Pictures of people taking a bath near the Perito Moreno Glacier evoke both happiness and preoccupation. We could say it’s nice to take a bath and that the current heat is temporary, but some scientists differ.
It is somewhat similar to what happens in the Arctic because many countries see with joy that they can navigate the north, from Canada to Russia, enhancing trade and tourism, but most scientists are concerned.
Scientific reality shows us that drinking water is an increasingly scarce resource.
The historical view provides sufficient elements: our parents and grandparents used water without restrictions, both in the cities and in the fields; now, we have limits and we pay for the use of water; future generations will fight for it because there won’t be enough for everyone.
One could say that it’s the future generation’s problem, but it is not like that either. Perhaps we would appreciate the problem in a different way if they told us,”You can only consume five liters of water per day and you cannot use it for the daily shower or for watering, nor can you have a swimming pool in your house or in your villa”. However, this is what is happening in various cities on the planet, where the use of the liquid element is being regulated.
These issues were discussed at the World Water Congress held in Brasilia last year, where thousands of people from all around the world attended.
Everything indicates that the demand for water is increasing. The world population has grown exponentially and water is needed for human consumption. Industrial uses are increasingly intense, oil explorations use water for fracking, mining consumes a lot of water as well and the waste is notable. The manufacturing processes of many products use this element.
Supply decreases. Desert areas have increased as a result of deforestation, rivers and waters are being polluted, glaciers are receding and climate change is warming the planet, causing evident negative effects.
When the demand increases and a good’s supply decreases, it becomes scarce and there are conflicts that alter our daily lives, economic and social relations as well as the institutional structure.
The diagnosis is more than worrisome.
The solutions are difficult to implement, but the good thing is that there are a huge amount of people studying this issue.
The increase in supply can be achieved by implementing a national water plan such as Israel’s water plan, which is an example in this area. Technology is evolving rapidly and needs to be used.
The demand for water can be oriented towards more efficient uses. Market prices can be an indicator in the industrial and, especially, the mining sector, so that they internalize the costs of their use. We urgently need to stop contaminating rivers, streams and the irrational land clearing, which alters the rainy cycles.
Human consumption is different: the human right to clean water must be recognized because there are many people who cannot pay for it. Also, it should be combined with regulations for a more efficient use of the resource.
Science can help a lot to solve the problem, but philosophy is also relevant.
The anthropocentric vision of water has led to consider it a human property, but this idea is falling apart. Water is also used for other species and has a cycle that must be respected. That is why an ecocentric vision is required, in which there is a basic rule: nobody can alter the functioning of the system.
This is why we have entrusted judges around the world with what the Supreme Court of Argentina has done, renowned on these matters. That is why the judicial powers are issuing judgments that recognize the right to drinking water, ordering the cleaning of rivers, and protecting water cycles.
We can satisfy the thirst for water only if we also satisfy the thirst for justice.
Art has taught us about this matter a long time ago. I often recommend reading Ibsen, who at the end of the 19th century gave us a lesson: if a good and beloved person advises to close a spa because he discovers that the waters are polluted and everyone’s reaction is to declare him the enemy, what is actually contaminated is society’s moral foundation.
In short, the quid of the matter rests between a short sighted view or longstanding state policies, between economic pragmatism and the values of idealism, making us worthy of living on this planet.