THE FRESHWATER CRISIS

Only a hermit or an ostrich would be unaware that we are facing a critical moment in the supply of freshwater in Cyprus, but neither has its head in the sand all the time.

This summer has seen almost daily media coverage of the crisis, but how often do we stop to really think about the seriousness of the situation? In July the Environment Commissioner, Charalampos Theopemptou, emphasised the warnings given in the paper on climate change and water published by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The facts as presented by the IPCC are these:

· Rainfall in the Mediterranean will drop by 20%.
· Groundwater recharges in the Southern Mediterranean will drop by 70% by 2050.
· Expected rise in sea levels will increase the salinity of groundwater supplies, affecting the quality of drinking water.
· Consecutive days without water will increase, threatening agriculture and forests. (Trees stressed by drought are more vulnerable to disease and there is an increased risk of forest fires.)
This is a prospect we cannot ignore. Climate change is with us, however much we debate the causes.

Measures to conserve and ensure an adequate supply of freshwater require a unified policy for water management.
In Cyprus, part of the problem lies in the fragmentation of responsibilities and authority, and a lack of enforcement. Sustainable solutions based on proper management of consumption and supply should be put in place as soon as possible.
As individuals and households we can all make savings by thinking carefully about our use of water; water authorities can repair leaks in the supply network; grey water can be recycled for non-potable use in the home and garden (low-tech method, use a bowl in the kitchen sink and bathroom basin); rainwater can be collected and stored; drought resistant plants and crops can be introduced, encouraging use of native tree planting, cacti, succulents etc.; drip irrigation can be used instead of sprinklers; legislation to make the installation of recycling and sewage systems mandatory in all new buildings; proper management of water usage in swimming pools by mandatory use of covers to reduce evaporation; limiting the numbers of swimming pools; and of course pricing water realistically will make us all think twice before we waste it.
The availability of clean, drinkable, freshwater is something we all expect, but do we realise just how much we use? Here’s a figure:
1,000 cubic metres per annum is the minimum water each person requires for drinking, hygiene, and growing food. The volume is equivalent to 2/5 of an Olympic-size swimming pool. (Scientific American, August 2008)

Ideally, we would like that water to be the fresh kind which falls from the sky; after all, desalinated water is manufactured water and comes with a significant environmental and energy-usage cost. A recent study by the WWF calculates that the average UK household use of water for drinking and washing per person per day is approximately 150 litres.
Here are some more figures:
One 18-hole golf course can use as much water in a year as a town of 10,000 houses. 9 litres per sq.m. per day are needed to keep a fairway or tee looking green. (Guardian Weekly, July 29, 2005)

Do we really need 14 golf courses in Cyprus, the majority in the Paphos district, when the citizen copes with cuts in the water supply and the farmers who grow our food have their allocation drastically reduced?
Do we think about our water footprint? Coffee production consumes 2% of the world’s water; one cotton T-shirt requires 7,000 litres of water; the production of 1 kilo of beef requires 16,000 litres of water (the United Nations has recently called for a reduction in meat consumption in order to conserve water resources). Look at www.waterfootprint.org to calculate your water footprint.
Desalination is not a sustainable solution to the freshwater crisis in Cyprus. It encourages over-use of water, is a polluting process and all consumers will eventually have to pay higher electricity bills as Cyprus exceeds the energy targets set by the EU, resulting in considerable fines. If, as has been suggested, the Cyprus government denies the golf resorts the use of recycled water (allocating it for agricultural use) and the golf courses are dependent on desalination, who will ultimately pay the EU fines for exceeding energy targets, the ordinary consumer or the developers?
There are many alternative approaches to ensuring an adequate supply for all, beginning with the setting up of an independent water body which will implement unified water policies throughout the island and greater awareness of each individual’s personal responsibility in relation to their consumption of freshwater.