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CEE Centre for Environment Education
CEECentre for Environment Education
CEECentre for Environment Education
Understanding and conserving water
CEECentre for Environment Education
Water Distribution on Earth
Oceans and Seas 97.2 �
Polar ice and Glaciers 2.0 �
Ground Water 00.62 �
Fresh water lakes 00.009 �
Inland Saline lakes 00.008 �
Rivers 00.0001 �
CEECentre for Environment Education
CEECentre for Environment Education
How Much Do I Use?• While implementing the Rural Water Supply Schemes, the following
norms may be adopted for providing potable drinking water to thepopulation:
40 litres per capita per day (lpcd) for humans to meet the following requirements:
Purpose Quantity (LPCD)• Drinking 3• Cooking 5• Bathing 15• Washing utensils � house 7• Ablution 10
CEECentre for Environment Education
Global Water Use
• Agriculture is the largest water user with 69 percent of global water supplies going to support crops
• 21 percent for industrial purposes
• 10 percent for residential use.
CEECentre for Environment Education
Global water resources
• Per person freshwater availability=7000 cm/year
• Water use has increased 35 times in last 300 years, 80� in the last 80 years
CEECentre for Environment Education
Global water scarcity
CEECentre for Environment Education
Absolute Water Scarcity: The Upcoming Socio-ecological Challenge
CEECentre for Environment Education
Irrigation is the root of the water problem. It uses up 80� of our water; but it is also at the heart of India’s livelihoods and food-security
The Indian Scenario
India has 40� of the world’s irrigated area.
CEECentre for Environment Education
Water resources in India
• Average per capita freshwater=2000 cm/year
• 5% of freshwater,16 % of population
• Water users
• Irrigation 85 % �
• Drinking, domestic use 4.0 % �
• Industry 2 % �
• Power generation 3.0 % �
• Other activities 6 % �
CEECentre for Environment Education
Theme for this year is Water and Food Security
And the byline is ‘The World is Thirsty because we’re Hungry
The theme for this year focuses on our water footprint, not only in day to day use but through the food we eat, and how this connects to our food security.
The World Food Summit of 1996 defined food security as existing
“when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe, nutritious food to
maintain a healthy and active life”.
CEECentre for Environment Education
Water is used in large amounts to bring food from the farm to our plates through its cultivation, processing and transportation stages… this is called its ‘Water footprint’ and the water, ‘Virtual Water’
Foods and their water footprint (in litres)
1 cup
tea 35 13
1 tom
ato
Source: UN World Water Day 2012 Website
CEECentre for Environment Education
Agriculture takes most of the global water and as we shift to water intensive diets there is an imbalance in water availability, inevitably affecting the poor who give up the water meant for them (and as a result their food) to agricultural fields that produce food for the
increasing urban demand.
185
Bag
of
Pota
to C
hips
433
100
gm
sch
icke
n m
eat
Foods from animal sources tend to have a bigger water footprint as a lot of water is used to raise cattle and in the processing,transportation,and storage stages of the food.
Source: UN World Water Day 2012 Website and waterfootprints.org
CEECentre for Environment Education
CEECentre for Environment Education
• 1 kg Rice, about 3000 - 5000 litres of water • 1 kg Barley/wheat needs1300 liters• 1 kg Maizeneeds 900 liters• 15500 liters of water per kg of beef• 2700 liters for 1 cotton shirt. • A pair of jeans weighing 1 kilogram needs 11000 liters
When you think of the food also think about food wastage,wasting food means draining all the water used in its production down the drain!
CEECentre for Environment Education
What can we do? Make the right choices andMobilize the Earth• Pledge to be aware of what is in your meal and where it comes from and if possible
track it through its production stages.
• Pledge to eat foods that are local having a low carbon footprint as it is produced locally and the plants being native to the region have a water demand corresponding to water availability of the region.
• Pledge not to waste food. Our elders have been telling us this and never has it made more sense than in this day and age when 30% of the food produced worldwide goes to waste and so does the large quantities of water used to produce it.
• Pledge as a consumer to choose to support products that have used production technologies that use less water. Remember the more we ask for such products,producers will take note and produce it, Afterall, Customer is King!
Register your pledges at www.earthday.org
CEECentre for Environment Education
It’s time for action-Leave yourHANDPRINT
• Do a water budget of your meal at home, school,housing society, etc. and carry out a campaign to reduce your water footprint.
• Save water:prevent leakage, avoid open taps
• Promote water harvesting in your house
• Avoid long showers!
• Flushes use a lot of water,40 -100 lts per flush; use carefully!
• Make your campus zero runoff campus!
