Did you know that while over 75% of the planet is covered in water, only 2.5% of said luscious liquid is freshwater, and out of that freshwater only 0.3% is in the form of easily accessible lakes and rivers? So less than one percent of all the water on the whole entire planet is basically the lifebringing force for all the things that are alive? (or at least, alive and non-oceanic).
The more that I think about it, the more I am convinced that water is actually made of magic.
Wli Falls, the highest in West Africa
Growing up in Canada, fresh water has always been there, in vast, impossible abundance. Living in Accra, which for my first few months was experiencing severe water shortages, has really opened my eyes as to how much of my life revolves around water. And I only had to ‘go without’ for a few week-long stretches. I never had to walk five miles with a jug on my head, I never had to dedicate my whole day, my whole existence, to securing water. I just had to make several trips across my compound each time I had to flush the toilet. It was enough.
1.6 billion people, or 1/5 of the world’s population, live in conditions of water scarcity? By 2030, that number is expected to rise to 47%.
A vast, impossible number of people.
Even so, the United Nations believes that there is enough for the billions of people that live on the planet. Many water scarcity problems happen not because there is no physical water but because water is wasted, polluted, and unsustainably managed. I am thinking about what will happen if we don’t get out human act together and quit polluting this tiny sliver of freshwater that sustains us. Impossible things will happen.
I came to Ghana thinking I was going to spend a lot of time chatting about climate change. It turns out that my internship has really revolved around water. In Ghana, water means life. In Ghana, water means death.
In Ghana, 19000 people die each year of diarrhoeal diseases. This is tragic, awful, unacceptable. “The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 94% of diarrhoeal cases are preventable through modifications to the environment, including through interventions to increase the availability of clean water, and to improve sanitation and hygiene”.
It has been interesting and frustrating and inspiring to explore sanitation and hygiene and water issues with Ghanaian youth. Seeing renewed commitments towards proper hand washing, towards using soap, towards finding clean water has been awesome. But we live in urban centres, and often the water does not flow. We’ve still got a long ways to go.
Sachet Water vs. Bottled Water
Access to safe drinking water throughout my stay has also been enlightening. Humans are nothing if not innovative! Where tap water is unreliable, people turn to other vessels from which they can be guaranteed pure water to drink. Enter the PURE WATER SACHET (pronounced ‘Pew Watah’) – little plastic baggies pumped with 500ml of purified water, available at each and every roadside vendor for the universal price of 10 pesewa (about 5 cents) a pop. If you buy bottled water, you’ll spend about 2GHC ($1) on a 1.5 L bottle. Alternatively, you can buy a bag that contains 30 Pu Wata sachets for GHC 1.20 ($0.60). You do the math.
How to drink a Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Wata! : rip off the corner with your teeth, and chug. It is a very satisfying exercise.
Pure Water sachets are awesome; they are available cheaply and give a lot of people access to safe drinking water that would not otherwise have it. For a country that is currently spending 1.6% of its GDP trying to combat rampant diseases that are easily preventable through improved sanitation, this widely accessible water source is incredibly valuable.
And yet.
And yet every silver cloud also comes with its terribly dark and thunder-filled lining.
Plastic Waste.
Pure water sachets are the most visible example of another major issue Ghana faces: waste. Rubbish. Trash, refuse, litter; whatever you want to call it, it looks and feels and smells the same. Plastic waste is a huge problem here. It is dumped indiscriminately in every town, on every street, in every gutter. It clogs drainage channels; the flooding that follows often brings cholera; the build-up of stagnant waste water provides cozy breeding grounds for malarial mosquitos. Goats and fish mow down on the plastic bits that are tossed so freely; we proceed to eat the goats and fish. Garbage burning, ocean-dumping, open-dumping … the vast array of free ‘waste management’ practices that are employed in Ghana are quite simply choking this beautiful country in refuse and disease.
So a lot of my work has also been talking about alternatives. It has been interesting and frustrating and inspiring to explore waste management options with youth in Ghana. Seeing momentum build for anti-litter campaigns, for community clean ups, even for small-scale recycling makes me feel awesome. Floundering to find answers as to why garbage pick- up is irregular, is unaffordable, why recycling plants are few and far between, how to convince someone not to follow the crowd and toss their plastic even when everyone else is doing it… that is overwhelming. That makes me feel so, so small.
Then again, if it is not overwhelming, it is probably not worth the effort. As Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Like any place with people, and especially places where a lot of the people are young, there is so much passion in Ghana. I have met some really incredible individuals and organizations who are so determined to make positive change.
And I have learned a lot about water! Dear Canada, I know that water scarcity seems impossible where we are, but it is not. Please respect it. Please don’t take it for granted. Please don’t pollute it. Please look in to low flush and composting toilets!
Water! Waste! It is important stuff. We should all talk about it way more. And if you are interested in learning more about plastic waste in Ghana, here is a really great place to start: http://vimeo.com/12034438
The more that I think about it, the more I am convinced that water is actually made of magic.
Wli Falls, the highest in West AfricaGrowing up in Canada, fresh water has always been there, in vast, impossible abundance. Living in Accra, which for my first few months was experiencing severe water shortages, has really opened my eyes as to how much of my life revolves around water. And I only had to ‘go without’ for a few week-long stretches. I never had to walk five miles with a jug on my head, I never had to dedicate my whole day, my whole existence, to securing water. I just had to make several trips across my compound each time I had to flush the toilet. It was enough.
1.6 billion people, or 1/5 of the world’s population, live in conditions of water scarcity? By 2030, that number is expected to rise to 47%.
A vast, impossible number of people.
Even so, the United Nations believes that there is enough for the billions of people that live on the planet. Many water scarcity problems happen not because there is no physical water but because water is wasted, polluted, and unsustainably managed. I am thinking about what will happen if we don’t get out human act together and quit polluting this tiny sliver of freshwater that sustains us. Impossible things will happen.
I came to Ghana thinking I was going to spend a lot of time chatting about climate change. It turns out that my internship has really revolved around water. In Ghana, water means life. In Ghana, water means death.
In Ghana, 19000 people die each year of diarrhoeal diseases. This is tragic, awful, unacceptable. “The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 94% of diarrhoeal cases are preventable through modifications to the environment, including through interventions to increase the availability of clean water, and to improve sanitation and hygiene”.
It has been interesting and frustrating and inspiring to explore sanitation and hygiene and water issues with Ghanaian youth. Seeing renewed commitments towards proper hand washing, towards using soap, towards finding clean water has been awesome. But we live in urban centres, and often the water does not flow. We’ve still got a long ways to go.
Sachet Water vs. Bottled WaterAccess to safe drinking water throughout my stay has also been enlightening. Humans are nothing if not innovative! Where tap water is unreliable, people turn to other vessels from which they can be guaranteed pure water to drink. Enter the PURE WATER SACHET (pronounced ‘Pew Watah’) – little plastic baggies pumped with 500ml of purified water, available at each and every roadside vendor for the universal price of 10 pesewa (about 5 cents) a pop. If you buy bottled water, you’ll spend about 2GHC ($1) on a 1.5 L bottle. Alternatively, you can buy a bag that contains 30 Pu Wata sachets for GHC 1.20 ($0.60). You do the math.
How to drink a Pu Pu Pu Pu Pu Wata! : rip off the corner with your teeth, and chug. It is a very satisfying exercise.
Pure Water sachets are awesome; they are available cheaply and give a lot of people access to safe drinking water that would not otherwise have it. For a country that is currently spending 1.6% of its GDP trying to combat rampant diseases that are easily preventable through improved sanitation, this widely accessible water source is incredibly valuable.
And yet.
And yet every silver cloud also comes with its terribly dark and thunder-filled lining.
Plastic Waste. Pure water sachets are the most visible example of another major issue Ghana faces: waste. Rubbish. Trash, refuse, litter; whatever you want to call it, it looks and feels and smells the same. Plastic waste is a huge problem here. It is dumped indiscriminately in every town, on every street, in every gutter. It clogs drainage channels; the flooding that follows often brings cholera; the build-up of stagnant waste water provides cozy breeding grounds for malarial mosquitos. Goats and fish mow down on the plastic bits that are tossed so freely; we proceed to eat the goats and fish. Garbage burning, ocean-dumping, open-dumping … the vast array of free ‘waste management’ practices that are employed in Ghana are quite simply choking this beautiful country in refuse and disease.
So a lot of my work has also been talking about alternatives. It has been interesting and frustrating and inspiring to explore waste management options with youth in Ghana. Seeing momentum build for anti-litter campaigns, for community clean ups, even for small-scale recycling makes me feel awesome. Floundering to find answers as to why garbage pick- up is irregular, is unaffordable, why recycling plants are few and far between, how to convince someone not to follow the crowd and toss their plastic even when everyone else is doing it… that is overwhelming. That makes me feel so, so small.
Then again, if it is not overwhelming, it is probably not worth the effort. As Margaret Mead once said, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has."
Like any place with people, and especially places where a lot of the people are young, there is so much passion in Ghana. I have met some really incredible individuals and organizations who are so determined to make positive change.
And I have learned a lot about water! Dear Canada, I know that water scarcity seems impossible where we are, but it is not. Please respect it. Please don’t take it for granted. Please don’t pollute it. Please look in to low flush and composting toilets!
Water! Waste! It is important stuff. We should all talk about it way more. And if you are interested in learning more about plastic waste in Ghana, here is a really great place to start: http://vimeo.com/12034438
