Much water is flowing under the bridge as we mark World Water Day today with Sri Lanka and other Third World countries being alert to the vital importance of water in the years to come while also focusing more attention on fresh water conservation.

For the past two decades the United States and regional super powers have based their geo-political strategies and even gone to war to gain control of oil and natural gas resources though they claim the battle was against terrorism or so-called rogue states that had weapons of mass destruction. Eventually it turned out to be a case of the big powers using weapons of mass deception. Independent political and economic analysts believe that in the coming years the world may face a serious shortage of fresh water and the big powers may use various strategies including war to gain control of fresh water resources.

Sri Lanka as a tropical island has been blessed with several major rivers and canals. Some years ago trans-national companies were known to have tried through subtle and sophisticated ways to gain control of our fresh water resources. Hugh commissions and kickbacks were apparently offered, but fortunately environmental and civic action groups brought about public awareness to prevent the takeover of our fresh water resources.

While a water-tight assurance is given and maintained on a national basis, the people of Sri Lanka need to go beyond the symbolism of World Water Day. We all need to take practical steps to stop wastage and save water. If political and other leaders could set an example to the people, the process would be like an ever-flowing spring.

Indeed saving water needs to be seen not so much as a matter of reducing the water bill, but as a sincere act of patriotism. If every one of us could save about five litres of water a day, it will mean a saving of as much as 100 million litres a day.

In addition, as good citizens who love the country despite all the political duplicity and corruption, every family could work out methods of recycling bath water for use in the toilets, as families in western countries are doing in a big way.

Rain water harvesting is another method through which thousands of families could contribute in a major way towards the conservation of water. The government needs to conduct awareness programmes through television, newspapers and radio on how people could help the country through rain water harvesting.

Another important factor will be the restoration of thousands of ‘wawes’ which at one time played a key role in our noble agriculture based civilization. Some years ago the Jvp–backed Government launched a massive project to restore thousands of ‘wewas’, but the project was drowned like so many other good schemes that we started but did not sustain. The Government could mark world Water Day by relaunching this project to restore the ‘wewas’ so that the dream of a famous king will come true and not a drop of water will go waste.

Source: Daily Mirror - Sri Lanka