World Water Day
Christine Kelly
Today is World Water Day, a day (initiated in 1993) that has special importance to each of the 7 billion people living around the world because we all need it to survive. World Water Day is a day meant to focus attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of those resources across the globe.
Before you shrug it off as another designated “day” you should know that contaminated drinking water still remains the number one cause of death around the world. In developing countries 70% of industrial wastes, including endocrine disruptors, are dumped, untreated, into waters where they pollute the usable water supply.
While access to clean water for drinking is a large problem by itself, access to clean water for agriculture specifically creates serious food security issues worldwide. This is the special focus of World Water Day 2012.
All of this was brought home to me during Expo West. I saw many state-of-the-art water filtration systems, with multiple step systems. Most carbon filtered the water, then mineral filtered it in order to increase the alkalinity to help flush toxins out of our systems more efficiently. I realized the importance of this when I thought about the low numbers of people with access to clean water. It was empowering to see so many companies and scientists researching ways to reach the largest number of people with the cleanest and most beneficial drinking water.
The next time you take the water from your sink to drink, run it through a filtration system and don’t assume the commercial bottle version is cleaner. In most cases, it too is simply “Tapped” (great film on water bottles!) Do it for your health, and to protect your breasts from endocrine disruptors and other toxins floating in your water.
While there are 1 in 6 people out there who don’t have access to clean drinking water, the first step you can take to advocate for them is to be conscious of the water cleanliness you are drinking. Start by watching and sharing this video for World Water Day 2012! http://www.unwater.org/worldwaterday/hungry_thirsty.html
-Christine
