If We Don't Restore The Health Of Our Rivers, In a few years from now, this is what Ganga Would Look Like ...
Our climate is bruised, and the ramifications of it are evident on everything around us – the air we breathe, the food we eat and the water we drink. From our own health to the health of the water bodies across the world, climate change has spared nothing and no one. It’s now wrecking havoc on rivers the world over, including India. Your Page 1 agenda today is to understand the gravity of the situation as Ganga slowly and steadily dries up!
What can be done to revive rivers?
There is no fancy solution to this problem. Global warming has to be contained. For that we need strict legislation, check mismanagement of water, clean rivers, curtail or stop deforestation attempts, but most importantly, change the reckless attitude of communities towards rivers. There have been several instances where people have come together to revive water bodies that were dead for decades.
Once mighty, now drained water bodies of the world
Lake Poopó: Once Bolivia’s second largest lake, Poopó was full of water till 1986. It’s now dead, and the blame lies on the mismanagement of water, and rapid climate change.
Colorado River: The river which fuels taps of roughly 4 crore Americans, doesn’t have enough water as rising temperatures have sucked it dry.
Aral Sea: The poster child of dying ‘water bodies’ this lies between Kazakhstan in the north and Uzbekistan in the south. It started died as water was diverted to erstwhile Soviet Union for irrigation purposes in the 1960s.
Lake Chad: United Nations reports that 95% this African lake’s water was lost from 1963 to 1998.
Owens Lake: For at least 8 lakh years, this lake was rich and overflowed. Steamers used to ply but water was diverted in 1913 and it’s now completely dry. The dry bed is now the largest source of pollutants in Claifornia, America.
Ganga: India’s famous river is drying up as temperatures continue to rise across the country. There is not enough flow at several locations that the Ganges passes by.
Why rivers are drying up...
The world is turning warmer with every passing day, and in the process, it’s strawing water out of some of the world’s largest lakes, rivers and seas. The installation of dams, use of water for agriculture, human consumption, mismanagement of water, deforestation, sand mafia, unplanned constructions and the El Nino have all lead to dry days for major water bodies across the globe.
When the rivers run dry...
- People in the surrounding areas leave: When water bodies start to dry, people who live around and survive by fishing in the area, are the first to leave. Their relocation is tough
- Life within is killed: When a river is killed, its flora and fauna die along with it
- Pollution: A dry river is nothing but a bed of dust particles that spread with harsh winds
Your Thoughts? How Do You Think We Can Help To Restore Our Rivers