Aug. 25, 2002 - 23:55 MDT

THE WONDERING JEW

To Drink

Gonna give it another try and if this one doesn't go through I will assume that Dairyland Database just isn't there tonight.

There are many things to worry about in this world. Some of the worry is fruitless and some is not, provided proper steps are taken by those who can take care of problems before they become unsolvable.

Article in The Rocky Mountain News today August 25 by Douglas Jehl of the New York Times points up a problem that every scientist and technician should be desperately striving to arrive at a sensible solution. Water, drinking water, potable water.

In Europe we recently have had devastating floods and in other areas there has been high water too. Some of the damage from flooding can be solved with work and cooperation.

But the need for potable (drinkable) water is a crucial thing and the danger of people going thirsty is greater than ever before.

Forecast by the experts is that by 2015 at least 40 per cent of the worlds population, or about 3 billion people will live in countries where it is difficult or impossible to get enough water to satisfy basic needs. This one f the things about media articles do not adequately cover. Just what percentage of the population of the world is now in that condition ? ? ?

Flood waters do not provide potable water. In themselves they are polluted and due to the fact that they are floods the water is uncatchable in order to process it. No solution there in the near future, not in time to do much good in the overall picture. Desalinization plants near the sea haven't really been much help, are expensive to run and won't take care of enough folk.

In the article it says an inescapable fact about the world's water suppy is that it is finite. FINITE ! ! ! Less than one percent of the world's water is fresh water that can be used for drinking or agriculture.

An example, the Euphrates River. As best as can be determined, the Euphrates, in an average year, holds about 35 billion cubic meters of water. But the separate plans drawn up by Turkey, Syria and Iraq for building dams and irrigating fields would, taken together, consume nearly 1 1/2 times more water than the river holds.

Water tables are being drawn down to the point that some wells have gone dry and on some coastal areas the fresh water level in the tables has been drawn down so low that saline water from the ocean is creeping in.

Complicating the issue is the fact that no country is willing to compromise. We have seen this in the Western United States. Water difficulties have been with us almost from the beginning of the first settlers. Some of the battles are still being fought in the courts.

Also said is that the easiest fresh water sources have already been tapped. Also said is that there is some, but little hope that new developments in water purification etc. could hold out some hope but not a magic solution.

It seems to me that the accent should be on making sure that the world, including us, has enough drinking water to survive.

A thought just occurred to me, water I think makes the difference between a well off country and a country such as Egypt with little water in the midst of a desert. People of the Saraha going without water. Desert lands that could be arable if there were water available. Much more important than war is the need to quench the thirst of us all. Otherwise, in a few years there will be water, water everywhere and not a drop To Drink . . . . . . . .

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