The earth is a water wealthy planet, but only a tiny portion of it can be used. As a quote by English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge says, “Water, water everywhere, nor any drop to drink.” 97.5% of all water on earth is salt water, leaving only 2.5% as fresh water. However, nearly 70% of that fresh water is frozen in the icecaps of Antarctica and Greenland; the remaining 30% is groundwater which is not accessible to human use. Generally speaking, only 0.025% of all water on earth can be used by humans.
World Could Face 40% Water Shortfall by 2030
In wealthy countries, all you need to do is turn on the tap whenever you want and out comes a finite amount of water. To those of us living in developed countries, water shortage is something that remote, poor, famine-stricken countries face. To this day, there are still 750 billion people around the world who lack access to clean, safe water. Yet, people living in water rich nations take water for granted.
In fact, due to the rapid growth of the worldʼs population and global climate change in recent years, many countries around the world including China, Chile, and Spain have been suffering from severe drought. Brazilʼs São Paulo recently experienced the greatest drought with one of the cityʼs reservoirs down to just 11% of capacity, while California government was forced to take actions by mandating limitations on the stateʼs water use in midst of its worst drought ever recorded. A report released by the United Nations (UN) warns of serious global water shortage if significant changes are not made. The UN also predicts that water supply in twothirds of the world will fall short in 10 years, and in 15 years, the world might only have 60% of the water it needs, a shortfall that could affect 2.9 billion people.
Taiwan Ranks 18th in the World for Water Scarcity
Taiwanʼs water mainly comes from rainfall. The annual average precipitation in Taiwan is 2,500 mm and the country receives over 90 billion metric tons of rainfall a year, which is 2.6 times that of the worldʼs average. Taiwan, a rainfall abundant country, shouldnʼt have to worry about water shortage…or should they? Despite its abundant rainfall, Taiwan ranks 18th on the list of the most water-starved nations in the world. The annual average per capita water consumption in Taiwan is about 3,950 metric tons, far less than the worldʼs average of 32,000 metric tons. Due to the islandʼs unique geographical features and high population density, it is difficult to harvest water. Also, all Taiwanʼs rivers originate in the mountains and have short, rapid courses, thus most rainwater goes directly to the ocean. In addition, Taiwanʼs existing reservoirs donʼt have enough capacity to store water. This is the reason why there is such a huge difference between the islandʼs ranking on the global list for water stressed countries and annual average precipitation.
So Stop Wasting Water
In the past, it seems as though Taiwanese people werenʼt deeply affected by the fact that there was no water to use. Blessed with low water tariff, we rarely think about how much water we have consumed and are unaware of the value of water. If Taiwanʼs water consumption report is placed right in front of your eyes, you will find that from 2008 to 2014 the daily average water use is often higher than the water use standards set by the Water Resources Agency, Ministry of Economic Affairs of 250 liters. This means that we are using more water than we are supposed to. To be frank, water shortage is no longer an issue we can ignore. More and more newspaper articles and magazines have addressed water shortage issues and are urging people to conserve water. So as a Taiwanese citizen we cannot and should not ignore the future implications of water scarcity any longer!
Operation “Save Water” －Taiwan Launches Water Conservation Reward Program
As Taiwan battles the worst drought in years, the government adopted drastic water restriction measures and began rationing water supplies to water-scarce areas effective April, 2015. The Ministry of Economic Affairs further introduced a new policy to reward water conservation which began from April 1 as part of its efforts to deal with ongoing drought in order to encourage the public to save water and fight this drought together.
The Taipei Water Department of Taiwan Water Corporation announced that from April to the end of July, people who used less than 10% or more water compared to last year will be rewarded. It will take time to prove whether this reward scheme benefits Taiwanese citizens despite the already low water tariff. Perhaps the most effective way to truly sustain water is to promote water conservation and cultivate water saving habits as early as possible in friends and families as well as corporations.
參考資料
World Water Day 2015
Water Resources Agency, Ministry of Economic Affairs
Taiwan Water Corporation
Taipei Water Department
《煮一杯咖啡需要多少水》/時報出版
