Water shortage
Water is an important supply that every person needs in
their life, it could be for drinking or for sanity needs. We need water in
order to survive. In our daily life we
use a lot of water for many different things in cooking, cleaning and personal
care. There is a large shortage in water supplies nowadays. The lack of clean
water is one of the main sources of disease in poor countries, which leads to
death. Water shortage is caused by many different ways, firstly by drought
which is caused by the lack of rain. Secondly the over use of unnecessary water
for example, leaving the water tap running unnecessarily, over watering the
garden and having exceptionally long showers. If nothing is done about the
water shortage problems there will be a major increase in deaths all over the
world.
Ethiopia is a country
of around 85 million people and this country has particular problems related to
water shortages. Around 49 million lack safe water and 75 million have no
sanitation services. In the last 20 years, Ethiopia has experienced recurring
droughts followed by food shortages and famines. During times of drought,
water-related diseases are rampant. Surface water sources such as springs and
ponds dry up. Remaining water sources are heavily contaminated by environmental
waste, such as human and animal excreta, which is washed in when it does rain.
The stagnant water serves as a breeding place for mosquitoes.
In times of drought, there is often not enough water
available for people to bathe regularly. As a result, community members,
especially children, suffer from scabies and eye infections. During these
times, in an effort to conserve water, hand-washing after defecation or before
eating is rarely practiced. Diarrheal and water-related diseases are among the
principle causes of death in young children. And as for other reasons behind
this crisis says the Gurdian "Aid agencies say that weather in this region
has become more erratic and years of war leave populations especially
vulnerable". Though the country possesses a substantial amount of water
resources, little has been developed for drinking water supply, hydropower,
agriculture and other purposes… people have no access to improved supply
usually obtain water from rivers, unprotected springs, hand-dug wells and
rainwater harvesting.
Management of Ethiopian lake resources should not be left to
a certain government organ alone. Both the people and the government
establishments should be equally concerned. Active participation of the rural
population is especially attractive in lake management. Indeed the
participation of the inhabitants, who contribute to the damage of the
catchments, is essential. Heavy rain in the rainy season can suddenly raise the
water level of a lake, causing flooding over fields and houses at the lakeside.
Since environmental awareness is a contributing factor that makes the public
participate in lake management programs, it is important to raise the level of
awareness of the public through appropriate public channels, including the
media.
Of course, the "developing countries" are in a way
fortunate in having fewer environmental problems than "developed
countries," but we are not secure. We should learn valuable lessons from
the problems of the industrialized countries and take the appropriate
precautionary measures as soon as possible. My final remark: Now is the time to
start proper management of our aquatic resources to protect them for future
generations.
Ethiopia." Water.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2012.
<http://water.org/country/ethiopia /
"Water supply and sanitation in Ethiopia
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
N.p., n.d. Web. 8 May 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_supply_and_sanitation_in_Et
- Felicity
Lawrence.Guradian. Drought in east Africa the result of climate change and
conflict. Retrieved July 4, 2011 from http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jul/04/drought-east-africa-climate-change
- Huff post green; The
internet newspaper: news, Blogs, Video, community. The Ethiopian Water
Crisis By The Numbers. www.huffingtonpost Retrieved March 29, 2012 from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/29/ethiopian-water
crisis_n_1380424.html#s813674&title=300_Million
-
Water Resources and Irrigation Development in
Ethiopia. Colombo, Sri Lanka International Water Management Institute. 78P.
(Working 123)
“Human
Interactions and Water Quality in the Horn of Africa”. www.aaas.org. May 9th ,
2012.< http://www.aaas.org/international/africa/ewmi/zinabu.htm>
“Ethiopia
Needs Safe Water”. www.rotaryeclubny1.com.
May 9th, 2011.
< http://www.rotaryeclubny1.com/pdfs/water_ethiopia_brochure.pdf
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