by Susan J Dipietro

Created on: December 26, 2008   Last Updated: January 12, 2009

As you begin to read, think about the water you have used already today. You probably started the day with a hot shower, made coffee, poured cool water into the dog's dish, and possibly washed a load of laundry. The water you used was most likely clean, and readily available with the turn of a faucet.

Now think about what your life would be like if you had to collect your own water and food. If you spent several hours each day collecting and purifying water, how much time would you have for other work and leisure activities? What would you do if your children became sick because the drinking water was contaminated? And how would you deal with a diminishing food supply as fish and other food sources in the region were depleted?

Approximately 3 percent of the water on earth is fresh water; hence, 97 percent of the earth's water is salt water- unusable for human consumption. There is a finite amount of water on earth, which is constantly moving through various stages including among others: precipitation, snow melt, and evaporation. This cycle is known as the hydrologic cycle, or the water cycle. Rivers are the lifeblood of the water cycle and our freshwater supply here on earth. They feed the groundwater systems, springs, wetlands and ponds, streams, lakes and estuaries.

A river's health has a direct correlation to the vitality of the region in which it exists. At its most basic level, fresh water is absolutely essential for human life. Water is needed for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and watering farm crops. As the demand grows for available water supplies for agricultural and industrial use, the water available for basic human health diminishes. The lack of proper sanitation and the associated diseases that contaminate drinking water supplies account for approximately 1.6 million deaths and 3.2 million cases of water-related infectious diseases world-wide each year.

Perhaps no where on earth is river pollution more visible than on the Citarum River which runs through Jakarta, Indonesia, home to 12 million people. Unregulated industrialization over the past 20 years is blamed for the problem. Chemicals have been poured into the river from the factories, and the river itself has been used as a moving trash dump. Garbage piles float on the water to such an extent, that the boats on the river appear to be sitting in a sea of trash, with no indication that there is actually water below. Many fishermen in the region have given up fishing, and collect trash that can be

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