Drinking Water

Title: Drinking Water – A History

Author: James Salzman

Publisher: Overlook Duckworth, 2013 (First published 2012)

ISBN: 9781468307115

Pages: 320

Water is essential for all life forms. Perhaps that is the reason why we treat it in such a cavalier fashion often. We assume it to be a fundamental right of every human being to have access to clean drinking water. However, the cleanness of the water we consume is not a guaranteed entitlement in many parts of the world. Public opinion is divided in the middle on how to handle the issue of drinking water. Some say it is a basic human right that is to be fulfilled by governments free of cost, or if at all, with a nominal price tag. On the other hand, there are people who point out that water is a commodity just like food, even though both are equally essential to life. The quantity and quality of water will be improved if and only if more capital is infused into it. This mandates private enterprise and competitive pricing. However, the side that opposes privatization enjoys greater popular support and political backing. This is amply illustrated by the revoking of rights granted in many parts of the world to entrepreneurs. This book presents a brief history of how drinking water was distributed in households of ancient civilizations, how the distribution system took shape, and the several issues related to the handling, distribution and marketing of water. It also provides a brief glimpse on the methods of purification at the end point, that is, our homes. James Salzman is a distinguished professor of Environmental Law at UC Santa Barbara. He has addressed topics spanning drinking water, trade and environment through his books and articles. Consensus among scholars points him out as the fifth most cited environmental law professor in the world. This book is a must read for environmental enthusiasts and students of public administration.

Salzman begins with a general discussion on the need of any society to ensure its supply of drinking water, which involves source identification, its protection from enemies, purification by suitable treatment, and distribution to end users. Water is essential to life, but the question of whether to treat it as a commodity is still not settled conclusively. Ancient communities recognized the Right of Thirst, in some cases, even to outsiders of the tribe. If a person was thirsty, water was given to him, without any monetary obligation. On the other hand, there is a group that argues that even though food is equally essential to life, that is held as a commodity that can be bought and sold freely. Why water should be singled out then? The issue of free water supply dogged private investment in water treatment and distribution for a long time with its repercussions felt in the bottled water industry also. Strange as it may seem, but bottled water is making its second appearance now. It flourished at the end of the 19^th century, when water treatment plants were unheard of, or in its infancy. By the middle of the next century, efficient treatment schemes were in place, making tap water safer. This forced bottled water companies into hibernation. Now, as the public perception on the safety of tap water has again hit a bottom, they are back in the game. Chlorination was the most effective technique that removed biological contaminants from drinking water. Salzman notes with concern the widespread practice in Asia of using a common water cup. This is a recipe for inviting contagious diseases, but we are oblivious of the darker side of this common custom. The book includes posters of information campaigns that sought to end the use of a common cup in public places. Disposable cups known as Dixie Cups were developed as a solution to this menace. At the same time, sharing of water, especially at a holy place like Lourdes in France, Zamzam well in Mecca or numerous Hindu pilgrimage sites was quite common across the world.

The second part of the text deals with transportation, sale and distribution of water on an industrial scale. The emergence of bottled water owed its origins surprisingly to marketing charades of shrines and religious places which certified a bottle of water with special seals to denote that it was taken from a source considered to be holy. People venerate water from springs, which explains the liberal use of snow-clad mountains and streams on the bottles of water we purchase from shops in the city. Depending on the minerals dissolved in it, water from springs can offer therapeutic value, as Lithium salts in solution are helpful for alleviating mental illnesses. So, Salzman is hinting that there might be some truth behind miraculous cures claimed by holy water. He also notes with irony that tap water is regulated more closely than bottled water. Stringent rules on the safety of tap water exist, whereas bottled water is treated as packaged food and lax rules apply. Besides, the use of PET bottles pause biohazards as well. Notwithstanding the pollution caused by discarded bottles, manufacturing of one bottle that can hold one liter of water requires the use of three to four liters of water. Storage and distribution of drinking water raises some interesting problems as well. Threat of terrorism in the wake of 9/11 has forced many U.S. cities to considerably enhance the physical security thrown in for their water treatment plants and distribution pipelines. The author lists many plausible scenarios of attack, each more fanciful than the previous one.

The book throws some light on a raging issue that exercises the minds of many people across the world – that of whether water is a marketable commodity or a human need. Those who assert that water is a gift from god get the stinging rejoinder that He had forgotten to lay the pipes to distribute it! Politicians and public anywhere in the world generally side with the altruist cause. This was the real reason in reversing the decision to allow private companies to participate in water distribution projects. Only the constitutions of India and South Africa recognized water as a fundamental right of a citizen. However, the ground reality is far removed from the idealistic banter. Salzman explains a number of technologies currently available to improve water conditions at the point of use. Even though a bit costly, this ensures the best value for money for speedy implementation. An informative discussion on treatment of sewage as recycled water for potable use is presented. This may feel disgusting for the casual reader, myself being one of them. But on second thoughts, what is so revolting in the idea? The water we consider as pure and drinkable took its liquid shape long, long ago, and many plants and animals might’ve ingested and then discharged it!

Nobody can fail to notice the immense significance of the topic in our daily lives when we remember that drinking water is the single largest killer today in the form of communicable diseases spread by contaminated water. However, the author’s lament that there are no books on the subject is not borne out by facts. Philip Ball’s eminently readable book, ‘H₂O – A Biography of Water’ is one such. Interested readers can read a review in this blog itself. Having written the book for an American audience in mind, most of the units are not represented by their more familiar international equivalents. Gallons and ounces confound the reader in place of liter and gram. By the same token, the author takes a condescending attitude towards other poor countries, by even remarking at one place that ‘even’ the United States don’t have such a system in place! Repetition of the same idea verbatim at two places may be attributed to the need for better organization of conceptual design. The book is accompanied by an impressive collection of Notes at the end and a good index. Even though the book is compiled with due care for the major political issues that are plaguing drinking water systems in the world, lack of sharp focus and depth of research is disconcerting at times.

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 3 Star