We must protect, conserve our water sources

The theme chosen for this year’s commemoration of World Water Day last Saturday, March 22, was “Preserving Glaciers”.

World Water Day (WWD) is held annually on March 22 to focus attention on the importance of freshwater and advocate the sustainable management of freshwater resources, and by so doing, support Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6: water and sanitation for all by 2030.

Incidentally, the United Nations declared this year the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation last Friday, March 21, to raise global awareness of the critical connections between the cryosphere (ice or frost), climate change, the water cycle, the economy, environment and society.

For glaciers’ preservation to be chosen to commemorate two different days, namely water day and glaciers’ day, underscores its seriousness.

According to the UN, the theme for this year’s WWD was chosen because glaciers are melting faster than ever, and as the planet gets hotter, the frozen world is shrinking, making the water cycle more unpredictable.

While glaciers seem far removed from us in the tropics, they serve as natural freshwater reservoirs, releasing melted water that supports drinking water supplies, agriculture, industry, and healthy ecosystems.

They provide essential benefits such as climate regulation and protection from natural hazards.

The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) indicates that preserving glaciers is vital for the well-being of individuals and communities worldwide, adding that through the implementation of sustainable glacier management and monitoring practices, humanity can protect these frozen reservoirs that still hold approximately 70 per cent of Earth's freshwater.

Meltwater flows are changing for billions of people, causing floods, droughts, landslides and sea level rise, thus putting several communities and ecosystems at risk of devastation.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that increased glacier melting has resulted in today’s sea level getting to about 20 cm higher than what pertained in 1900.

UN Water and UNESCO put the number of people who rely on water from glaciers, snowmelt and mountain run-off for drinking, agriculture, and energy production at nearly two billion and that is a huge chunk of the world’s population who cannot be neglected.

Indeed, a recent study hosted at the University of Zurich in Switzerland confirms that at present melt rates, many glaciers in Western Canada and the USA, Scandinavia, Central Europe, the Caucasus, New Zealand, and the tropics will not survive the 21st Century.

The study indicates that from 2000 to 2023, the global glacier mass loss totalled 6,542 billion tonnes – or 273 billion tonnes of ice lost per year, while the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) says that in 2023 glaciers lost more than 600 gigatons of water, the largest mass loss registered in 50 years.

These statistics are scary and we join experts to call for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to slow down glacial retreat, as well as reductions in carbon emissions and local strategies to adapt to shrinking glaciers.

As the country joined the global community to mark WWD 2025 on the local theme; “Water conservation: Let’s make it our way of life,” last Friday, it called for action on water conservation.

With access to fresh and potable water becoming more difficult, we believe that the prudent thing to do is to avoid wastage of what is left of our water resources, and instead make conservation our way of life.

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), even though access to water in Ghana has improved significantly, one person out of every 10 has to spend more than 30 minutes to access an improved source of drinking water, while another 11 per cent of the population still drink from surface and other unsafe water sources.

It also states that 76 per cent of households in Ghana are at risk of drinking water that is contaminated with faecal matter, and that only four per cent of households treat water suitably before drinking, and 93 per cent of households do not treat water at all.

Also, there are inequities within regions, with households in the Northern Region 16 times more likely to spend more than 30 minutes collecting water than those in Greater Accra.

To make matters worse, currently, Ghana's rivers, including the Volta, Pra, and Ankobra, are facing challenges due to sand winning at the river banks, pollution from illegal mining, agricultural runoff and industrial waste, among other human activities.

These staggering facts are the more reason why we must ensure sustainable water management and see water conservation as a shared responsibility.

We urge individuals, businesses and communities to take proactive steps to protect Ghana’s water bodies, else we will wake up one morning with no water to drink and for household activities.