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has been che case with water.
Since che beginning of che indus–
trial revolution in che Uniced Scaces,
Americans have consumed water in
ever increasing quancicies in che belief
rhat che nation's trillion-gallon-per–
day stream Aow would supply cheir
needs forever.
Even now, comforcing scaciscics
from che U. S. Geological Survey
show tbat chis amount is more rhan
15
times tbat consumed and ar leasr
four times thac used for all purposes,
excepc for hydroeleccric power.
But of what qualicy is chis vasc re–
source? How much of ic is drinkable
wichouc expensive crearment? How
much is safe to bache or swim in?
The unhappy fact is chat chere is
scarcely a brook anywhere in che con–
tinental Uniced Scaces chac is encirely
free from pollucion. Many American
wacers now carry mo re chan a hun–
dred variecies of disease bacteria, co
say noching of chemical coxins from
industrial waste. Even che mighry
Mississippi River,
one
of che world's
great wacerways, is now licrle more
chan a running sewer.
Who is responsible? Indusrry?
Cicies? Not encirely.
We a/1 mmt share the blame.
Industrial and municipal wasres are
che obvious sources of wacer pollu–
cion. But che ultimare causes are an
PlAIN TRUTH
Jonuory
1973
inordinace demand for
che
goods in–
dustries produce and a lack of under–
sranding of che consequences of
water-borne wasce disposal.
Sewers Cosmetic,
But Not Hygienic
In an age when che garbage dis–
posa1 and che warer closec are looked
upon as necessities of
life,
chere may
be little real hope of having a truly
clean water supply for che vasc major–
icy.
Since our bodily wasces and even
our garbage are whisked away
through che sewers, 1eaving bath·
rooms and kirchens sparkling, we
rend ro rhink of che process as hy–
gienic. No odors in che house, no
Aies, no problem. Righr?
Wrong!
Once
our daily per capica half–
pound of organic waste gers inco che
sewer and mixes with water, ics vol–
ume increases about
2,000
times.
Worse, irs desrinacion is generally che
nearest river, lake or ocean, where ic is
dumped wirh a minimum of crear–
mene.
Many cicies pour their raw sewage
inco wacerways. This sewage-per–
meaced water muse chen serve as a
municipal drinking water supply for
downscream cicies. For che water co
be drinkable,
ic
muse be filtered and
creaced with chemicals at greac ex–
pense.
Even chen, millions of people muse
drink wacer which is below che Pub–
líe Healch Service standard, and mil–
lions more drink " inferior" wacer
(wacer wich abad odor, caste or color,
buc which is scill deemed "safe" co
drink).
According co che Federal Wacer
Quali ry Administracion, che annual
Aow of wasces inco Uniced States
wacerways from municipal sewers
amouncs ro more than
14
trillion gal–
lons. Thac represencs a total of more
than
68,000
gallons for every roan,
woman and child in che United
Scaces.
Careless use of household water
only increases che problem, since all
wacer used in
che
borne becomes sew–
age as soon as ic goes clown che drain.
Too Great a Demand
In
1900,
che Uniced Scaces' coral
wacer demand was only
40
billion gal–
lons per day. By
1965
che requiremenc
had risen co more chan
310
billion
gallons per day. The demand had in–
creased almosc eighc times while che
populacion had lictle more rhan dou–
bled. Do Americans (or anyone else)
real!y
need
as much wacer as chey use?
The average per capica usage of
wacer in
1965,
according co che U. S.
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