tisdag 2 juni 2015

Water

Jag satt och rensade bland mina gamla alster häromdagen och ramlade över ett tal jag skrivit om vatten. Det är många år sedan nu, men jag blev återigen bestört när siffrorna över hur många som är drabbade av färskvattens brist och sjukdomar på grund av detta. Jag klipper in ett utdrag ur talet här:

"Yes, the Earth's surface consists mostly of water. Two-thirds of the surface is water. But only 1% out of that is fresh water.

Relatively little of the world's freshwater supply is needed for drinking and personal use, though. Only 5%. The rest is needed in agriculture and industry. Thus, securing the water supply is vital not only for healthrelated issues but also for a stabile global economy.

If we consider the lack of freshwater from the health perspective we have today a horrible situation in the developing countries with a huge range of water related diseases. Lakes, rivers and streams are being polluted with pesticides from agriculture, industrial waste and, of course, untreated sewage.

But poor countries are not the only ones concerned. In the industrial world water is polluted with heavy metal, dioxin and other chemicals. These substances may cause cancer, birth defects, and other ailments.

If we regard health in a global perspective it is worse. Worse than cancer and other ailments. At any given time, half the people in the developing world are suffering from a water related illness. And everyday 25.000 of the afflicted die."

Sen köpte jag en morsdagsgåva till mig själv i efterskott från Unicef och uppmanar er att göra detsamma (ja, det behöver ju inte vara en morsdagsgåva...). Här: https://unicef.se/gavoshop/228-vatskeersattning
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