WATER IS LIFE

Water is Life

WORLD WATER DAY MARCH 22, 2015 ACTION DAY

“Water is life.” George Mackenzie Tlicho, NW Territories, Canada.

Water is Sacred to Indigenous peoples around the world because they know nothing on Earth lives without water, and that includes the living Planet Earth. International Decade for action “Water for Life”.  “On 28 July 2010 Resolution 64/292, the United Nations General Assembly explicitly recognized the human right to water and sanitation and acknowledged that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realisation of all human rights. In 2006, the Human Rights Council (HRC) adopted decision 2/104 “human rights and access to water”.  It’s that face of America that Catarina de Albuquerque witnessed at the end of her U.S. visit.. De Albuquerque, the UN independent expert on water and sanitation, visited the U.S. to examine human rights obligations related to access to safe drinking water and sanitation. What she found was not befitting of the world’s richest nation.” from UN documents.

‘The human right to water and sanitation entitles everyone to water and sanitation that is available, accessible, affordable, acceptable and safe without discrimination. But de Albuquerque found that people of color and Native Americans disproportionately suffer insufficient access to clean water and sanitation services. While less than one percent of non-native American households have no access to safe water and/or wastewater disposal, 13 percent of Native Americans lack access.” from UN documents.

Here are some important facts about water from Water. Org:

1. 1 in 9 people in the world lack access to safe water.
2. Women and children spend 140 million hours a day collecting water.
3. 840,000 people die each year from a water related disease.

From our personal experience:

We saw the reality of these statistics when we traveled with a group of volunteers to a small village in the mountains of Guatemala to build a medical clinic and provide basic healthcare to the people living there.

Many of the children were malnourished from the scarcity of food, but the main contributor to low weight and poor health was the lack of access to clean water.   Drinking from the streams and ponds caused the children to ingest parasites which created great suffering.  Medication and education about boiling water decreased the problem over time for that village, but the challenge to create a sustainable clean water source is ongoing.

After that experience, we never thought of water in quite the same way.  We saw for ourselves how a beautiful, vibrant child’s potential could be destroyed by the lack of what some Native American people call “the sacred life blood.”  Conserving water and contributing to clean water projects around the world became part of our lives.

On World Water Day, we renew our commitment to support the right of all living things to clean, abundant water.   We know many of you already have the same commitment.  Here are a few more conservation ideas to consider.

LIST & LINKS TO WATER CONSERVATION IDEAS:

1. Never put water down the drain when there may be another use for it such as watering a plant or garden, or cleaning.
2. Verify that your home is leak-free, because many homes have hidden water leaks. Read your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.
3. Repair dripping faucets by replacing washers. If your faucet is dripping at the rate of one drop per second, you can expect to waste 2,700 gallons per year which will add to the cost of water and sewer utilities, or strain your septic system.
4. Check for toilet tank leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear within 30 minutes. Check the toilet for worn out, corroded or bent parts. Most replacement parts are inexpensive, readily available and easily installed. (Flush as soon as test is done, since food coloring may stain tank.)
5. Take shorter showers. Replace your showerhead with an ultra-low-flow version. Some units are available that allow you to cut off the flow without adjusting the water temperature knobs.
6. Avoid flushing the toilet unnecessarily. Dispose of tissues, insects and other such waste in the trash rather than the toilet.

There are many ways for us to conserve water.  To learn more use the links below for some great tips:

http://www.americanwater.com/49ways.php

http://eartheasy.com/live_water_saving.htm

http://wateruseitwisely.com/100-ways-to-conserve/

First, we must acknowledge the sacredness of and the necessity for clean water for all life on our planet. Then we must learn to use this gift wisely and share it equally, respecting the rights of access to the source of all life.  “Water is Life” and we must take action now because “We are all part of the Earth.”

Love, Gene & Joyce

Image by Hamomilaki