Water Scarcity and Sustainable Development
The Earth’s supply of freshwater, although finite, has remained more or less constant over time. Unfortunately, this stability is now threatened by rapid population growth, climate change, and mismanagement of water. In fact, the world’s population is expected to increase by a whooping 2 billion in the next 30 years. According to a UNICEF report, this means countries such as Egypt will be facing water scarcity and a possibility of completely running out of freshwater by the year 2025. Around two-thirds of the world’s population and one-third of the world’s children will face fatal water scarcities.
Climate change is another factor massively affecting this issue. It disturbs the planet’s water cycle. A normal water cycle can simply be put into two words; evaporation and precipitation. A natural process responsible for helping our planet maintain its water supply. However, the increase in temperatures caused by climate change has been impacting how much rain falls, where it falls and when. This is why countries, such as Somalia, are facing years of droughts while others, such as Bangladesh, are facing monsoons and floods. The problem with excessive amounts of rain, aside from it being a natural disaster capable of so much damage, is that if it cannot be absorbed by soil it will turn into runoffs carrying fertilizers and pollutants into rivers and lakes.
Storm runoffs are not the only runoffs that contaminate freshwater sources. Truth is humans are inefficient consumers of water. There are multiple ways humans mismanage water and the biggest one is waste. The way we handle waste is both poor and inadequate. This can include sewage and household wastewater, agricultural waste and industrial waste. The UN claims an average of 80% of the world’s wastewater finds its way back into the ecosystem untreated. A number capable of threatening the precious amount of fresh drinking water we have access to.
The upside to all of this is that just like most of our planet’s valuable resources, water can be upcycled, recycled and reused. This is also why sustainable development, a method that aims to fix present problems without creating more problems for future generations, is the way to go. For instance, we can start by reclaiming and treating wastewater in order for it to be reused. This recycled water can then be reused in irrigation, industrial use as well as residential use. With so many new innovative water treatment solutions emerging, some even have the potential to turn wastewater back to drinkable water.
Countries are already passing strict laws that require industrial and agricultural entities to reduce and treat their wastewater. With so many innovative water treatment technologies finding their way to the market every day, our team worked hard to develop Rejuvix, a product that can completely rejuvenate expired water based products in just a matter of minutes. It was designed to help our clients make the most out of the water they already use, limiting both their consumption and waste. With new innovations like this finding their way to the light, our planet’s future starts to brighten.
