{"id":20059,"date":"2020-03-22T01:44:24","date_gmt":"2020-03-22T01:44:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=20059"},"modified":"2020-03-25T09:08:56","modified_gmt":"2020-03-25T09:08:56","slug":"coronavirus-spotlights-the-link-between-clean-water-and-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/coronavirus-spotlights-the-link-between-clean-water-and-health\/","title":{"rendered":"Coronavirus spotlights the link between clean water and health"},"content":{"rendered":"

David Feldman<\/a>, University of California, Irvine<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

As the world confronts the coronavirus pandemic, experts say that a key way to minimize the odds of getting sick is by washing your hands thoroughly and frequently<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But what if you don\u2019t have access to clean water?<\/p>\n

Over the past 40 years, many nations have made great progress<\/a> in treating wastewater, providing residents with clean drinking water and enhancing water supplies to grow needed food and fiber. But as a researcher focusing on water resources management and policy<\/a>, I know there is still far to go.<\/p>\n

More than 40% of the world\u2019s population lives in regions where water is becoming increasingly scarce, and that figure is likely to rise. Every day, nearly 1,000 children die from preventable water- and sanitation-related diseases<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Life without clean water<\/h2>\n

Water use has increased worldwide by about 1% annually since the 1980s, driven by population growth, economic development and changing consumption patterns<\/a>. At the same time, water supplies are increasingly threatened by climate change, overuse and pollution.<\/p>\n

For example, in 2019 residents of Chennai, India, had to queue up for water delivered by tanker trucks because the city\u2019s reservoirs were empty. Persistent drought, worsened by climate change, had virtually exhausted local supplies. The city, which is home to 7 million people, still faces severe shortages, and may exhaust its available groundwater within a few years<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In rural Mexico, some 5 million people lack access to clean water<\/a>. Women and children are tasked with collecting water, taking time that could be spent in school or on political engagement. Meanwhile, men decide how water rights are allocated.<\/p>\n

Residents of Flint, Michigan, whose trust in the safety of their drinking water has been gradually restored after a notorious case of lead contamination<\/a>, were advised in August 2019 to boil water as a precaution against impurities after a pipeline rupture reduced pressure in the city\u2019s water lines<\/a>. The advisory ended after sampling indicated that there was no danger of contamination, but the city is still replacing lead and galvanized steel water delivery pipes to prevent further lead exposure.<\/p>\n

Today, with coronavirus present on every continent except Antarctica<\/a>, washing hands is a difficult challenge in many developing countries. Clean water and soap are often in short supply, and many slum dwellers live in homes without running water<\/a>.<\/p>\n