Humans need 1 to 7 litres per day to survive, the most immediate need after oxygen. We all know it’s important and some of us pay 200 to 2000 times the tap water price to get water in plastic bottles. Plastic bottle production requires twice the amount of water a bottle contains.
Less than 0.5% of the worlds water is fresh and in lakes and rivers. 20% of this is in one place: Lake Baikal in Russia.
Civilisation began in Mesopotamia and on the Indus and Nile rivers. What have we done with water since? In the developed world we don’t have rivers catching fire as happened in Gary, Indiana. But in many developing countries the rivers are used as garbage dumps and sewers.
The good news is that 40 years ago 3 in 10 people had access to drinkable water, 10 years ago it was 8 in 10. In many countries Fluoride is added to tap water resulting in better teeth.The bad news is we still have 1.4 million children dying each year of diarrhoea due to poor water.
Our local Landcare group does physical, chemical and biological testing on creeks in the area. Did you know that some locals still use creek water for household needs? Test results are quite good and are available on our website. If you wish to see how the testing is done or to learn how to do it, please contact us. Also on the website are suggestions about what we all can do to keep our waterways clean. The photo is of the waterfall on Still Creek.
Contacts: www.stillcreeklandcare.com.au or Facebook
