Water is one of the most precious resources on the planet, yet more than 1 billion people do not have access to a source of clean drinking water, and around 3 billion suffer from water shortages at least one month a year. Improving water infrastructure must be a priority, as water conservation and efficiency are key components of sustainable water management. Solar desalination and intelligent irrigation systems are excellent examples of clean technology for water efficiency and control. The Solar Impulse Foundation has identified more than 1000 clean and cost-effective solutions that cost-effectively protect the environment and will award them the Solar Impulse efficient solutions label.
This is an opportunity to be included in the portfolio of 1000 solutions to address the challenges of sustainability and, at the same time, enable economic growth. At COP 27, countries come together to take action to achieve the world's collective climate goals, as agreed in the Paris Agreement and the Convention. Communities, citizen groups and individuals can play an active role in protecting their drinking water sources from pollution. The following resources provide information on protecting water sources and the steps you can take locally to protect your drinking water.
But we cannot solve the water crisis on our own as individuals. Governments and companies must work together to prioritize ending water discharges and other polluting activities that contaminate drinking water. This includes companies based in high-income countries, but that outsource production to low-income countries. Approximately 1 billion people die each year due to water pollution: actions that prohibit and enforce restrictions on the discharge of wastewater literally save lives.
A water crisis occurs when there is not enough drinking water for a population, which in turn causes droughts, famines and deaths. Nowadays, drinking water has become a luxury for people living in drought-affected regions and on the African subcontinent. You can see people walking for miles and spending all day looking for it. Even if they contract it, they have to fight the waterborne diseases that stem from it. Resolving this crisis means that every citizen must be aware of the crisis and participate in proper conservation, stop the misuse of water and eliminate the use of bottled water.
Learn more about water source assessments, or ask your drinking water provider if there are any drinking water source protection projects or groups you can support. Place signs along the edge of the source water protection area to notify people that any contamination in that area may affect the quality of local drinking water. This may not be the ideal option for drinking water needs, but it is an excellent backup for agriculture (which consumes a lot of water in countries with water scarcity), livestock, schools and hospitals. Overall levels of global pollutants are having a negative effect on drinking water that is currently clean; as time goes on, this damage will worsen. There are a variety of practices and methods where you can start working to eliminate water shortages and resolve the current water crisis. Your drinking water company includes information about the source of drinking water in its annual drinking water quality report, also called the Consumer Confidence Report (CCR).
