Save Some Water, Save the World

Big River Trailer from Wicked Delicate Films on Vimeo.

Back with another indicting documentary about big agriculture in America are "King Corn" filmmakers Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, this time telling the story of what happens downstream.

Water. The lifeblood of...well, life. It's such an invaluable resource, and yet most of us have been so slow to appreciate it. It's easy to forget that there's any "water crisis" at all, what with a seemingly unlimited supply of it in our showers, toilets and faucets. But there is a serious crisis looming, and for some parts of the world, it's already arrived.

This map, from the BBC, shows, in darker colors, the areas of the world that will be experiencing what is known as water stress by 2050. What can we do about it? First of all, conserving water at home is important, as is spreading the message. Secondly, and this is the tougher part, we need to enact economy-wide changes in our modus operandi, especially in areas where we're currently using up most of the water: agriculture. But how? I say to tell your representatives in government that conserving water matters to you, and pursuing alternative, local, and more efficient methods of producing food is an issue you care about. Tell him or her that your vote depends on it.

It's a widely documented fact that agricultural uses account for 70% of the available fresh water on the planet. If we could cut that number, then we'd be doing our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world a favor not only by increasing the amount available to them, but by setting an example of restraint and respect towards the natural world that we've been born into.

Obviously, we here at RTS think one way to help cut the amount of water we use is to grow food locally, on city rooftops. It may be a small step, but it's a small step in the right direction.
(Image from here...check it out!)