the per capita availability of freshwater has dropped from over 5,000 cubic meters per year in 1947 to less than 2,000 cubic meters per year in 1997. By 2025, this figure will fall further to 1,500 cubic meters per year, which is well below the level at which water stress is considered to occur. Already, six of India’s twenty major river basins fall below the water scarcity threshold of 1,000 cubic meters per year, with five more basins to be added to the list within the next three decades. (WB1999), (DA, 2001)
Figure 1: Projected Future Population of India in relation to China
(Sourced from:http://trak.in/tags/business/2007/05/24/india-and-china-population-a-blessing-in-disguise/it/)
Issue 1& 2: Access to Adequate Water for Drinking and for Sanitation
Human health is dependent on clean and suffcient amounts of water and safe sanitation. Safe drinking water and basic sanitation are so obviously essential to health that they risk being taken for granted. This is normally the case in affluent countries , but in developing countries they are much rarer.
Water-related diseases such as diarrhoea, cholera and malaria, or non-infectious diseases such as fluorosis from high fluoride levels are rampant in India which can be in part attributed to the informal squatter settlements that surround many cities lacking piped water or any kind of waste disposal. (McNicol, 2000)
To date, only 14% of rural and 70% or urban inhabitants have access to adequate sanitation facilities (such as Latrines). Therefore, water contaminated by human waste is often discharged directly into watercourses or seeps into the groundwater table from faulty septic tanks or pit latrines. (DA, 2001)
Heavy pollution of all of India’s fourteen major river systems come mostly from the 50 million cubic metres of untreated sewage discharged into them each year by the domestic sector.
Rapid urbanization and the lack of financial resources in the developing world have made it difficult for urban planners to respond to growing demands for sanitation infrastructure. (AAAS, 1998)
Although access to drinking water has improved, the World Bank estimates that 21% of communicable diseases in India are related to unsafe water. In India, diarrhea alone causes more than 1,600 deaths daily. Hand washing is also very low, increasing the spread of disease. In order to decrease the amount of disease spread through drinking-water, latrine usage and hygiene must be improved simultaneously. (WPI, 2008)
The failure of the Government agencies to make available safe, potable water to the entire population in this country has contributed in a big way to infant mortality. At present 8.3 of the 19 million infants in the developing world with low birth weight are in India. One of the biggest killers of infants in India is water-borne diseases thanks to the consumption of unsafe water. The infant mortality rate is 34.61 deaths/ 1,000 live births with between 0.5 to 1.5 million children under the age of five dying yearly in India from diarrhoea alone.
(SC, 2005). (DA, 2001)
Issue 1& 2: Management
Table 1: Management Techniques for Access to Adequate Water for Drinking and Sanitation
Issue Desired Outcome Method
Population Growth Decrease the rate Establish education programmes relating to fertility
Polluted Water Improve rural water quality Tubewells capped with shared hand pump
Waste Sewage Systems installed
Provide lost cost Latrines or lobby Government for funding
Decrease diseases Provide education on good nutritional practices and the preparation and use of oral rehydration solutions (ORS-to rehydrate sufferers of diarrhoea)
Malnutrition & Infant Mortality Increase infant birth sizes Education of ORS. Public Heath Care Services
Poor Hygiene Practices More hand washing Provide free bars of soap
It is important to mention that there are worldwide organisations that are helping such as World Vision with training on nutritional practices and the preparation of ORS. Water Partners Programme in India also provides Tubewells and low cost Latrines to 5 rural and urban Indian communities. It is important to ensure that communities work together to determine the type of services that they receive and that they have access to information and participate in decision making. Most importantly of all they need to be supported with Government Policies which develop infrastructures that encourages improvements in water and sanitations, and in general an improved quality of living.
Issue 3: Access to Adequate Water for Providing Food
The supply of water is critical to the increase in food production and about 70% of the total freshwater in the world is used to grow food and provide employment to billions of rural dwellers. Irrigated land is twice as productive as rain fed cropland – the one sixth of the world’s cropland that is irrigated produces about a third of the world’s food. Yet about 10% of the global harvest is being produced by depleting ground water supplies. This unsustainable groundwater use is particularly serious in India and China where it creates a false sense of these countries ability to produce sufficient food. (Nagdeve, 2002).
The spread of the Green Revolution has been accomplished by over exploitation of land and water resources and use of fertilizers and pesticides which have increased many folds with increase in population growth and demand. Intensive agriculture and irrigation contributes to land degradation, loss of nutrients, soil erosion, salinity, alkalinity and water logging. Increasing demands for food from increased population adds to the pressure to manage water resources more effectively.
Large scale use of pesticides may have revolutionised food production but these chemicals are responsible for more than 2 million human poisonings every year with a resultant 20,000 deaths. (SIT, 2006a), (Russet, 2000)
Agriculture is the largest use of water globally and accounts for about 92% of the total freshwater abstraction. It is likely to continue to increase in India as there has been a significant migration of manufacturing industries from developed countries. This has a direct bearing on economy, as India increases its population there will be a corresponding increase in water use by industries.
Two crucial Issues are water use and water pollution. Agriculture reserves are allocated the largest share of annual water allocation in India (Refer figure 2). Over 80% of domestic water supply is dependant on groundwater. (DTE, 2004)
Issue 3: Management
Table 2: Management Techniques for Access to Adequate Water for Food Production
Issue Desired Outcome Method
Population Growth Decrease rate of population growth Decrease Immigration of Immigrant Agricultural Companies
Water Use Increase Water Availability Terracing, Tree Planting
Slow Drip Irrigation
Plant Low Water Use Crops
Recycling Systems
Water Pollution Improve Water Quality for All Educate on Safe Agricultural Practices
Consult with Government for Immigrant Companies to pay Taxes towards Toxic Waste/Pollution Elimination Systems
Food Supply Maintain Food Security Rural Developments for controlling of land/soil erosion
Figure 2: Yearly Allocation of Access to Water in India
(Statistics sourced for chart from: http://www.devalt.org/water/WaterinIndia/issues.htm)
Conclusion
For India’s remaining river basins to stay above the water scarcity threshold urgent action is required to conserve fresh water sources. Programmes could be instituted to slow down population growth. Improved services or funding to improve the way of life for both urban and rural people of India would make for a healthier society. The effects of Population growth, demand and poverty are all interlinked to the present situation of India’s access to water for drinking, sanitation and for food production. More effort by the Government is needed to put in place Policies, with community involvement regarding the improvement of the quality of the water and education of rural populations in health issues. Due to the forecast of the future growth of water needs for agriculture, recycling of water and efficient use of water needs to be addressed. As the population growth is expected to rise considerably in the future, the water demands will increase from all users of India’s water resources, domestic, industrial and agricultural.
References
McNicol, C. (2000). World Vision – Water A Precious Resource. Pdf.p.g 1-4. Retrieved: June 28, 2008 from: http://staging.worldvision.org.nz/pdf/resources/Water.pdf
Development Alternatives, (2001). Water-Water in India-Developing Water Sustaining Livelihoods. Retrieved: June 29, 2008 from: http://www.devalt.org/water/WaterinIndia/issues.htm
AAAS, (1998). Water & Population Dynamics – Case Studies & Policy Implications. Retrieved: June 29, 2008 from: http://www.aaas.org/international/ehn/waterpop/desherb.htm
Nagdeve. D, (2002). Environment & Health in India. Pdf. Retrieved: June 30, 2008 from: http://www.iussp.org/Bangkok2002/s09Nagdeve.pdf
Down To Earth, (2004). It Isn’t Agriculture. Retrieved: July 01, 2008 from: http://www.cseindia.org/dte-supplement/industry20040215/agriculture.htm
World Bank, (2008). India – Water. Retrieved: June 30, 2008 from: http://www.worldbank.org.in/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/SOUTHASIAEXT/INDIAEXTN/0,,contentMDK:20668501~pagePK:141137~piPK:141127~theSitePK:295584,00.html
Sarkaritel.com, (2005). People & their Problems – Child Malnutrition – India Leads in Infant Mortality. Retrieved: June 30, 2008 from: http://www.sarkaritel.com/news_and_features/infa/january08/27child_malnutrition.htm
Southern Institute of Technology, (2006). ENV104-Study Guide 1- Part 1:Environmental Issues – Global Environmental Issues, SITLRN, Invercargill
Southern Institute of Technology, (2006a). ENV104-Study Guide 1- Part 2: The Role of Food Supply in Relation to Population Growth, SITLRN, Invercargill
Rosset,P. Collins,J. and Moore, F. (2000). Lessons from the Green Revolution. Tikkun magazine
Political Cortex, (2006). The Global Water Crisis In Relation to Al Gores An Inconvenient Truth. Retrieved: June 28, 2008 from: http://www.politicalcortex.com/story/2006/9/6/162157/2684
Water Partners International, (2008). India-Water Crisis In India. Retrieved: June 29, 2008 from:
http://www.water.org/waterpartners.aspx?pgID=887
|
|
 |
 |
 |
|
|
|
