Spain's Pervasive Drought A Crisis

And once again we are seeing the truth about human nature which knows no nationality, race, creed, or political persuasion: We don't understand the urgency of the situation we are creating by our behavior until it begins to affect our lives. Are we then truly incapable as human beings of conserving freshwater? Of doing the right thing for our future? Of caring for those who live a world away? Has our society worldwide become so consumptive, selfish, and greedy, that even in the face of repercussions that threaten our very lives we will not change?

We are wasting the very substance that sustains our lives as if it will always be there. It won't. And if we as a species are going to ever survive this challenge, we must wake up to the reality surrounding our behavior that is contributing to the global water crisis.

And it will require:

Education. Education. Education.

Moral strength.

Moral will.

Moral conviction.

Then after that:

Global cooperation with water scarcity and waste being one of the main issues covered in any new global climate treaty that also prohibits making water a commodity to be sold at the expense of the right of humans to access to it. To commoditize it will only exacerbate inequality in its distribution which will lead to war.

Finally considering population in the developing world as one of the chief factors in any water policy and looking to educate people about family planning.

Effective water management being mandatory and enforced with particular emphasis on water footprints of nations being used to determine policy much like carbon caps.

Effective water catchement and conservation techniques being taught to people in countries experiencing the worst droughts.

Agricultural methods such as drip irrigation that allow for the least amount of water to be used to grow crops without waste, with an emphasis on less water intensive crops being planted in areas with more severe conditions so that at least those who farm will still have an income to rely on.

Standing up to corporations that continue to privatize water for a profit, especially in poor countries in Africa, South America, and Asia.

Mandatory clean up of rivers and other waterways required with penalties assessed for those who do not comply. *Corporations must be made accountable for their actions.* Willfully polluting a river or other freshwater resource to save money knowing that such resources sustain humans and other species should be seen as an act of negligence punishable by law.

***All of us coming together to mitigate the amount of greenhouse gases we spew into the atmosphere that are making the conditions that cause drought.***

Declaring access to potable water a human right that is not to be commoditized at the expense of the weak and the poor, with an emphasis on holding companies like Coca Cola, Nestle, and private companies like Thames Water, American Water, Suez , Vivendi and other companies being held to stringent standards regarding price and quality. There must also be the threat of penalty for gouging customers or using the climate crisis as a vehicle to raise prices beyond what is needed to maintain water infrastructure.

However, can we do this? Are we capable as a species of coming together to do what needs to be done to ensure our continued survival? Is greed truly an overriding quality of human nature that cannot be overcome for the good of us and this planet?

Only through education and action will we know the answer to those questions and they must be answered because time is running out while we continue to look the other way while taking our most precious resource for granted.

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Read the news story about the Drought in Spain and more information on the global water crisis at:

http://water-is-life.blogspot.com

Water Is Life.
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