Water Facts

In many countries, a lack of access to clean water is the primary reason people are unable to rise out of poverty. Here are some facts to ponder:

• Over 1 billion people today do not have access to safe water, roughly 1 out of 6 people worldwide.
• More people die each year from unsafe water than from all forms of violence, including war.
• In the developing world contaminated water accounts for 80% of all diseases, including cholera, hepatitis, typhoid, dysentery and parasites.
• African woman and children bear the burden of walking for water an average of 4 to 8 miles a day.
• African women expend 85% of their energy every day getting water for their families.
• Physical ailments plague African woman carrying Gerry cans on their heads weighing an average of 44 pounds.

In contrast:

• Each flush of the toilet uses the same amount of water that one person in a developing nation uses all day for washing, cooking, cleaning, and drinking.
• The average American family turns the faucet on between 70 – 100 times/day.
• The typical American family uses 200 gallons of water a day while the African family uses on average 5 gallons a day.

The saddest fact:

Some 6,000 children die every day from disease associated with the lack of access to safe drinking water.

12 million people die each year that wouldn’t have to…