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living in these areas may have to

spend hours each day walking to

the nearest supply of water. Many

children miss out on an education

because they are collecting water.

Wildlife concerns

The water crisis is bad for humans

and can mean extinction for some

animals and reduction in numbers

for others. Populations of the

Amazon river dolphin, which lives

in the Amazon and Orinoco river

basins in South America, for

example, have been much reduced,

partly by the increase of heavy

metal pollution from mining but

also by the construction of dams,

which restrict the migration of

fish, the dolphins’ food, to their

spawning grounds. Elsewhere,

in China, the world’s largest

amphibian, the Chinese giant

salamander, has also become

critically endangered by dams

being built for water storage and

hydroelectric power. Such

engineering works change the

natural flow of rivers, upsetting

the creature’s habitat.

A holistic view of ecosystem

management is crucial to prevent

the water crisis from getting much

worse. For example, a sewage

treatment plant run on “clean”

energy can provide the wastewater

needed to fertilize biofuel crops,

which in turn can be used to purify

the water—without emitting

greenhouse gases.

Drinkable waste water

New technologies can also convert

wastewater directly into drinkable

water—a process that has been

energy-hungry in the past. The

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate

Change (IPCC) stresses that water

management policies can lead to

higher greenhouse gas emissions.

However, that is not the case if the

conversion is fueled using solar

energy, which is starting to take

over from oil to power desalination

plants in the Middle East. In parts

of the world, there is seasonal heavy

rain—for example, in countries

with a monsoon—but it runs off

into polluted rivers and cannot be

used. Rainwater catchment and

storage schemes would help.

Other helpful initiatives include

reducing pollution, cutting irrigation

and industrial wastage, providing

new technological solutions for

developing countries, and reaching

international agreements—after all,

water catchments do not stick

to national boundaries. ■

THE HUMAN FACTOR

Salisbury Water

In Adelaide, South Australia,

an innovative water recycling

system in use in the suburb

of Salisbury has reduced

extraction from the Murray

River and aquifers by about

a half. Wastewater from the

local sewage treatment works

and rainwater from drains

are treated, and then directed

into a series of 50 wetlands.

These contain reedbeds

and other aquatic vegetation

that further clean the water.

The recycled, nonsdrinking

water from the wetlands is

then piped to the inhabitants

of Salisbury to use for flushing

toilets, watering gardens,

washing cars, and filling

ornamental ponds.

In addition to providing

a more sustainable source of

water, the system has boosted

biodiversity within the newly

established wetlands. Among

the birds that are currently

resident or visitors are ducks,

spoonbills, herons, pelicans,

cormorants, and migratory

waders, along with species

of amphibians and fish, and

many aquatic invertebrates.

Salisbury’s recycled water has

environmental benefits including

reduced demand on existing water

resources and improved biodiversity

through the newly created wetlands.

There is no water-rich

country in the world that

is not facing problems.

Maude Barlow

The world has not really

woken up to the reality of

what we are going to face in

terms of the crises as far

as water is concerned.

Rajendra Pachauri

IPCC Chair

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