By Ethel Dundas
Water is life and an essential element for the existence of life on earth and equitable access improves human dignity. It is estimated that about 98 percent of earth’s water is salt and 2 percent fresh water.
Furthermore, 70 percent out of the 2% of fresh water is ice and pouring snow experienced globally. Ironically, 30 % of the 2 percent fresh water is also found underground not accessible to humans and a minute percent of less than 0.5 % is on the earth’s surface in the forms of oceans, lakes, rivers and so on. Another 0.5 % is stored in the atmosphere.
The reality of water security to climate change in its current trend if not addressed could lead to but not limited to; displacement of persons, wildlife extinction, conflicts, hunger, starvation and ultimately death. Countries with a high density of rainfall such as Sierra Leone could boast of six months of fresh downpours of water in twelve months.
This is a serious threat to water security because there are no available strategies to preserve water for equitable distribution, especially in urban areas. The correlation between access to clean water and its distribution to millions of urban dwellers has reduced drastically over the past ten years due to the alarming effects of climate change.
Sierra Leone remains at the bottom of the United Nations (UN) Human Development Index of the poorest countries in the world, with almost 75% of its population living in rural communities with inadequate access to clean and safe drinking water. With the increase in population, urban dwellers and rural communities fetch clean water from underground springs and streams from the forest.
In the past 10 years, the increase in illegal human activities in the environment has led to the destruction of water catchments with immense pressure on deforestation resulting in the disappearance of local springs and streams to support homes and communities year round.
From November to April, water sources are becoming more exposed to the hot burning sun and residents begin to experience a shortage in water availability and supply. These unfortunate instances in turn forceindividuals and communities to get water from unclean sources, such as swamps and unhygienic boreholes.
The majority of the community members are unaware of this recent change as a result of unplanned human activities leading to climate change.
In many rural and urban areas in Africa, water security is becoming a cause for concern. Many cities are prone to natural disasters such as flooding, flash floods and erosion. This in turn will lead to loss of lives and properties. With the high rate of poverty in many parts of Africa and Asia, water security continues to pose a serious threat to national security. The increase in urbanization and the high water demand will lead to drought, disease and starvation.
State bodies will find it difficult to mitigate water security to provide adequate and clean water to all users and inclusive ecosystems. Water security could lead to conflicts, a high rate of recorded abuse against girls and school dropouts.
Furthermore, there will be a rise in issues relating to water scarcity as a result of climate change in communities.
A country like Sierra Leone in the early 60s could boast of 100 percent of lush forest cover. This is no longer the case as the county’s forest has shrunk to about 3 percent remaining but is under serious threat of disappearing. Population growth and high demands to live in the capital after the civil conflict led to a growing demand for water by thousands of inhabitants.
With increasing pressure for sufficient water for urban dwellers, there has been a rise also in the pollution of water sources and the destruction of catchments for settlements. In rural communities water scarcity more often than not leads to conflict.
Communities in these areas are dependent on unclean, shallow swamp and river water for drinking and domestic use in the dry season. These water systems are not protected and are used not only for drinking but also for mining and defecation. They also contain poisonous chemicals as a result of fertilizer runoff and battery acids. These water sources are also being shared by animals, increasing the risk of zoonotic disease transmission.
Water scarcity could lead to the displacement of people in areas prone to drought and famine.
In some rural communities in Sierra Leone, inhabitants had to move from their original homes to resettle in another closer to water during the hot weather to have access to clean water. Food security could be a serious challenge to tackle and will impact negatively on the country’s economy and mortality rate.
Water security resulting in a change in the climates of Africa is making these changes more visible and in a frequent manner that demands urgent actions. With fewer rainfalls in the East, North, and some parts of Southern Africa water resources will be limited, and as such there will be frequent recorded occurrences of climate-water incidences disrupting life and the ecosystem.
Meanwhile, Central and West Africa being in the tropics have an abundance of rainfall and supposedly sufficient water. Notwithstanding, the increase in population coupled with a lack of adequate infrastructure and equipment could lead to a water shortage shortly. A bulk of the continent’s population is denied access to safe, clean water and as a result, dies each year. Since Africa is far below the ladder of providing clean, safe and accessible drinking water, there are indicators for effective change.
Unemployment is intricately linked to water security given that there will be a mass exodus of people moving from one part of the country to another or from one country to the other as the case may be in search of jobs.
About 10.7 million people in the Lake Chad Basin face terror suffering, poverty, hunger and starvation. The crises as a result of the change in the climate have left millions in dire need today. Insufficient water leading to drought in the region could be traced as the underlying factor for such drastic change.
This area is quite known for large-scale farming and pastoralism thus depending on the lake to improve lives and build economies. With the resurgence of droughts inhabitants are left with no option but to move out of the region in search of employment elsewhere. Fishers, farmers, and pastoralists will eventually have to be in conflict for the limited water which could lead to armed conflicts. Women and girls in this circumstance are the most vulnerable and are exposed to abuse in trying to fend for the rest of the family.
Water has an important role to play in the fight against climate change in the environment by reducing the energy we consume daily concerning the various levels of the water cycle. One of the major challenges to climate change about water security is agriculture. Water security in itself is the provision of adequate clean water for all including the ecosystem.
Climate change increases hands-on challenges in mitigating these changes. The changes in the environment will reshape the continents’ future of fresh water. Addressing these climate change challenges requires resources and technical skills. Africa should be able to forecast and put appropriate measures in place to minimize human activities fast-tracking these changes.
The fight against climate change should be incorporated in all levels of society in other to maintain a balanced population with the available resources that if not properly managed couldn’t be replaced. There should be the introduction of modern and local agriculture techniques available to farmers for improved yields and at the same time preventing a change in the climate as a result of water shortage. The storage of water should be a government concerned with the provision of storage parameters and the conservation of water.
