What is It and Why Does It Matter?
At AquaTru, every month revolves around water quality, but August is when we can celebrate it collectively. This month, we’ll be recognizing National Water Quality Awareness Month. Clean water is vital to support human health and the needs of our planet. We’ll be joining other companies and organizations in recognizing that the world’s freshwater is limited so that we can take action to protect it.
The Purpose of National Water Quality Month
When’s the last time you’ve thought about water—really thought about it?
From bathing to baking, clean water is the foundation of many of our daily activities. National Water Quality Awareness Month reminds us to slow down and consider the importance of clean water, as well as how our lives might look without it.
Clean, running, essentially-limitless water is something we shouldn’t take for granted. In fact, it’s something we should be extremely grateful for.
And it’s not just humans who rely on clean water. The inhabitants of a diverse range of ecosystems depend on water for their survival, too. From plants that thrive in coastal regions to fish that live in our lakes and oceans, our actions can impact the beings that need water just like we do!
National Water Quality Month History
1970 was a busy year. It’s the year we first celebrated Earth Day and it’s also when two US congressional acts were passed—which would eventually lead to National Water Quality Month.
Before the early 1970’s, there wasn’t a lot of citizen awareness about water pollution or water safety. But that quickly changed as the Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act were passed.
For the first time, Americans and our federal government began to realize that human activities could have a detrimental impact on water—including the water we consumed ourselves. To further engagement with water-related issues, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—with support of the United Nations—founded National Water Quality Month in 2005.
Some Thoughts to Get You Started
As a backdrop for the month-long celebration of all things water, here are a few stats to consider:
- Although water makes up 70% of Earth’s surface area, freshwater only encompasses 3%. Of that amount, just 1% is easily accessible to meet humanity’s needs!
- According to the National Parks Conservation Association, 207 of the United States’ 397 national parks (52%) have waterways that are “impaired”—meaning they don’t meet quality standards set forth by the Clean Water Act.
- Around the globe, 117 million people don’t have access to clean water near their homes, according to UNICEF.
- A newborn dies every minute as a result of infections from unsafe water and unclean environments.
- Without significant action, over half of the world’s population will live in water-stressed areas by 2025.
Stay Tuned For What’s to Come
AquaTru never waters down the truth about water injustices, and we’ll do our part to share why clean water has unfortunately become a privilege, not a right as it should be. This month, we’ll touch on different water-related topics and share how you can do your part to conserve freshwater. Consider this your invitation to sit back and explore the various aspects involved in each and every sip.
