How Can We Address the Global

Water Scarcity Crisis?

Water scarcity has recently become a problem that has reached the attention of everyone worldwide.
Clean water is a resource that is a mandatory asset for the survival of any mammal, which includes
humans. Clean water is not evenly spread across the world, and because of this uneven distribution, we
will receive problems around the planet. Alongside clean water, another huge problem is lack of
sanitation. In this paper, I will present how lack of access to clean, safe water and sanitation has affected
human life.
Global Perspective

In 2018, more than seven hundred million people across forty-three countries suffered from lack of clean
water and sanitation. This caused people to use unsafe waters such as excreta-contaminated
groundwater and chemically contaminated water (arsenic and fluorine) for drinking, bathing, and
agriculture. There has been an increase in diseases such as diarrhea, trachoma, soil-transmitted
helminth, and schistosomiasis. There was an estimate of more than one million deaths in 2021 alone.
International organization WHO has implemented a program called ‘WASH’ that focuses on countries
suffering from water crises and collects data, which they use by sharing with other entities to help them
solve the crisis.

National Perspective

Out of forty-three countries, I will be focusing on India in this matter for this paper. India has a
population of around 1.4 billion and is expected to have 1.7 billion people by 2050. This puts massive
pressure on India as it’s not large enough (roughly one-third of the USA) to support this population, but
the lack of water doesn’t originate from the surface but from the intense draining of groundwater. In the
agriculture sector, Indians have been using groundwater as their source, which even led farmers to buy
electric pumps, causing the land underneath to dry out. This intense drying has significantly reduced the
water supply for everyone in India. It’s also worth mentioning that India's lack of proper irrigation and
water management has made more than 600 million Indians rely on monsoon rains, which can create a
recipe for disaster.

Causes

Water scarcity has been caused by the contributions of:

 Global Warming: the change of weather patterns has increased the average global temperature,
which accelerated the rate of evaporation.
 Excessive water used in agriculture, industry, and normal use has been depleting the water
supply before it can replenish.
 Rising population has increased demands for drinking, industry, sanitation, and agriculture,
which puts a heavy strain on the local water supply.
  Increased pollution has contaminated freshwater, making it unsafe to use.
In India, agriculture is the largest consumer of water, but India’s inefficient irrigation practices
cause soil to degrade, increasing wastewater.
 In multiple regions, outdated or inadequate infrastructure for water supplies leads to leaks in
water storage units, which waste a significant amount of water.

Consequences

Water scarcity has brought severe consequences to human life that are harming those who are affected,
such as:

 Limited access to clean water has led to hygiene problems and increased the risks of waterborne
diseases such as diarrhea and cholera. This especially happens in rural areas, making them
vulnerable.

 Food insecurity occurs due to water scarcity. It impacts agriculture, which can lower yields in
crops, thereby increasing prices and potentially causing food shortages.

 Water scarcity has affected the economic sides of the world; areas that are agriculture-
dependent can suffer economic problems due to crops not growing from a lack of clean water.
This can bring poverty to those areas.

 Water availability disrupts ecosystems, which harms plants and animals that are dependent on
water; this increases the loss of biodiversity.

 Reduced water availability breeds conflicts and large amounts of migration. Population living in
areas that suffer from lack of water will most likely migrate.

 Limited water reduces the ability to maintain proper sanitation, endangering health
furthermore.

Evaluation of Sources

I believe that the sources I have used are credible since they are from official international organizations.
Authors from the organizations are experts in their field. But the website’s information is 6–9 years old,
which means most of the information could be outdated by now. There isn’t possibly any bias since the
organization doesn’t have any history of supporting a group or having specific agendas.

Problem Solving

A wonderful way of solving the problem in India is by starting a campaign that raises awareness across
the country and focuses on improving technology in vulnerable areas. Improving infrastructure in rural
areas can reduce leaks and eliminate water waste. Getting everyone’s attention by raising awareness can
lead to protests being started by the people, which would force governments to start campaigns and act
immediately. This makes it a long-lasting solution that should eventually be able to reduce problems for
limited water eventually and hopefully.

Reflection

Before I wrote this paper, I never thought water scarcity was such a big issue. I thought water scarcity
only happened in deserted places such as the Sahara Desert, and the only problem that arises from
water scarcity is just dehydration from lack of water. After writing this paper, my mind has seen a side of
this issue that I never knew existed. Water scarcity happens across the globe, and the problems from
water scarcity aren’t just dehydration; they bring famine (lack of clean water can reduce agricultural
activities), diseases, conflicts, mass migration, conflicts, economic problems, and harm to nature. Water
scarcity is a much more serious issue than I had previously thought, and it must be resolved as soon as
possible before we reach the point of no going back.

Bibliography and references

https://www.who.int/health-topics/water-sanitation-and-hygiene-wash

https://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/scarcity.shtml

https://siwi.org/latest/water-crisis-india-everything-need-know/

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/drinking-water