Water Issues By Adam Jamal

Writing 231 December 1, 2010. Dr. Mrs. Darling

Water Conflict
Water is the most valued liquid in the world, and it is the most precious element on the earth. Water is fundamental in the world, and it constantly moves from sea to land and back again. Over 70 percent of the earths surface is sheltered by water. Water is divided into two categories, clean water and salt water. 97.5 percent of the worlds water is salt, and only 2.5 percent is fresh water, of that 2.5 percent about 70 percent of it is frozen in the Polar Regions. Small number of fresh water is available for human use.Water is vital for all living things, such as human, animal, and agriculture. Water is one of the most important resources in the world. Humans, animals and agriculture use the water for many different ways. For example, human bodies are made of 60 percent water. Humans can stay without food for up to two weeks, but they cant stay without water. Its also important, for animal and agriculture use. Agriculture is the greatest water user to date. Water is not used evenly around the world. Most rich countries consume more water than poor countries. And as the world population grows rapidly, the water usage grows with it. The world population is putting pressure on already depleted water resources. Ironically, poor and overpopulated countries are growing faster in fertility which means more people are born in those countries without access to enough water. This is also what causes water conflicts in many places around the world. In general the water crisis is becoming a global term because of its urgency. It combines multiple meanings in two broad words; it includes water pollution, water conflict, water shortage and the most important one is the food crisis. Because food is grown with water when there is shortage of water, it usually means hunger and starvation. According to Wikipedia, Water crisis

is a term used to refer to the worlds water resources relative to human demand. The term has applied to the worldwide water situation by the United Nations and other world organizations others, for example the food and agriculture organization, claim there is no water crisis, and the major aspects of the water crisis are allegedly overall scarcity of usable water and water pollution. Water pollution is part of the water issues. Water pollution is becoming a growing danger spreading all over the world especially in developing countries. Any change in water quality whether it is physical, biological or chemical affects the living organisms, which makes water polluted and unsuitable for use. Since the industrial age, humans are using chemicals in huge amounts. And Chemical processing industries in the world are the number one polluters because when they use Sealant, fertilizers, pesticides and other chemicals without firm regulations, they end up in rivers, lakes, streams ponds and seas which make water polluted with toxic and arsenic substance. The best example for water pollution is Kazakhstan. According to Hassan, Soviet republic heavily contaminated with radioactive materials in 2003 German deutshce welle reported that there were 28,000 new patients with cancer in Kazakhstan each year, most of the water in that huge sized country is polluted. This shows water pollution has sever consequence for human and any living objects for that matter. Most serious water pollutants in terms of human health worldwide are disease causing organisms. The most important water borne diseases are typhoid cholera, bacterial and amoebic dysentery polio, infectious hepatitis among others. About 25 million deaths yearly are blamed on water related diseases. Nearly two-thirds for children mortalities under five years old are associated with water borne diseases. For example, in the poor countries, many children die every year from diseases that come from the water pollution. BBC news article states As

important as quantity is quality, with pollution increasing in some areas, the amount of useable water declines. More than five million people die from waterborne diseases each year- 10 times the number killed in wars around the globe. And the wider effects of water shortages are just as chilling as the prospect of having too little to drink. This shows water issues are more serious than some people want to portray. Developed countries put together treatment plants and other pollution control techniques which are heavily monitored by the local governments. Pathogens are eliminated or reduced with chlorine. Water borne diseases are very rare in those developed countries thanks to the technology and wealth. By sharp contrast, developing countries have no sewage treatment plants with high technology. About 90 percent of the developing people dont have adequate, safe water that makes the prone to water borne diseases. World health organization (WHO) says 80 percent of sickness and diseases in less developed countries is water related because of difficulty of water treatment technology and the cost associated with. Developed countries are not immune from the worldwide problems; though water born diseases are rare they have water pollution from time to time. And the most toxic contamination in North America is Mercury. One of the highest water pollution in the world is China, which has the largest population in the world. China is estimated to have 70 percent of surface water polluted. For example, Shanxi Province has vast coal resources; about one-third of Chinas known coal resources. It currently produces about two-thirds of the countrys energy. According to the Chinese Environmental Protection Agency, the countrys ten worst polluted cities are all in Shanxi Province. Factories have been allowed to exceed pollution discharges with impunity. For example 3 million tons of wastewater is produced every day in the province with two-thirds of it discharged directly into local rivers without any treatment. Locals complain the rivers which

once were clean and fresh, now run black with industrial waste. Among the 26 rivers in the province, 80 percent were rated Grade V (unfit for any human use) or higher in 2006. More than half the wells in Shanxi are reported to have dangerously high arsenic levels. Many of the 85,000 reported public protests in china in 2006 involved complaints about air and water pollution.(251) Population growth is another problem that causes water issues and water pollution. World population is close to seven billion today, and the United Nations projections indicate nine billion by the year 2025. The question is what water is available for that huge population that will obviously need more and more clean water than today? Looking at the world map closely and examining continents, Asia has the largest population thou it has some countries with high fertility but, low population count; like Yemen and Afghanistan. The population for those two countries combined is less than 50 million compare to countries like China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines and Thailand, with each less than three children on average per womens life span. However, the biggest growth in terms of continents is Africa with a 1 billion population to date and growing rapidly. Africa has 16 of worlds top 20 highest fertility countries, the rapid population growth and recent medical care improvements indicate a high water demand. On the other hand, Europe and Japan are shrinking in terms of population which means imbalance of world population growth. The worst areas in the world that are affected by shortage of water are desert and arid regions mostly in Africa and Asia. It is surprising to see some of the nations that are facing water issues are also having high fertility which makes the situation worse. Another water issue is the water fights or water conflict that happens in the world. Many nations in the world have competitions for water, because some countries have a water shortage

while others dont have an access to clean water at all. According to Global Water Shortage Looms in New Century article states, World Bank reports that 80 countries now have water shortages that threaten health and economies, while 40 percent of the world-more than 2 billion people- have no access to clean water or sanitation. People receive their water from different resources, the one most common is the rivers. That is why rivers cause water conflicts in many places all over the world According to Global Water Shortages Looms In New Century it says, more than dozen nations receive most of their water from rivers that cross to borders of neighboring countries viewed as hostile. These include Botswana, Bulgaria, Cambodia, the Congo Gambia, Sudan and Syria, all of them receive 75 percent or more of their fresh water from rivers that flow often hostile upstream neighbors. This shows every country wants to get more water for their population and also control that water resource as a national security. As the population grows the need for more water will grow too. Water competition or conflicts are not new. Water was used as military tool in order to reach political goal in past ancient Egypt. Assyrians used water to reach political goal in living memory. Dutch used water to defeat Spain, Egypt, and France. And the British fought war over Suez Canal. However, water over the Danube River cost the most prominent European conflicts. Jordans Tigris and Euphrates are another conflict spots in the Middle East region. But the worst problem and the most unique is in central Asia where countries with upstream rivers or waters are less populated and developed, while countries with downstream are more populated and developed. Pakistan and India whom both are nuclear armed nations fought over water sources which caused Indus basin divided up to now. Today any dam construction unilaterally

may be declaration of war between two countries. Water issues are very delicate between Pakistan and India. These two countries fought three full-fledged wars over Kashmir, the center of Indus River. Indus River is between life and death to Pakistan. When Pakistan and India partitioned in1947, Pakistans first capital was Karachi which had best infrastructure, but there is a new capital that was founded in Islamabad very close to the border, and it was considered that Pakistan is insisting on its claim on Indus basin. Pakistan is ready to fight for holding its portion of divided and disputed Kashmir, not that Pakistan is putting danger on the entire nation because of Kashmir, but because of Indus River. On the other hand, in Middle East, since the foundation of Israel in 1948, the Middle East conflict attracted world media attention. Conflict was between the new founded nation of Israel and its hostile neighboring Arab countries. Israel is situated on almost desert area; therefore, its survival is dependent on water sources. The Jordan River is the closest river to Israel; in 1964 Israel realized that it needs Jordan River water in order to survive. Israel built long water pipes, and its their major source of water, they named it National Water Carrier. Although Israel is the major country that uses Jordan River, still other nations pose threat when it comes to Jordan River and sharing the water. According to Hussein A. Amery and Aaron T. Wolf, At the present day four countries, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, and Israel, share its water- other group of people, the Palestinians, also have just aspirations for a state of their own within the Jordan basin(19). There is important issue in the Middle East conflict that media doesnt mention or rarely mentions; it is the roll water plays, which means that whoever controls the water is superior in the political game. Before 1967 war, which Israel defeated couple Arab nations in humiliating defeat, Israel controlled less than 10 percent of the Jordan River. When the war ended and Israel became victorious, the Jordan basin became almost entirely under the control of Israel. One of

the main driving forces for Israel to go to war was water control. Israel did not gain that advantage without hardship, but it planned long time for that goal. Fred Pearce states, Israel today uses far more water then falls on its territory, and it has been able to do so because of it is occupation of the West Bank, which gives it control of the western aquifer, and the Golan heights , which gives it control of the Jordan rivers(168). This shows any peace settlement in the Middle East should clearly state the issue of water; otherwise, the settlement will not bear any fruit. A negotiation between Israel and Palestinians water was denitrified as a key area in Madrid peace conference in 1991. On the other hand, Turkey and its two Arab neighbors Syria and Iraq have the same problem in the high tension region. Turkey is building massive dams which will have negative effect on downstream countries of Syria and Iraq whom both share the Tigris and Euphrates with upstream Turkey. This region is experiencing rapid population growth, and will make the current tension worse if is it not curbed before it is too late. Likewise, Egypt which has the largest river in the world is not immune from the fierce competition on water that the world is experiencing. The Nile River has many distinctive features comparing to other rivers in the world; first unique feature is that the downstream countries of Sudan and Egypt have no other rivers. In this case, Egypt, the last downstream country, had the largest population until 2008. Another unique issue for Egypt is that the countrys population is heavily concentrated only on five percent of the land due to vast desert in the country. Another unique problem is fact that ten more countries share the same river with Egypt, and they all have one of the worlds highest fertility. This means more issues, arguments and probably conflicts due to fast different nations that are interested the water. Nevertheless, Egypt has control over the river and dictates the policy of the Nile water. The late president of Egypt, Anwar Sadat, said when he signed agreement with Camp David

Egypt will not go on war but on water it is a clear indication that Egypt is ready to fight over Nile. Egypt considers Nile national security issue just as Israel considers Jordan basin national security issue. Egypt has monopoly on Nile water. According to Egypt Reasserts Nile Water Rights article by Al Jazeera, Mohamed Allam, minister of water resources and irrigation, told parliament: Egypt reserves the right to take whatever course it sees suitable to safeguard its share. If the Nile basin countries unilaterally signed the agreement, it would be considered a death announcement of the Nile Basin initiative. Untimely water issues are huge problem in the world right now, whether it is water pollution, water shortage, food crisis or water conflicts. Water is normally associated with other resources that accelerated global tension when the supply is in jeopardy. Water may become next issue facing the world by start of next century; it will likely replace the oil and might spark wars because of its scarcity, where every nation wants to get enough water supplies to protect its economy and health. In recent years, water conflict erupted global tension even in the United States where arguments and low conflicts started between states like Arizona and California because of inadequate water availability.

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Cunningham, William P. and Cunningham, Mary Anna. Principles of Environmental Science. University of Minnesota press 2008.

Google. Water - What Is Water?, An Unusual Liquid. April 26, 2010. http://science.jrank.org/pages/7301/Water.html Global Water Shortages Looms in New Century. April 28, 2010. http://ag.arizona.edu/AZWATER/awr/dec99/Feature2.htm Global Policy forums. Al jezeera. Egypt Reasserts Nile Water Rights. April 28, 2010. http://www.globalpolicy.org/home/198-natural-resources/48964-egypt-reasserts-nile-waterrights.html Great Lakes Article. April 27, 2010. http://www.greatlakesdirectory.org/zarticles/322watershortage.htm

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