Berlin uses kids in water saving drive

By Stevie Emilia

BERLIN (JP): Children can help save water, too. That assumption drives the Berlin water company's inclusion of children as a target in its campaign to cut excessive water consumption.

"Educating children is an important step to reduce high water consumption," said Wolfgang Ulbrich, head of the company.

The problem is sizable: it is estimated that each of the city's less than four million residents consume 130 liters of freshwater per day.

Efforts to reduce the high water consumption include inviting schoolchildren to visit the company's waterworks to observe the process of making groundwater potable.

"It's effective. By seeing the process themselves, they will understand the need to value water and when they get home the children will tell their parents to do the same," Ulbrich said.

The children also learn how they can save water during everyday routines, such as turning off the tap while they are brushing their teeth.

Berlin is highly dependent on groundwater as the main source of its drinking water.

"The groundwater table is not increasing, so we have to protect them by reducing people's water consumption instead," Ulbrich said.

He warned a water crisis was a serious threat to people's survival unless serious anticipative measures were taken.

Although 70 percent of the world is covered with water, 97.5 percent is saltwater, leaving just 2.5 percent of freshwater to support human life in the form of surface water, such as lakes, rivers and groundwater.

A recent report by the World Wide Fund for Nature found water crises were not usually caused by natural factors, such as drought, but by human mismanagement through pollution, improper water resource management and inadequate legislation and regulations to address the problems.

But, in many parts of the world, the current patterns in the development and use of freshwater resources are not sustainable, either from economic, social or environmental points of view.

The United Nations estimated that under the current patterns of water use, an estimated two-thirds of the total world population may well face moderate to severe water crises by 2025, compared to one third at present.

Zoning

In Berlin, tap water is potable. The groundwater is treated in 11 waterworks spread throughout the city. To assure its safety, the company conducts random tests everyday, aside from regular tests five times a week in 384 testing spots.

Berlin has done a lot to protect its precious groundwater.

Back in 1986, the authority introduced stricter limits on drinking water, such as by imposing three zoning systems surrounding its groundwater sources.

In the 10-meter zone, one is not allowed to camp or use pesticides on plants to prevent chemical contamination. In the 150 to 200 meters zone, no transport of contaminated liquid is allowed.

In the 2.5-kilometer zone, gas stations are prohibited.

Ulbrich said that the zoning system was imposed as human actions can affect groundwater quality.

Waste discharges from motor vehicles, homes, offices, industries as well as chemicals and animal wastes from agricultural production, can create contaminated run-off, of which some seeps into groundwater, he said.

"Initially, people were complaining about the zoning system. But later on, they started to understand that it was for their own sake."

Even though no legal sanctions will be imposed on the zoning's violators, a team is assigned to monitor each zoning area.

"If there's a violation, we'll talk to them (violators)," he said.

Most Berliners do not need to be told about the need to protect groundwater.

City resident Peter Prfert said he understood the authority's aim in protecting groundwater.

"I don't want to drink contaminated groundwater... so, the zoning system is fine with me."

The authority also strictly regulates construction work in the city which could threaten groundwater tables.

"If construction work hits a groundwater table, they should pump them out and add them to another groundwater table. The purpose is to make the groundwater table reach the same level," Ulbrich said.