Water to Drink

Cezanne’s painting of a drinking water carafe.

Drinking water that’s safe and affordable is one of the basic human rights. Injustice and inequality deprive many humans on this planet of essential drinking water. Do we fortunate first-world inhabitants (with internet access right now, for example) think about the value of clean fresh water that comes from the tap in our homes? We may see water as a basic fact of life, not a luxury or something to struggle for -- aren't we lucky!

Facts and Observations about Water

• 26% percent of the world population lacks a safe water supply. "In 2020, 74% of the global population (5.8 billion people) used a safely managed drinking-water service – that is, one located on premises, available when needed, and free from contamination." (source)
• Polluted water causes many deaths from diseases like diarrhea cholera, dysentery, typhoid, hepatitis-A, and polio each year, mostly in Africa and India. “Unsafe water sources are responsible for 1.2 million deaths each year. … In low-income countries, unsafe water accounts for 6% of deaths.” (source) 
• Cutting off supplies of drinking water is one of many atrocities of war — including the ongoing war in Ukraine, where new atrocities are being discovered constantly. Water rationing has been necessary in several nearly-destroyed cities that have been holding out against the Russian army invasion. “According to media reports, people in Mariupol were forced to melt snow for drinking water and cook on open fires with food, water and power supplies cut off.” (source)
• In Biblical times, walled cities in dry areas developed ways to access their water supply during a military siege when lack of water would have been the quickest way to defeat. For example, the citadel of Megiddo had a secret tunnel that led to a spring with sweet water, making it much safer to defend. 
• The water supply of Flint, Michigan, was polluted with lead in 2014 as a result of negligent and malicious behavior by Republican politicians. A criminal case against the governor of Michigan and other officials for their actions in causing the disaster is ongoing. (source)
• Modern people who say they don’t drink water are expressing a preference: they are choosing other beverages, but these beverages supply them with ample water to sustain life. In the past, sometimes beer was preferred to water because beer is made from boiled water so it was safer from contamination — however, it did supply the necessary fluids to keep the drinkers alive. Ditto tea.
• First world habits: consumption of bottled drinking water rather than soft drinks continues to grow in the US, despite the availability of safe tap water. For the VERY overprivileged, the purveyors of luxury goods have developed brands of bottled water that are very high-priced. In the collection of best American food writing that I read recently, a chapter describes a water “sommelier” who provides high-cost bottled water to restaurant goers and who hosts water-tasting events. In the light of the facts about deaths from polluted drinking water, this affectation seems beyond outrageous!

The End of the World?

The citadel at the ancient city of Megiddo was the origin of the word Armageddon, a Biblical term for the catastrophic end of the world, which would traditionally take place at this strategic site on the roads connecting major Middle Eastern cities. In the 15th century BCE and in 609 BCE important battles were fought there, and a critical battle of World War I took place there in September, 1918. Access to water through a secret stairway to a concealed spring helped the defenders of the ancient city. Archaeologists found the stairway, which is now part of the tourist route through the citadel. I was very impressed by it when I was visiting Israel.

The stairway to the spring below Meggido. (source)

A different prediction of the end of the world: "Climate change is disrupting weather patterns, leading to extreme weather events, unpredictable water availability, exacerbating water scarcity and contaminating water supplies. Such impacts can drastically affect the quantity and quality of water that children need to survive." (source)

The Value of Clean Water

The CDC reports: “Water, sanitation, and hygiene has the potential to prevent at least 9% of the global disease burden and 6% of global deaths. The impact of clean water technologies on public health in the U.S. is estimated to have had a rate of return of 23 to 1 for investments in water filtration and chlorination during the first half of the 20th century.” https://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/global/wash_statistics.html

The water treatment plant that supplies my drinking water,
Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Blog post shared with the bloggers celebrating drinks at Altered Book Lover.

Post © 2022 mae sander.