Taking Position on Water Issues
Taking Position on Water Issues
Thesis Statement: Canada should share its freshwater with developing countries that have inadequate supplies of clean freshwater.
Introduction
Among the most notable Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations is the improvement of access to clean water in all parts of the world. This mostly applies to the developing world where a lot of people do not have access to safe water (UNEP, 2009). Without adequate access to clean water, human beings are at risk of contracting dangerous diseases such as typhoid. Canada has extensive freshwater resources. According to the World Wide Fund, this country has 1/5th of the freshwater available on earth (Gleick, 2011).
On the other hand, the country’s population accounts for less that 1% of the global population. These statistics illustrate that Canada has more than its fair share of freshwater resources. Considering the deplorable levels of water shortage in the developing world, Canada should adopt a policy for sharing the freshwater resources.
The Scarcity Of Freshwater Resources
Freshwater comprises only three percent of the world’s water resources. The other percentage comprises salty water which is unhealthy for direct intake by human beings. Salt water is only safe for humans if it undergoes different stages of the purification process (UN, 2010). There are different causes of the global water crisis. Despite the variety of such causes, most of them result from misuse of freshwater resources. Without using the freshwater resources sustainably, it is difficult to address the problem of global water scarcity. The rapid increase in population around the world has also been a contributor towards the water scarcity (Pereira, 2009).
In essence, a larger population increases the rates of water consumption. Imbalances of water usage are also evident in different parts of the world. Countries like Mexico, Japan, USA, India and China are among the greatest consumers of freshwater resources in the world (Vajpeyi, 2011). According to the United Nations, the consumption rates of freshwater resources in the west are up to fifty times higher in comparison with the third world countries. Without addressing such disparities, the global crisis for freshwater will continue to escalate (UN, 2010).
Freshwater Resources In Canada
Canada has vast resources of freshwater accounting for 1/5th of the global total. This is an abundant share considering that less than one percept of the world’s population inhabits Canada. Canada has extensive rivers such as the Mackenzie and Jacques-Cartier (Bakker, 2007). However, the country has had to deal with the rising demand for freshwater. Such demand results from industrial, agricultural and domestic use. It is essential to note that more than 80% of the country’s population lives in the south while most rivers drain to the north. However, the distribution of freshwater resources in Canada is excellent in comparison with other countries in the world (World Bank, 2008).
Sharing Freshwater Resources With Developing Countries
There are numerous reasons as to why Canada should share freshwater resources with the developing world. This mainly applies to people who cannot access clean and safe freshwater.
$11. Health and Sanitation.
Health and sanitation are two critical issues that undermine millions of livelihoods in the developing world. In essence, sanitation is almost unattainable without having adequate access to clean water. According to the United Nations, the average sanitation standards in the west are twice as much in relation to the third world countries (Hoekstra, 2011).
The deplorable standards of sanitation in the developing world have a direct association with the inaccessibility of freshwater. In places like Africa, millions of people live in poor standards of sanitation. This forms the basis of disease pandemics such as cholera, bilharzia, typhoid and malaria. The health standards in Canada are more or less incomparable to the standards evident in the third world countries (Gordon, 2008).
This owes a lot to the excellent sanitation standards in Canada. It is difficult for any country to improve the sanitation standards of the population without having sufficient supply of clean water. This perspective has been significant towards the prevalence of tropical pandemics in poor countries. By sharing water with such people, Canada will not only enhance sanitation standards but also improve their health standards. This would serve as a crucial step towards the advancement of humanity. According to the World Health Organization, about eighty percent of diseases in third world countries results from unclean water and deplorable standards of sanitation (Fung, 2010).
$12. Promoting Economic Development.
Access to clean water is an essential component of economic development. The economic advancements in the west derive a lot from the availability of freshwater resources. For instance, food processing industries are strongly dependent on clean water for continuous production. Most developing countries are struggling economically as a result of insufficient water supply (Jones, 2009).
The labor-force in such countries cannot attain maximum productivity because of inaccessibility of clean water resources. Sharing freshwater resources with such people would thus help in promoting economic development. Canada should not necessarily share water for industrial production but for human consumption. This would serve as an indirect contribution to economic growth in the poor countries (Hirji, 2009).
$13. Environmental Sustainability.
Environmental sustainability is an issue of concern to the entire globe. Environmental problems such as loss of biodiversity and climate change affect the entire globe and not specific countries or regions. There is thus the need to promote environmental sustainability in both the west and the developing world. Water is a core component of environmental sustainability (Rubio, 2009). It supports animal and plant life. The current trends of water consumption in Canada do not conform to the principles of environmental sustainability. This results from misuse of freshwater resources and failure to conserve. In order t avoid such wastage, Canada would contribute to environmental sustainability by sharing the freshwater resources with poor countries (Potter, 2010).
$14. Ethical Obligations.
The exploitation and use of scarce resources must always conform to the highest standards of ethics. It is fundamentally unethical for a country to misuse scarce resources while others are dying because of lacking the same resource (Vajpeyi, 2011). On an annual basis, millions of people succumb to diseases associated with unclean water in the developing countries. With adequate access to safe water, such deaths are preventable (Fung, 2011). It is also unethical for a country like Canada to conserve its vast water resources for luxurious uses without considering the plight of most people in poor countries. In order to maintain high ethical standards, Canada should share the water resources (Earle, 2010).
$15. Food Insecurity.
Food insecurity has almost become a perennial issue in some developing countries. Regions such as the Horn of Africa and North West Africa are plagued by frequent famines. The lack of safe water is a notable cause of food insecurity in these regions (UN, 2010). In essence, food security is not attainable in any country without having access to clean water. As a result of food insecurity, millions of children in the developing countries are malnourished. However, it is possible to alleviate such challenges if countries like Canada were more cooperative. By sharing the freshwater resources, the developing countries would improve their capacity for food production (Rubio, 2009).
Conclusion
The thesis stipulates that Canada should share its freshwater with developing countries that have inadequate supplies of clean freshwater. The justification for this position is evident through the different sections. Scarcity of freshwater resources is a critical issue facing the globe. Freshwater comprises only three percent of the world’s water resources. The other percentage comprises salty water which is unhealthy for direct intake by human beings. Salt water is only safe for humans if it undergoes different stages of the purification process. There are different causes of the global water crisis. Such factors include climate change, anthropogenic activities and ineffective water policies.
The enhancement of health and sanitation standards is among the most essential reasons why Canada should share the water resources. The average sanitation standards in the west are twice as much in relation to the third world countries. The deplorable standards of sanitation in the developing world have a direct association with the inaccessibility of freshwater. In places like Africa, millions of people live in poor standards of sanitation. This forms the basis of disease pandemics such as cholera, bilharzia, typhoid and malaria.
References
Bakker, K. J. & Bakker, K. (2007). The future of Canada’s water, Vancouver, BC: UBC Press
Earle, A. (2010). Trans-boundary water management, Washington DC: Earthscan
Fung, C. F. & Lopez, A. (2011). Modeling the impact of climate change on water resources, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons
Fung, H. G. (2010). Socially responsible investment in a global environment,Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Publishing
Gleick, P. H. (2011). The world’s water, New York, NY: Springer Science
Gordon, F. D. (2008). Freshwater resources and interstate cooperation, New York, NY:New York University Press
Hirji, R. & Davis, R. (2009). Environmental flows in water resources, Washington, DC:World Bank Publications
Hoekstra, A. Y. & Chapagain, A. K. (2011). Globalization of water, Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley and Sons
Jones, J. A. & Hakopian, C. (2009). Threats to global water security, New York, NY:Springer Science
Pereira, L. S. & Cordery, I. (2009). Coping with water scarcity: Addressing the challenges, NY: Springer Science
Potter, K. W. & Frevert, D. K. (2010). Watershed management 2010, ASCE Publications
Rubio, J. & Daussa, R. (2009). Water scarcity, New York, NY: Springer Science
UN (2010). Role of desalination in addressing water scarcity, Nairobi: United Nations Publications
UNEP (2009). Freshwater under threat, Nairobi: UNEP/Earth print
Vajpeyi, D. K. (2011). Water resources conflicts, Lexington Books
World Bank (2008). Global monitoring report, Washington DC: World Bank Publications
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