Water is life
A beaver carries a willow branch across the water. (Photo by Steve Hillebrand, courtesy of USFWS)
Water is beneficial. Water is necessary. Water is peaceful and soothing, but also fun and entertaining.
There are roughly one million cubic kilometres of water on Earth. This includes oceans, glaciers, icebergs, rivers, lakes, groundwater and atmospheric water. Yet less than three percent of this volume is freshwater — and some experts say that number is closer to one percent. Even scarier, just less than a third of one percent of this freshwater comes from lakes and rivers. This, incidentally, is where most of our everyday water comes from.
We’re very fortunate in Canada. We have access to about 20 percent of the world’s surface freshwater and we use or consume it in everyday activities: whether bathing, swimming, eating, generating power, manufacturing, farming, gardening and more. We have so much water in Canada that we don’t think twice about using it — or wasting it. But have you ever gone scuba diving or snorkelling, or searched for insects and small amphibians along rivers? The life water can sustain is amazing!
But what does water really mean to Canadians? Statistics Canada claims swimming is one of the most popular sports among Canadians, ranking first in popularity for women and eighth for men. Canoe and kayak adventures prove we don’t just like to play in the water, but on the water as well, enjoying Canada’s beautiful scenery. Lesser-known water sports such as paddle boarding and kite surfing are becoming increasingly popular. Meanwhile, schools such as the University of Guelph and Dalhousie offer degrees in Marine Science. Others like Fleming College and the British Columbia Institute of Technology offer degrees in ecological restoration.
Water is readily available through a tap or bottle. And water also plays a huge role in the production of our food and most products we use and consume. According to the Water Footprint Network:
- The global average water footprint of potato is 290 litre/kg. Potato chips cost 1,040 litres of water per kilogram of potato chips.
- The global average water footprint of one pizza margherita (725 gram) is 1,260 litres of water. Mozzarella represents about 50 percent of the total water use, bread wheat flour 44 percent and tomato puree about six percent.
- Orange juice costs 1,020 litres of water per litre of orange juice. One glass of orange juice (200 ml) costs about 200 litres of water.
- More product footprints are available here >
In a recent post on the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s (NCC’s) Facebook page, we asked you: What is water to you? Whether you like to stroll along the beach and listen to the surf, participate in water sports, or consider water an important ingredient in beer, one fact is clear: water = life.
Valerie from New Brunswick said: “A necessity for life, a habitat for many living things, a source of beauty and a calming influence.”
Barbara in Ontario responds: “Life and a physical reminder of a spiritual presence much bigger and more valuable than I could ever hope to be.”
For Jocelyn, water is her relief from stress, by swimming or walking along a river.
For StarznSky, water is “music...crashing of waves, the power of a waterfall, the gently lapping of the tide on the shore, the song of a flowing creek. It's home for some beautiful, and amazing creatures.”
Maybe Dana’s comment best summarizes what water means to Canadians: "without water there is nothing."
No infrastructure, no manufacturing, no animals, no insects, no plants, no food...no humans.
Or, perhaps it is Judith from Ontario who said it best: water is "a miracle."
So, what does water mean to you?
About the Author
Amy Anastasopoulos is NCC's manager of direct response marketing.
