Our rivers
– the arteries that supply water for humans and nature – have been cradles of
civilization. Our cities have flourished on these rivers. However, as we moved
to a piped water supply, we moved away from our rivers. 14 out of 20 major
river basins in India are expected to be water stressed by 2030. We have
already seen glimpses of what water conflicts can lead to through the recent
riots over Cauvery. Cities like Delhi and Bangalore depend on Ganga and Cauvery
respectively for a bulk of their water supply. Cities also depend on their
rivers to carry away their refuse. As urban citizens, we escape to rivers in pristine
landscapes, but conveniently roll up our windows while passing the same rivers
that run in our cities, fraught with pollution and lack of flows. It is
difficult to imagine that conserving our water is also conserving our rivers,
but it is.
Water
scarcity typically hits us when their taps run dry. The most popular response of
people when they are asked to adopt water saving practices at home and work is
“I understand every drop is precious, but how will me closing a tap when not in
use save the world from water scarcity?” Conservation of water is definitely
closing the tap or not using a shower. At the same time, it is more than just
that.
Water Footprint is
a term for the amount of water that is used by an individual through direct and
indirect consumption. Thus, Water Footprint of a person is not only the amount
of water used and polluted by a person in their daily lives (such as drinking,
cooking and cleaning), but is also that consumed in products consumed. A pair
of jeans would typically consume more than 10,000 litres of water which is
mostly made from cotton. Our food habits, including imported food
products and products transported from far off places would have
higher water footprint. A microchip would typically consume about
16000 litres of water. Most of the water we use is actually the water used in
supply chains of products we use. We as consumers need to make water sensitive
choices in every consumption choice we make.
Our water footprint
has more complex consequences on the environment, and on our lives as well. All
the water directly used by us or in the products we use is our blue water
footprint. The water that is hidden in our consumption of products and services
from plants and soil is green water footprint. The water footprint due to
pollution discharged from our homes and industries is grey water footprint.
Thus, the impacts of agricultural practices, industrial supply chains and our
cities’ infrastructure are all finally, our water footprint.
Agriculture is the highest water
consumer at 70% and there are larger structural changes required when it comes
to tackling water security. Water-sensitive agricultural practices would impact
our water security positively. Having said that, at present, water is an
over-allocated resource. Domestic as well as commercial consumption from cities
is increasing and city water managers have been hitherto resorting to capacity
augmentation as a means to ensure water supply. In process, cities often source
water from sources which are a long distance away. For instance, Delhi sources
its water from Tehri which is around 300 km away from the city. This increases
costs of transporting water as well, but considering water is under-priced,
under-investment in water supply and sewerage infrastructure is a common
problem in most cities. The way our cities are planned, impacts our personal
water footprint. Thus, it is important that water managers in cities and urban
citizens like us resort to demand management practices (like using taps instead
of shower, using water efficient faucets or reusing water at home) in
order to ensure water security for the city.
However, demand management is but a
part of the larger picture of urban water management. Sewage from cities is the
single biggest contributor to surface water body pollution. Reuse plans for
cities are totally absent. Imagine, we flush drinking water down the drain
every time we use the toilet. Rainwater harvesting is present in policy but often not enforced in spirit. And finally (and
most importantly), there is no concern for freshwater ecosystems within cities;
lakes, ponds, marshes, and floodplains of rivers are encroached upon legally
and illegally, not allowing for groundwater recharge or natural flood
cushioning. There are structural and systemic changes urgently required for all
cities.
And this time, all these changes
required are definitely personal.
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