Water as a Resource or Human Right

Water as a Resource or Human Right
October 11-17, 2009

Join us as we explore issues surrounding water access, sanitation, and distribution throughout our world. Is water a resource to be sold and controlled, or is access to clean, safe drinkable water a basic human right? And if it is a human right, how do we change the system to ensure universal access? How does our relationship to water in the United States and the “First World” differ from that of those living in “Third World” countries?

Learn More about the Weekly Theme:
DID YOU KNOW?
• Less than 1 percent of all water on Earth is available as groundwater and surface water suitable for human uses such as drinking and cooking. The remainder is either salt water (97 percent) or is locked up in ice (just over 2 percent).
• 66% of the human body is water
• An individual in the US uses approximately 100 gallons of water a day (all uses)
(facts from http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/kids/water_trivia_facts.html)
• Each day more than 4,400 children under the age of 5 die in 3rd World Countries as a result of illnesses contracted by use of impure water
• 1 Billion people in the world today do not have access to clean water
(facts from http://www.healingwatersintl.org/surveys)
According to the World Bank:
• 220 million urban residents in the developing world lack a source of safe drinking water near their homes.
• Ninety percent of urban sewage in the developing world is discharged into rivers, lakes, and coastal water ways without any treatment.
• Agriculture consumes 60 to 80 percent of the fresh water resources in most countries, and as much as 90 percent in others. (http://www.worldbank.org/depweb/english/modules/environm/water/index.html)
Percentage of Population without Reasonable Access to Safe Drinking Water

Reasonable access to safe drinking water is defined as the availability of at least 20 litres per person per day from an improved source within 1 kilometer of the user's dwelling.
(Data and Map from: http://www.theglobaleducationproject.org/earth/human-conditions.php?format=print#2)

UA SPEAKER FOR THIS WEEK:
Dr. James Jensen
Dr. James Jensen is the Professor and Undergraduate Studies Director of the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering. He is also the faculty head of the Research Exploration Undergraduate Academy.

UA EXCURSION FOR THIS WEEK:

Niagara Falls
From UB Green: http://www.ubgreenoffice.com/?p=122
“HYDROPOWER IN WESTERN NEW YORK
Niagara Falls has a rich history of hydroelectric power. In fact, at one time the Falls were completely turned off because too much water was being diverted to the American and Canadian hydro-facilities. In 1881 Charles Brush of Ohio arrived in Niagara Falls with 16 electric carbon arc lights and a generator to illuminate the falls. Jacob Schoellkopf, owner of the former Schoellkopf generating station located near the Falls, offered electricity from his water turbines to power Brush’s generator, creating the first hydroelectric generating station in the world. Tragically, this same generating station later collapsed into the river in a sudden explosion due to water seepage within the structure. Other early Niagara Falls hydro power facilities include the Edward Dean Adams plant where power was first converted from DC to AC. Today the Niagara Power Project, located about 4.5 miles downstream from Niagara Falls, is the largest electricity producer in New York State, generating 2,400 megawatts —enough power for 3 million households. To produce this much power, the Niagara Project diverts as much as 22.5 million gallons of Niagara River water per minute from Niagara Falls. The Niagara Project also utilizes pump storage to pump water from a lower reservoir to an upper reservoir at night so that additional hydropower will be available during periods of peak electrical demand during the day.”
How can I get involved?
Related Majors:
Civil Engineering
Engineering Physics
Environmental Engineering
Environmental Studies (Social Sciences Interdisciplinary)
Geography
Geological Sciences
Issues surrounding water access and sanitation can also be studied from the perspectives of:
Anthropology
Sociology
History
Political Science
Public Health and Medicine
For a complete list of majors and degree programs at UB, please visit: http://www.buffalo.edu/home/academicprograms/
SA Clubs
Environmental Network
Geography SA
Geology SA
Engineers for a Sustainable World
American Society of Civil Engineers
For a complete list of student organizations at UB, please visit: http://www.sa.buffalo.edu/clubs.html
Local organizations
Buffalo Niagara Riverkeepers- http://bnriverkeeper.org/
Erie County Water Authority-http://www.ecwa.org/web/home.jsp?o=Home
UB Green- www.ubgreenoffice.com



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