On April 8th, Maude Barlow came to speak to an audience in Boyd 144 about the global water situation. Barlow was an advisor on water to the 63rdpresident of the United Nation’s general assembly, and is the co-founder of the Blue Planet Project.
Barlow’s speech is a part of Plymouth State’s annual water week, which goes from April 8–12th. Water week’s goal is to inform Plymouth State University and the surrounding community about water consumption, and water’s role as a human right.
Barlow said the planet is “running out of clean accessible water.” Barlow later commented “22 countries in Africa are in crisis, one in three people in Africa do not have access to clean water.”
The global water crisis has also had a severe impact on the United States. The United States is on a verge of a water crisis: “the Colorado River is only producing about half of the volume of water that is produced three decades ago,” commented Barlow. Barlow mentioned the current situation with the Great Lakes: “The Great Lake’s water level is the lowest it has ever been, since they started keeping statistics in 1918.”
Another issue concerning the water crisis that Barlow addressed was bottled water. Bottled water has caused a great deal of pollution in the United States. “Empty bottles of water can go to the moon and back 65 times,” said Barlow.
Barlow claims the bottled water crisis is caused by corporations desire to control access to water: “whoever controls access to water will be very powerful and wealthy.”
Although, this is a major issue Barlow believes that the conflict is solvable, and is optimistic for the future. “I have a lot of hope. There is a consciousness among this age group that wasn’t there 10 years ago.”
Plymouth State University is currently involved in the water crisis. Students on campus are currently fighting to “ban the sale of bottled water,” said Math and Political Science major, Zack Goldenberg. Goldenberg sees the ban on bottled water “passing this Sunday, and coming into effect.”
PSU is on the “verge of making this historic thing happen at this university, by banning the sale of bottled water,” said Barlow.
PSU’s decision to ban bottled water will be declared on Sunday, April 14th.