" Don’t be fooled by how common a glass of water is, according to the University of Arizona, 80 countries are in the midst of water shortages which actually threaten their citizens’ health and the economy. They also state that 40% of the world’s population, over 2 billion does not even have access to clean water or sanitation. So, as you could imagine, tensions exist between those of the world who do not have water and those who do. The situation between those who do not have water and those who do is severe because the majority of water sources reside in areas of aggression making it even harder and more strenuous to obtain the water and or redirect the water to other countries lacking natural resources. This could eventually lead to wars and international disputes over dwindling water resources which could further involve our own country in the affairs of others to maintain alliances and the like. You may feel as though this means next to nothing concerning you because you feel like the odds of global wars over water is far too minute for practical thinking. However, the situation is very real and the problem is encroaching upon us like an assassin in the dark. BBC News says that the United Nations predicts water will be the single biggest cause of conflict and war in Africa in the next 25 years. I know you’re wondering what does that have to do with you because you don’t live in Africa. Azul Conservation Products provides statistics on their website concerning the usage of water. According to the site, between the years 1950 and 2000, the U.S. population doubled and the demand for water tripled. The point is the world’s population is wasting a large amount of water in times in which water is becoming increasingly scarce. You should be doing all you can to help preserve and prolong the life of our water sources. Doing so is actually very easy yet very effective. Turn your water off while brushing your teeth. Generous.org claims this will conserve up to 5 liters a minute, which may not seem like a lot. However, consider this, if the entire adult population of England and Wales cut off the tap water while brushing their teeth, it would conserve 180 mega liters a day which is enough to supply 500,000 houses. Imagine how much more could be conserved if the entire population of the United States cut off the water. Better yet, imagine if the whole world’s population participated. Another way you can help is to repair all of your dripping faucets. American Water & Energy Savers says that if a faucet drips at the rate of one drop per second, it will waste 2,700 gallons a year! So just by fixing your faucet you can save 2,700 gallons a year and if every person fixed a leaking faucet, that number could shoot well into the hundreds of thousands of gallons. Also, avoid unnecessarily flushing your toilet. For instance, instead of flushing insects, or waste, just throw it in the trashcan. Little things of that sort can be a major help to the worlds shortage of water. Another example is, instead of using water to thaw meat, just leave it in the refrigerator overnight or use the defrost mode on your microwave. Azul Conservation Products also says that Americans use an average of 100 gallons of water each day. The company says that if 100,000 people cut their shower time by 4 minutes each shower, they would conserve 250 million gallons of water a year. Yahoo says the world population as of July 2007 is about 6.6 billion. 6.6 billion divided by 100,000 is 66,000\. Which, once multiplied by the amount of water conserved each year by cutting off 4 minutes from each shower, would save the world over 16 trillion gallons of water a year! So, in times where it’s predicted that 36 out of the 50 United States of America are expected to experience water shortages in the next 5 years, I’m sure it’s clear to you now that you need to contribute to the effort to save water in order to make the world a better place for you and future generations. It’s not like it’s a difficult process, just taking faster showers and cutting the faucet off while brushing your teeth can save immense amounts of water. Conserve our water before it’s too late."
