World Water Day

Being down in Georgia means that I think about water supply a lot these days. I have seen a few droughts come and go over the years. One of the worst occurred in summer 2007. We have been back to drought conditions since last year. Quite honestly, I would be surprised if we dug out of this current drought any time soon. We might receive a stormy spring, but will that put a dent in Georgia's current drought? I certainly hope so after paying dues going through a number of bad storms - like what we had on March 21. Right now, despite those ferocious storms/monsoons, it seemed as though we would be out of this year's drought in a snap. I suppose the answer is that instead of being at that horrifying "exceptional" or "extreme" level, we are somewhere between "moderate" and "severe." Here's hoping we will improve with more steady rain without the high winds, hail and lightning.

This brings me to the fact that March 22 is World Water Day 2017. The United Nations dedicated this day to get us think about something as simple as water. While we experience drought here in the U.S., it is far worse in many other corners of the globe. Each year the UN chooses a different theme for this day. This year the UN chose wastewater. According to the organization, over 80 percent of wastewater flows back into the ecosystem without being treated or reused. Additionally, 1.8 billion people use contaminate water - putting the users at risk of cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio. 842,000 die each year due to unsafe water supplies.

On this day and especially this year, we are reminded that the UN has a sustainable development goal ensure safe wastewater on this planet. Click here to find out more.