A World Covered With Water Not Enough to Drink
Our planet is 75% water, thus the name the blue planet. Only 2.5% is fresh water we can drink. As Americans we are so far removed from water problems that unless we make the effort, we do not learn about the woes of the world. Over one billion people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water. A a nation, we Americans use 3.9 trillion gallons of water per month, or 100 to 175 gallons per person per day.
Where does it all go? Most of the water used is virtual water. Virtual water is water used that we never see. The amount used for production of everyday items we use, be it clothing, or food is about 3,496 liters per day per person. How is that possible? Let’s break this down so we can understand the next time we are drinking a glass of water to quench our thirst.
The steak many Americans love to consume requires 15,400 liters of water for every 2.2 pounds of steak produced. With a cow needing grain which requires 1,000 tons of water for every ton of grain not to mention the water the cow needs to drink to stay alive etc., etc., that steak added up to 3,091,000 liters of water used.
A couple pounds of chocolate requires 24,000 liters of water to be produced along with 10 liters for a piece of paper.
How do we as a nation help this? Buying grass fed beef helps immensely. If we cut our meat consumption in half in the United States we would save the water costs of the equivalent of filling the empire state building with water twenty-eight times every hour. That is difficult to comprehend and even though we are keeping up now, in the future, that may be impossible.
At this point in time globally, and changing hourly, 3,458,039,393 people need water. Can we help them? Can we find a way to get clean water to all of them? We as Americans have more resources than any other country in the world. Let’s put our minds to this problem and see what we can do.
God bless America and God bless you all from the Maverick Doctor,
Rick R. Redalen, M.D.
Pick up a copy of my book “God’s Tiniest Angel and the Last Unicorn,” available on Amazon.
Dr. Rick is a retired American physician, entrepreneur and philanthropist who has done mission work around the country and around the world. He is now on a mission to improve healthcare in America. Visit maverickdoctor.com or email him at rickr@maverickdoctor.com.