The Problem
Clean water is an essential ingredient for human survival, but it is one that is becoming increasingly scarce. With exploding human population and ever-expanding urban sprawl, basic non-anthropogenic watershed ecological services cannot be performed at a rate that can sustain the current demand for water. Recent droughts in much of the world have exacerbated this problem by limiting not only the cleanliness of water, but also the quantity of water available1. Without a sustainable potable water supply, water-borne diseases will run rampant, human health will suffer, and population will decline.
Fresh water scarcity may not seem like a problem in the United States, but soon it will be a defining issue in our survival. Globally averaged, each person has about 1000 cubic meters of water per year. While this number may sound high, 1700 cubic meters per year is considered water stress and in the middle of the 20th century, the per capita fresh water available was 4000 cubic meters per year2. In 2005, the US per capita water withdrawal rate, not including power generation, was 950 cubic meters per year3. If we ignore this problem and allow these trends to continue, there will be major conflicts in the very near future, and, only slightly farther down the road, mass human population decline will occur.
Our Position
One major contributing factor to fresh water quality and quantity decline is urban sprawl and poor city planning. By covering huge land areas with impervious surfaces, developers have prevented water from entering the soil, where most large scale water filtration occurs. In order to avoid the extreme fresh water scarcity dilemma, this trend must be reversed. The simplest first step is simply to change planning codes for suburbs (and to a lesser extent cities) to encourage more use of green space in order to maximize permeable ground surface area. New York was able to reverse the declining trend of their water quality by enacting responsible, non-invasive regulations such as cluster housing and vegetated, permeable islands in cul-de-sac turnarounds4. As population grows, however, more drastic measures will need to occur to support the growing demand for clean water.
One proven method for smart city planning is exemplified by the city of Portland, Oregon. By delineating a distinct boundary to the city, Portland preserved green space in outlying areas rather than creating the ever expanding urban sprawl seen in most US cities today. In addition to the city boundaries, there is also conserved green space for parks located inside the city. This abundance of nearby vegetation and the fact that the city is easily navigated on foot, have improved air quality as well. The wise utilization of ecological services has undoubtedly saved the municipality money as well as lowering air and water quality related health costs to its citizens5.
Another viable smart growth option is transit oriented development (TOD). By arranging a city into multiple walkable ‘nodes’ that are arranged around a central mass transit hub, the need for impermeable highways is eliminated, urban sprawl is unnecessary, and valuable ecological services can be performed by the enormous amounts of conserved green space. There are many similar benefits between TOD and Portland’s city boundaries, but TOD also eliminates the need for automotive transportation of any kind. Unfortunately, TOD cannot easily be retrofitted to existing cities, so its applicability is nearly exclusively limited to new urban growth.
Their Positions
To assume, as the techno-optimists would, that water needs can be satisfied through technological advancement alone is risky and hubristic. While water treatment technology is advancing, it is not keeping up with our current demand growth rate. Much of the world is already at water crisis level. Even in developed countries like Turkey, car washing and lawn watering have been prohibited in some cities, and reservoirs are only holding 5% of their capacity1. Without a huge technological breakthrough in the immediate future, technology cannot solve our clean water problems.
Just as unrealistic as the techno-optimists, some people believe that water conservation efforts can solve the problem. Simply using less water will not prevent future degradation of water supplies and will likely need to another water crisis in a few short years. Water conservation efforts should be mandatory, but more is needed to supply fresh water to the entire population.
Conclusion
Smart growth and radical city zoning to preserve green space are the only answer to the critical clean water issues we face today. Technological advances in water treatment are needed, and water conservation efforts are positively necessary, but the only sure bet to increasing water quality is green space conservation.
References
1. Engelhardt, Tom. (November 16, 2007) How Dry We Are? A Question No One Wants to Raise About Drought. TomDispatch.com
2. (April 22, 2008) Some scary water stats from an expert news.cnet.com
3. Barber, Nancy (October 22, 2009) Summary of Estimated Water Use in the United States in 2005 water.usgs.gov
4. Kendall, Barbara (Summer, 2007) Better Site Design: New Tools to Protect Water Resources www.pace.edu
5. State of Oregon (May 8, 2009) State Statutes www.oregon.gov
