Protecting the World's Water

The BIG Story

Our reporter, Marlow, brings you up to speed on the latest health & environmental issues.

Learn to conserve one fo our most valuable resources.

Did you know that nature has recycled the water you drink for millions of years? Have you ever wondered what’s in it, or where it came from? Droplets of water go on a fantastic journey around the earth as part of the hydrologic cycle. This process of evaporation, condensation, and precipitation creates surface water, like lakes, rivers, and streams, and ground water that’s found beneath the earth’s surface in soil, wells, and aquifers.

FAST FACT

70-75 percent of the earth is covered in water, but less than 1 percent is fresh water we can use for drinking, bathing, and growing food.

Everyone needs water to survive, but some countries like Ethiopia in Africa do not have access to as much fresh water as they need. Other countries like the US have plenty of it, but use more than they should on things like watering lawns. In many places, water from aquifers, lakes, rivers, and streams is being used up faster than nature can replace it.

FAST FACTS

The average person in India uses 132,000 gallons of water each year. The average person in the US uses 500,000.

One flush of a toilet uses as much water as a person in 30 of the poorest countries in the world uses in a day.

Can you think of other ways water gets wasted?

Water can be polluted by chemicals used in agriculture and industry, and even by the detergents and disinfectants we use at home. Pollutants can travel from our rivers and streams through the hydrologic cycle to places thousands of miles away. Polluted water can make people, plants, and wildlife sick.

(Frogs with missing legs and extra legs were first found in the early 1990s in wetland areas in Minnesota!)

FAST FACTS

The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has found 98 different pesticides in groundwater in 40 states in the US

There are 50 known "dead zones" in oceans around the world where pollution has made oxygen levels so low that plants and fish cannot survive.

Can you think of other ways water gets polluted?

What can we all do to make water cleaner, safer, and more plentiful for everyone?

Save Water!

Run dishwashers and washing machines only when full; fix leaking faucets

Use organic methods in gardens and on farms to help soil hold on to water longer
Find ways to water crops and plants efficiently to avoid things like evaporation

Keep Water Clean and Soil Healthy!

Don’t use water-polluting pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides on food or grass

Store chemicals like acids and oil away from water and soil, and dispose of them properly after use
Plant trees to help hold soil in place and keep water from running off it

The world’s water belongs to everyone, and the way we use our water affects the entire earth. Let’s protect it!

Written by Sarah Eykyn Illustrations by Yasushi Fujimoto, Tokiko Jinta, and Glenn Hughes