70% our planet is covered in oceans, and we always like to think that it will always be plentiful. However, freshwater - what we drink and use on a daily basis, is incredibly rare. Only 3% of the world’s water is freshwater, and two-thirds of that is tucked away deep underground, frozen in glaciers and out of our reach.
Therefore, approximately 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to water, and a total of 2.7 billion find water scarce for at least one month of the year. Inadequate sanitation is also an issue for 2.4 billion people. They tend to interact with waterborne diseases, such as cholera and typhoid fever, and more. Two million people, most commonly children, die each year from diarrheal diseases alone.
Many water systems keeping our ecosystems alive and thriving and feeding our animals, plants and the growing human population have become stressed. Rivers, lakes and aquifers are drying up or becoming too polluted to use. Over half of the world’s wetlands have vanished. Climate change is changing our weather patterns and water around the world, resulting in shortages, droughts and floods.
At the current consumption rate, the situation will only worsen. Two-thirds of Earth’s population may encounter water shortages by 2025, and ecosystems around the world will suffer even more.
