Chapter 333/10
I know that „things“ cannot and will not die of thirst… but I turn pale when I think of the planet I live on and all its living creatures.
My statement is:
‼ THE BLUE PLANET, THE EARTH IS DYING OF THIRST
Even as a child, I was told to only drink when I was thirsty and not to just pour drinkable liquids into myself, but to enjoy every single sip. Yes, I have stuck to that… nowadays I say:
–
– [ ] Without water, there is no food security, no health, no growth, and no life. A powerful statement, I think!
With a sinking feeling, I’ll try to list some facts…
More than 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered with water. The wet element „seems“ to be available in abundance. But only 2.6 percent is fresh water, and unfortunately, only a small portion of that, namely „0.3 percent,“ is directly usable by humans.
Let me repeat that so it sticks: salt water 97.4%, fresh water 2.6%… I would describe 0.01% of this as moisture in the atmosphere, or more precisely, clouds, rain, snow, and hail. 0.3% of this is found in rivers and lakes, 30.8% is groundwater, and 68.9% is glaciers in mountains and at the poles.
Added to this is an extremely „uneven“ geographical distribution of available fresh water, as only a fraction is used as drinking water. The majority, because we have enough of it, is used for agriculture, industry, and energy production.
To my knowledge, … and it is true, in large parts of the world „there is already a water shortage today.“ Hello, how is that possible? Because I know that since 2010, the right to clean water has been recognized as a human right, and the UN’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development once again calls for the availability of clean drinking water for all. But look, today 1.2 billion people are excluded from this. How is that possible? This has serious consequences. As far as I know, there are 8.4 billion people living on this planet… That’s a bit too much reality. More than 1.5 million people worldwide die every year from infectious diseases caused by „contaminated“ drinking water. Please consider this! … Those affected are mainly infants and children. Approximately every 13 seconds, a young person dies from diarrhea or malnutrition.
Listen up, eager readers, the next thing I’m about to say is unfortunately not a joke, but the plain truth!
Global water consumption by humans has increased tenfold in the past 100 years, while, strangely enough, the world’s population has only quadrupled. How is that possible?
…The answer is simple…!
It is agriculture that consumes „more“ water every year, today up to 72 percent of the world’s freshwater resources, and what’s more, in a purely „irresponsible destruction,“ industry accounts for around 20 percent and private households around 10 percent.
‼ They never learn… the idiots… ‼
Let’s hear what the OECD Environmental Outlook has to say, or rather, estimate: global water consumption will increase by a further 55 percent by 2050. An additional 2.3 billion people will live in areas with extreme water shortages. However, due to the increasing pollution of rivers, lakes, and groundwater, „more“!!! „valuable“….!!! water will be lost.
I find another alarming statement in the 2015 Water Report by Bread for the World, which states:
„There are limits, and water use is one of them. Since humans have been involved, there is, as always, only „terrible“ news to report. In many places, the limits of sustainable water use have already been exceeded beyond belief… no, even irrevocably exceeded!
It is well known that „640 million“ people live in countries suffering from severe water shortages. Another „two billion“
live in countries that already use more than 20 percent of their renewable freshwater resources. Water pollution is also becoming a huge problem, having increased „rapidly“ in recent decades. I would therefore like to add something extremely disturbing:
Think about the excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides in AGRICULTURE, FECES and MEDICINES from intensive animal husbandry, TOXINS from industry and mining, DOMESTIC WASTEWATER ⇒ a large part of which ends up untreated in rivers and lakes, especially in DEVELOPING and emerging countries.
So I feel confident in bringing up the topic of water once again ⁉ ⁉
Namely ⁉ THE WATER ON EARTH ⁉
It is called the blue planet by humans, precisely because of the water, while almost 70 percent of the Earth’s surface is covered by water. However, the amount of fresh and salt water combined is no more than a sphere with a diameter of „just under 1,400 kilometers“ and a capacity of „1,386,000,000 cubic kilometers.“400 kilometers“ and a capacity of „1,386,000,000 cubic kilometers.“ …and now pay attention… A medium-sized sphere with a diameter of „only 272 kilometers“ and a volume of „10,633,450 cubic kilometers“ contains all the FRESH WATER on our planet. This naturally includes deep groundwater that is not available to humans. …= A small sphere contains all the fresh water in all the lakes and rivers on Earth. The volume is „93,113 cubic kilometers“ and the diameter is 56 kilometers. Draw these spheres to scale and the resulting image is… stunningly self-explanatory.
Image ???
As an additional point, I would like to point out that
Climate change will further exacerbate the global water crisis. Changing rainfall patterns and melting glaciers will cause drought, irregular rainfall, or extremely severe flooding, especially in tropical and subtropical latitudes.
There will certainly be competition for available freshwater resources, and this will not only intensify but may even lead to inevitable wars. Many are already taking place;
the „religious wars“ have always been a standard feature of human history!
Incidentally, especially in Africa and Asia, and this is obvious, „attention“ is being paid to economic growth, population growth, new lifestyles and eating habits, and rising global demand for food, energy, raw materials, and water.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which you are all familiar with, estimates that if everything continues as it has been, global food production will have to increase by 60 percent by 2050 compared to 2005. „Hear, hear!“
And it is worth taking another look at agriculture, where water demand will be a bigger problem than drinking water supply in the future. If demand for and consumption of meat continue to rise, water demand in agriculture will also increase because irrigating feed crops, raising livestock, and processing meat will require extremely large amounts of water.
‼ TOO MUCH NITRATE ‼
Groundwater is particularly important for the drinking water supply in Germany. In the federal states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony in particular, it has to be treated at great expense because it is extremely contaminated with „NITRATE.“ The reason for this
is the huge factory farms where millions of animals, such as pigs, cattle, and chickens, are kept and „then“ KILLED BY PEOPLE (meat eaters)!
The enormous amount of manure produced here is then used to fertilize fields. The nitrate (contained in manure) seeps into the groundwater and rivers—and eventually ends up in the sea.
„Great, isn’t it?“
Read on! … The algae bloom in the Baltic Sea, which creates dead zones where most other marine life dies due to oxygen depletion, is just one nice consequence of this. „Germany“ has already been warned several times by the EU Commission for not doing enough to combat the high NITRATE POLLUTION IN GROUNDWATER. But there was no „coincidental“ response from the German side until January 2015. The EU is now threatening to take legal action at the European Court of Justice. I mention in passing that too much nitrate is harmful to humans because it leads to the formation of carcinogenic nitrosamines in the body.
Please remember that I have taken on „Germany“ because I am German and therefore very close to the action.
So let’s continue with shame… others are even worse!
Back to nitro… As early as 1991, an EU nitrate directive was passed, setting a limit of 50 milligrams per liter. As I suspected, between 2008 and 2011, these limits were exceeded at more than 50 percent of the 180 measuring stations evaluated in Germany. „But I’m saying hello.“
Continuing with water consumption: around 2,000 to 3,000 liters of water were needed to produce one kilogram of plant-based protein, while the production of animal protein, for example for „beef,“ consumed 15,000 liters of water per kilogram.
The water balance of planet Earth was affected by further changes in dietary habits, mainly in the „First World,“ which had a particularly far-reaching impact on the planet’s water balance. According to the Federal Environment Agency: „Public water suppliers (in Germany) provide almost the entire population with drinking water. …great…Groundwater is the most important source of drinking water. Almost 70 percent of the water comes from groundwater and spring water. That was a good 3.5 billion cubic meters (2014). The rest of the water demand was covered by surface water and bank filtrate.“
Dear readers, you read that correctly: per capita consumption of drinking water in Germany has been declining for the past 24 years, with German citizens consuming almost 26 liters less in 2015 than in 1990. There are, of course, reasons for this decline, including water-saving washing machines and dishwashers and, undoubtedly, a growing awareness of the importance of conserving this valuable resource.
Take a closer look at the details: the largest proportion of the estimated daily water consumption of 120 liters is used for showering and personal hygiene (47 liters). Flushing the toilet comes in second place with around 35 liters. This is followed by laundry (15 liters), cleaning and gardening (11 liters), dishwashing (8 liters) and, lastly, drinking and cooking with 5 liters. An international comparison shows that private per capita consumption in Germany is lower than in MANY OTHER INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES.
This brings me to the daily consumption per capita in liters in other countries, which includes India with 25 liters, Belgium with 120 liters, Germany with 121 liters, the Netherlands with 130 liters, Greece with
140 l, England 149 l, France 156 l, Austria 162 l, „Minniland Luxembourg 179 l, Sweden 197 l, Italy 213 l, Switzerland 237 l, Norway 254 l, Spain 269 l, Russia 270 l, Japan 278 l, USA 295 l, and the absolute winner is Dubai with 500 l.
Now let’s move on to drinking water consumption in Germany.
According to the Federal Environment Agency, the total amount of drinking water consumed in Germany in 2013 amounted to five billion cubic meters. However, the 121 liters of water consumed per capita per day in Germany are only a fraction of the actual consumption. It is many times higher—now at 5,300 liters per person per day!
So much virtual water…
[ Every product contains more water than we can see. This so-called virtual water includes the consumption of rainwater, groundwater, and surface water, as well as the water polluted during production. A particular problem is the water imported with products from dry regions where water is already scarce.
…is needed to produce all the goods we need every day, from the microchip in our computer to the cotton shirt we wear, the cup of coffee we drink, and the hamburger we eat. The term virtual water refers to the amount of water that was actually needed to manufacture a product. However, a few minor distinctions are made: there is green virtual water (⇒ precipitation and natural soil moisture), blue virtual water (⇒ artificial irrigation) and gray virtual water (⇒ water that is contaminated during use and can only be reused to a limited extent).
It should be emphasized that coffee cultivation in rainy regions of Kenya is less detrimental to the country’s water balance despite the high virtual water content, because most of the water is green virtual water. However, it should be noted that the import of fruit and vegetables from arid Mediterranean regions should be viewed very critically because blue virtual water in the form of „artificial irrigation“ with groundwater is mostly used here.
The cultivation of agricultural products should also be considered particularly carefully, as additional fertilizers and pesticides are used, for example in the cultivation of genetically modified soybeans in Brazil or in the cultivation of conventional tomatoes in Spain, which also results in a really significant proportion of „gray virtual water.“
Quantity | Product | Virtual water in liters
1 cup of coffee 140
1 liter of milk 1,000
1 Glass 0.25 apple juice 1,900
1 0.5 liters of beer 150
1 kg corn 900
1 kg wheat 1,100
1 kg rice 4,000
1 almond 4
1 egg 135
1 tomato 50
1 kg cheese 5,000
1 hamburger 2,500
1 kg pork 5,000
1 kg beef 15.000
1 sheet of A4 paper 10
1 Microchip 32
1 Cotton T-shirt 2,500
1 Cotton jeans 6,000
1 Car up to 450,000
Now follows a calculation that you, dear reader, are already familiar with. It is the water footprint. It is calculated from the total consumption of virtual water. This results in an annual water footprint per inhabitant of 1,430 cubic meters (1 million 430 thousand liters) for Germany! …? I am tempted to say „Uff.“
Yes, a dilemma, a predicament, or a situation in which someone finds themselves, especially when they have to choose between two equally difficult or unpleasant things!
The dilemma is that around 70 percent of this footprint is left outside Germany’s borders. This means that each of us consumes one million liters of drinking water per year, but mostly from countries where this precious resource is already scarce. Let me compare this a little:
The water footprint of a Chinese person is around 1,071 cubic meters; around ten percent of China’s water footprint is generated outside China. Furthermore, the water footprint of an Indian is 1,089 cubic meters per year, while that of a Bangladeshi is 750 cubic meters. …and now here’s the kicker: the water footprint of a US citizen adds up to 2,842 cubic meters. Of this, 20 percent is left outside the US.
These figures can be used to determine the world’s largest virtual water importers and exporters.
The largest virtual water importers are
Country Billion cubic meters per year
USA 234
Japan 127
Germany 125
China 121
Italy 101
Mexico 92
France 78
United Kingdom 77
Netherlands 71
The largest virtual water exporters
Country Billions of cubic meters per year
United States 314
China 143
India 125
Brazil 112
Argentina 98
Canada 91
Australia 89
Indonesia 72
Germany 64
From all the available figures, I have arrived at the following conclusion:
Germany imports approximately twice as much virtual water as it exports. We are, so to speak, living off the water of other countries. Through the import of agricultural products alone, we import 50 billion cubic meters of virtual water per year. Congratulations!
The USA, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, China, and Turkey are the largest exporters of blue virtual water. Together, they account for almost 50 percent of global blue virtual water exports.
The result:
These countries suffer from particularly high water stress. But, dear readers, high water stress is not limited to these countries. It is now a global phenomenon.
Whether in India, China, Pakistan, southern Europe, or the southwestern United States, 13 of the world’s 37 known large aquifers are in critical condition; in other words, their reserves are dwindling extremely rapidly. The estimated annual freshwater demand in 2015 was 4,370 cubic kilometers. The limit for sustainable use is 4,000 cubic kilometers per year.
My final warning to the all-knowing and highly intelligent rulers and politicians is simply this:
I am sorry, but I have to say that they are all completely ignorant and simple-minded!
The daily waste and contamination of water worldwide must be stopped immediately before the blue planet dries up and the scarce resource of water becomes one of the greatest challenges to food security and world peace.