John W. Eppensteiner III Master of Environmental Studies University of Pennsylvania Teaching and Preaching Sustainability and Social Justice: A Resource for Catholic High School Teachers Lesson 4: Water Grade Level: 11-12 Class Size: Approx. 20 students Time: 50 mins Setting: Classroom Background Information: Water is essential to life. However, the water that is used for drinking, growing our food, and other everyday functions is of limited supply in many parts of the world and is vulnerable to various forms of pollution. Companies, and the economies they support, rely on water to perform many functions, both directly in the manufacturing process and indirectly in the business supply chain. The allocation of this precious resource, water, must also be balanced with the needs of the all the planet’s inhabitants if we are to develop a sustainable global system. Guiding Questions:

• How do we ensure access clean water and sanitation services for the millions of people without it and keep water resources sustainable for future generations?

Learning Objectives: As a result of this lesson, students will be able to...

• Describe what the global water crisis is and how many people currently lack access to improved drinking water and sanitation.

• Describe the connection between the global water crisis and inequality. • Describe two issues facing water resources in the United States. • Describe three reasons why it is important for business to be concerned about water sustainability. • Describe an innovation that is being used to improve water sustainability.

Vocabulary:

• Water Sustainability • Drought • Non-Point Source Pollution • Water Footprinting

Personal Exploration Questions:

1. How do my habits contribute to a global water crisis? How can I be part of a solution to for global water issues? Suggested Assignments Homework

1. Examine your consumption habits and conduct a water footprint for two items that you consume or use regularly. How could you change your consumption habits to be more water conscious? How could you influence the manufacturers of these products to set water sustainability goals?

Capstone

1. Identify an aquatic ecosystem in or near your local community that is impacted by water pollution. Develop and implement a plan that reduces pollution to this water body – examples would include: the construction of green infrastructure; an educational plan to reduce fertilizer usage; a series of organized cleanups to remove and reduce trash; etc.

2. Identify products or services used on a large scale by organizations you are part of that have a large water footprint. Develop a plan to replace these products with ones that have a smaller water footprint – examples would include: reducing the number of meat centric meals at a school lunch program; using alternative products for school uniforms that are more water sustainable; etc.

Resources: Guiding Documents

• WWAP (United Nations World Water Assessment Programme). 2015. The United Nations World Water Development Report 2015: Water for a Sustainable World. Paris, UNESCO. - http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/water/wwap/wwdr/2015-water-for-a-sustainable-world/

• UN-Water Global Analysis and Assessment of Sanitation and Drinking-Water (GLAAS) 2014 – Report. Investing in water and sanitation: increasing access, reducing inequalities http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/glaas_report_2014/en/

Human Impacts

• The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) - http://www.fao.org/home/en/ • United Nations Water for Life Program - http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/index.shtml • Center for Disease Control (CDC); Global Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene (WASH) -

http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/global/index.html Environmental Impacts

• National Geographic; Freshwater Resources- http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/freshwater/http://michaelpollan.com/resources/sustainable-eating-nutrition/

Water Sustainability and Business

• Global Environmental Management Initiative (GEMI) - http://www.gemi.org/water/index.htm • Water Footprint Network - http://waterfootprint.org/en/ • CEO Water Mandate - http://ceowatermandate.org/

Water-Energy Nexus

• U.S. Department of Energy - http://energy.gov/downloads/water-energy-nexus-challenges-and-opportunities Water Innovations

• EPA Green Infrastructure - http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/greeninfrastructure/ • Bill & Melinda Gate Foundation - http://www.gatesfoundation.org/

Water NGOs

• Water.org - http://water.org/ • Water for People - http://www.waterforpeople.org/ • Pacific Institute- http://pacinst.org/ • Circle of Blue- http://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/ • Alliance for Water Stewardship - http://www.allianceforwaterstewardship.org/

Lesson 4: Water – Lesson Overview

• Water is essential to life. However, the water that is used for drinking, growing our food, and other everyday functions is of limited supply in many parts of the world and is vulnerable to various forms of pollution. Companies, and the economies they support, rely on water to perform many functions, both directly in the manufacturing process and indirectly in the business supply chain. The allocation of this precious resource, water, must also be balanced with the needs of the all the planet’s inhabitants if we are to develop a sustainable global system.

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Water – Global Availability Usable Fresh Water is Scare • Less than 1% of the world's fresh water is readily accessible

for direct human uses. Global Demand for Water is Increasing • By 2030, the world is projected to face a 40% global water

deficit under the business-as usual climate scenario. • By 2050, global water demand is projected to increase by

55%, mainly due to growing demands from manufacturing, thermal electricity generation and domestic use.

2 WWAP (United Nations World Water Assessment Programme). 2015. The United Nations World Water Development Report 2015: Water for a Sustainable World. Paris, UNESCO.

Water – Global Risks • The World Economic Forum listed Water Crises as

its #1 global risk in terms of impact for 2015 – Ahead of issues like the Spread of Infectious Diseases, Weapons

of Mass Destruction, and Ecosystem Collapses

3 Source: http://www.weforum.org/reports/global-risks-report-2015

Water – Human Rights • On July 28, 2010 the United Nations General Assembly

explicitly recognized the human right to water and sanitation and acknowledged that clean drinking water and sanitation are essential to the realization of all human rights.

4 From: http://www.un.org/waterforlifedecade/human_right_to_water.shtml

Water – Human Impacts • The world continues to face significant hurdles in the distribution

of clean water and sanitary services: – 2.5 billion people lack access to improved sanitation. – 1 billion people practice open defecation; nine out of ten in rural areas. – 748 million people lack access to improved drinking-water

UN-water global analysis and assessment of sanitation and drinking-water (GLAAS) 2014 – report. Investing in water and sanitation: increasing access, reducing inequalities http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/glaas_report_2014/en/

• It is estimated that 1.8 billion people use a source of drinking water that is contaminated with fecal coliform bacteria.

Water – Human Impacts Water-Related Disease • Approximately 88% of diarrhea cases worldwide are

linked to unsafe water, inadequate sanitation or insufficient hygiene. – These cases result in 1.5 million deaths each year, mostly

concentrated in children in developing countries.

• Hundreds of millions of people do not have access to soap and water to wash their hands, preventing a basic act that would empower them to block the spread of disease.

UN-water global analysis and assessment of sanitation and drinking-water (GLAAS) 2014 – report. Investing in water and sanitation: increasing access, reducing inequalities http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/glaas_report_2014/en/

Water – Human Impacts Women, Children, and Water • Just the act of collecting drinking water is a burden for many populations,

especially women and children: – Surveys from 45 developing countries show that women and children bear the

primary responsibility for water collection in the vast majority of households (76%).

• This is time not spent working at an income-generating job, caring for family members, or attending school.

• In Ghana, a 15-minute reduction in water collection time increased girls’ school attendance from 8% to 12%.

WHO/UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP) for Water Supply and Sanitation. (2010). Progress on Sanitation and Drinking-Water, 2010 Update. http://www.wssinfo.org/fileadmin/user_upload/resources/1278061137-JMP_report_2010_en.pdf

Source: http://www.water-charity.org/clean-water.html

Water – Environmental Impacts The Aral Sea • Exploitation of the Aral Sea will likely cause the “sea”

to go dry by 2020.

UNEP: Vital Water Graphics; Disappearance of the Aral Sea (http://www.unep.org/dewa/vitalwater/article115.html)

2000 2014

– Rivers were diverted to irrigate cotton fields – Thousands of villagers that depended on the

Aral Sea for their livelihood were displaced

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/04/photogalleries/100402-aral-sea-pictures/

Water Use and Drought

• The Colorado River runs almost 1,500 miles from the Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of California. It no longer reaches the sea. – The Colorado River supplies water to over 30 million people in the U.S.

and Mexico. – Dams and diversions have decimated a once vast wetland ecosystem

at the mouth of the river. – Climate change will only exacerbate the water scarcity issues in the

area.

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Water – Environmental Impacts

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/science/earth/optimism-builds-for-effort-to-relieve-a-parched-delta-in-mexico.html?_r=0

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/science/earth/optimism-builds-for-effort-to-relieve-a-parched-delta-in-mexico.html?_r=0

Non-Point Source Pollution

• Water running off the land after storm events collects pollutants that end up in waterways – Nitrogen and phosphorus from fertilizer used on farms can

cause major algal blooms that disrupt ecosystems • Chesapeake Bay fisheries-

(http://www.chesapeakebay.net/S=0/blog/post/the_abcs_of_habs_how_harmful_algal_blooms_impact_the_bay)

• Lake Erie drinking water- Toledo, Ohio 2014 (http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/08/03/337545914/algae-toxins-prompt-toledo-to-ban-its-drinking-water)

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Water – Environmental Impacts

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/IOTD/view.php?id=76115

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Source: The Guardian – “Over population, over consumption – in pictures” http://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/gallery/2015/apr/01/over-population-over-consumption-in-pictures. Accessed 4/2/2015

Water - Environmental Impacts

Water Sustainability

• Many businesses rely heavily on water resources as part of their value chain:

– Energy • Used for cooling towers, steam powered turbines, hydraulic fracturing

– Electronics • Used in parts washing

– Food and Beverage • Water is a primary component of many products

– Chemicals • Water is used in the manufacturing process and is a primary component of many

products.

– Clothing • Water is used to grow cotton, process many synthetic materials, and wash clothing

– Many, many, many more industries

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Water – Business Implications

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Water – Business Implications Water Risks

• Physical Risk- changes in water availability, reliability, and quality that may impact a company’s direct operation, supply chain, or logistics.

– Anheuser-Busch: a drought in the U.S. Pacific Northwest limited supply of wheat and aluminum (http://www.gemi.org/water/anheuser.htm)

• Reputational Risk- conflicts with the public regarding water issues that can damage a company’s brand image or result in a loss of the company’s license to operate in a certain area.

– Coca Cola : groundwater depletion in Kerala, India caused them to lose their license to operate (http://www.theguardian.com/money/2006/mar/19/business.india1)

• Regulatory Risk- more stringent policies on water withdrawals and the quality of discharges.

– Exelon: intense regulatory pressure regarding water caused Exelon to close a New Jersey plant 10 years ahead of schedule (http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703766704576009572158054218)

• Litigation Risk- lawsuits or other legal actions related to the company’s impacts on water quantity and quality. Some respondents to an investor survey anticipated financial impacts are as

high as $1 Billion (US) for their companies relating to water issues.

Water-Energy Nexus • Drinking and wastewater services consumes significant amounts of

energy: – As much as 4% of the annual electricity consumption in the United

States (~69 billion kilowatts, or $4.7 billion). • Equates to adding ~52 million tons of GHGs to the atmosphere annually

– It is estimated that, on average, 14 percent of the water treated by water systems is lost to leaks annually.

• This represents a significant opportunity to improve energy efficiency.

• Large volumes of water are also used in electricity generation, thermoelectric cooling, and production of fossil fuels.

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Water – Energy Use

Water Footprinting • Water Footprinting is the process of determining the amount of

water used in the life-cycle of a good or service – Direct and Indirect Water Use: Not only is water that is actually

contained in the product accounted for (Direct- e.g., the volume of water in a can of soda), but also the water used in the value chain that produced that product (Indirect- e.g., water used to grow the sugar cane or produce the aluminum for the can)

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Water – Solutions

The United States has a total water footprint per capita of 7,800 liters/day, whereas China has a total water footprint per capita of 2,900 liters/day.

From: Water Footprint Network (http://waterfootprint.org/)

Rain Barrels and Cisterns

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Water – Solutions Green Infrastructure • Using natural landscapes to reduce stormwater from entering

waterways; allowing pollution to be processed by wastewater treatment plants – See: EPA Green Infrastructure

(http://water.epa.gov/infrastructure/greeninfrastructure/index.cfm#tabs-1)

Bioswales and Infiltration Zones

Green Roofs

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Water – Solutions Water Innovations

• Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation – focuses on developing innovative approaches and technologies that

can lead to radical and sustainable improvements in sanitation in the developing world. (http://www.gatesfoundation.org/What-We-Do/Global-Development/Water-Sanitation-and-Hygiene)

– The Janicki Omniprocessor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVzppWSIFU0

Organizations Working Toward a Solution • Water Footprint Network- http://waterfootprint.org/en/ • Alliance for Water Stewardship-

http://www.allianceforwaterstewardship.org/ • Pacific Institute- http://pacinst.org/ • Circle of Blue- http://www.circleofblue.org/waternews/ • National Geographic: Water Currents -

http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/freshwater/

• Water for People - http://www.waterforpeople.org/

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Water – Resources and Support