From crop production and afforestation to the care of domestic animals, using as solvent in factories to generating electricity, and drinking to bathing—water’s universal necessity in every aspect of daily life has made this invaluable resource synonymous with “life”, worldwide.
However, due to global warming and the unplanned establishment of industries everywhere, water pollution and unnecessary wastage are steadily decreasing the amount of safe and healthy usable water for people. Economic and political analysts believe this signals the onset of new complex crises and conflicts worldwide.
In the 20th century, the world has already witnessed several conflicts over the control of oil resources. Major conflicts such as the Chaco War between Bolivia and Paraguay from 1932 to 1935, the Allied strategic oil refinery destruction campaigns and the Pearl Harbor attack during World War II, the Nigerian Civil War from 1967 to 1970, the Iran-Iraq War from 1980 to 1988, and the Gulf War from 1990 to 1991, all arose directly or indirectly from disputes over oil resources. Oil is a valuable non-renewable mineral resource used as fuel. Therefore, the superpowers lost their patience in their quest to control this resource.
However, if we think oppositely, oil is not a universally essential daily resource for everyone, like water. Therefore, if the policymakers of the world’s countries do not become aware of the proper management of diminishing usable water resources, the risk of many complex crises remains. According to the United Nations, although nearly 3 billion people worldwide depend on transboundary water sources in their countries, only 24 nations have so far signed agreements on the distribution of water from international rivers.
Thus, about 30 years ago, Ismail Serageldin, the former Vice President of the World Bank, predicted that the conflicts of 20th century had been centered around oil. But if we don’t focus on proper water resource management and change our behavior, then in the next century, the primary cause of our conflicts will be water!
Along with proper water management and taking conscious political and diplomatic measures regarding water, it is equally essential to be extremely frugal in its use, especially in Bangladesh. Although Bangladesh has had an abundance of water resources since prehistoric times, the amount of usable water in Bangladesh is gradually decreasing due to various reasons, such as excessive installation of deep tube wells, extraction of groundwater through pumps for irrigation in arable land, encroachment on different water bodies, and water pollution caused by unplanned industrialization and urbanization.
Moreover, many country citizens are not frugal in water usage; they leave water taps running unnecessarily, do not promptly turn off water tanks even when they overflow, and use more water than needed while bathing or washing clothes. Besides, many urban water supply companies do not regularly monitor whether the supply pipelines have cracks or leakages. Recent researches have revealed that about 30-40% of water is being wasted in urban areas. Additionally, four years ago, over 61% of the country’s population was indifferent to safe sanitation practices (The Daily Ittefaq, November 19, 2021).
Furthermore, among this country’s 58 recognized transboundary rivers, 54 are originated from the neighboring India. Since 1947, 72% of the reservoirs in that country have dried up, and many of the existing water bodies are reportedly encroached upon and polluted. To protect its interests, India controls the water flow of 47 of the 54 transboundary rivers with Bangladesh by constructing dams and barrages at various upstream points.
In addition, they divert water from several transboundary rivers for hydropower projects. If the usable water in that country decreases further due to increased encroachment and pollution, it is natural that they will be more inclined to withdraw more water. However, such an initiative will significantly increase the risk of reducing Bangladesh’s rightful share of water.
Already, a recent study led by Peter Gleick of the Pacific Institute has highlighted nearly a thousand small and large conflicts have been occurred over water distribution from 1810 BC to now. Therefore, it has become crucial to proceed with extreme awareness to eliminate all possibilities of complex crises and conflicts over this issue.
In 2023, a United Nations report stated, from the 1980s to the past 40 years, the level of freshwater use by the world’s population has increased by 40%. And so, people have increasingly turned to excessive groundwater extraction unusually.
On the contrary, in the same year, the World Health Organization and UNICEF, after a joint investigation, reported that in 2022, over 2.25 billion people worldwide did not have access to safe drinking water sources. Nearly 110 million people in various parts of the world drank unfiltered water from various water bodies due to a lack of adequate safe water. This resulted approximately 2 million deaths annually worldwide.
Therefore, considering the overall situation, it is essential to take a farsighted approach to proper water use and water politics to avoid imminent crises and conflicts. For this, we need to plant the seeds of water conservation among the public and, if necessary, diplomatically mediate through a third party to reach agreements between disputing parties to ensure ‘water security’ for everyone.