Environmental Issue Causing a Need for an "Island Civilization."

            Water pollution is one of the major environmental issues that have created a need for an “island civilization.” Although this problem exists throughout the majority of the planet, it is prevalent primarily within underdeveloped and developing countries such as Nigeria. In America and other developed countries, the water is virtually vacant of waterborne diseases (NRDC 1). However, within the aforementioned developing and underdeveloped countries, approximately five million people – six thousand of whom are children – die every day due to the condition of the water (1).

In Nigeria, one in every three people lack access to clean water (PSI 15). This means that people of all ages, including children, are subject to the copious bacteria inhabiting the filthy water. In fact, diarrhea caused from one of the bacteria is the second most frequent cause of death in children below the age of five (15).

            It is not just the health of the human population that is affected by poor water quality. When the water is not properly sanitized, it affects waterways, wildlife, and global warming as well (NRDC 2). Additionally, according to researchers at the Natural Resources Defense Council, the deficit of safe drinking water creates a rise in “population problems,” which are “Drying up water supplies and instigating conflict over scarce resources” (2).

            Water is a part of everyone’s daily lives. Water is used for cooking, bathing, swimming, and drinking. Since water directly affects so many aspects of life, it is obvious why the need for clean water is so crucial. When the water is contaminated, it can cause illness and, quite frequently, death. This creates a loss of billions of dollars every year. In fact, the United Nations made an estimate that the world would save over seven billion dollars in health care expenses if the amount of people without sanitized drinking water was reduced by half (NRDC 4).

With the need for safe water being so drastically unfilled, Fredrick Nash’s proposal of an “Island civilization,” which was an attempt to provide a solution to all of the world’s environmental issues, seems to be more reasonable. There are many issues that need to be addressed, and seem to only be getting ignored. If these problems, especially water pollution, continue to be neglected, the ending results may be, and likely will be, absolutely horrendous.

Citations:

Bringing Safe Water to the World. Natural Resource Defense Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Aug

            2012. <http://www.nrdc.org/international/safewater.asp>.
Nigeria. PSI Healthy lives. Measurable results.. Population Services International, n.d. Web.

            21 Aug 2012. <http://www.psi.org/nigeria>. 


(I'm not sure why, but I can't get the urls to stay on the same line as the date.)