Our planet | The lack of interest in the water situation is due to the lack of information

For many years there has been talk of water stress to which Peru is subjected and of the millions of Peruvians who still do not have access to drinking water. Although these problems are real, it is rare that it happens in a privileged country in terms of water resources.

“We are the eighth country with water availability in the world and the third in the region, behind Brazil and Colombia. So what is the problem? . This is due to our geography, which has divided us into three streams: the Amazon, which has 97% availability; that of the Pacific, where the largest amount of the population is, but only has 2.18%; and that of Titicaca, which has 0.82%”explains to Trade Juan Carlos Castro, former director of the National Water Authority (ANA) and the Environmental Assessment and Enforcement Agency (OEFA).

But to this situation we have to add many others such as the great use that is given to that little amount of water on the coast.

“There is a great need in key points, such as large cities and those that are growing rapidly. In addition, we have agriculture on the coast that uses a lot of water for products that are mostly for export. Rain patterns change and the water stored in the glaciers is less and less. This affects the whole country.”comments, for her part, Dr. Martha Bell, director of the PUCP Geography and Environment career.

Lack of information

For both experts, one of the main problems that people do not seem to care about is the distribution, layout and water care is the lack of information. They argue that while some have stayed with the explanations of the school about the water cycle in the country, without fully understanding what the entire process is like; .

“We have lost contact with our basins, which are fundamental, and we must know how they interact with each other. We must understand that the Amazonian forests play a fundamental role in the water cycle. We need to have all the information to make better decisions”recommends Dr. Bell.

“The more we contaminate a water source, the more expensive it is going to be to treat it so that the population is served. Another issue is that the rates of the Water They are still subsidized. If we were charged the real cost for the service, we would only become aware of the use we give to water”Castro emphasizes.

More data

• Watershed. It is a territory drained by a natural system towards a common collector or river, which empties into a lake or the sea. In Peru there are 159 basins.
• In the region. South America has 20.9% of fresh water available on the planet, according to data from UNESCO.

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