User:Mxranda/Drinking water

Lead
* delete "For those who work in a hot climate, up to 16 litres a day may be required" in the last sentence of the lead.*

Water resources and regulations
Further information: Water resources

Guidelines for the assessment and improvement of service activities relating to drinking water have been published in the form of International standards for drinking water such as ISO 24510.

Global
Water covers approximately 70% of the Earth's surface, where approximately 97.2% of it is saline, only 2.8% fresh. Potable water is available in almost all populated areas of the Earth, although it may be expensive and the supply may not always be sustainable. Sources where water may be obtained include:


 * Ground sources such as groundwater, springs, hyporheic zones and aquifers
 * Precipitation which includes rain, hail, snow, fog, etc.
 * Surface water such as rivers, streams, glaciers
 * Biological sources such as plants
 * Desalinated seawater
 * Water supply network
 * Atmospheric water generator

Springs are often used as sources for bottled waters. Tap water, delivered by domestic water systems refers to water piped to homes and delivered to a tap or spigot. For these water sources to be consumed safely, they must receive adequate treatment and meet drinking water regulations.

The most efficient and convenient way to transport and deliver potable water is through pipes. Plumbing can require significant capital investment. Some systems suffer high operating costs. The cost to replace the deteriorating water and sanitation infrastructure of industrialized countries may be as high as $200 billion a year. Leakage of untreated and treated water from pipes reduces access to water. Leakage rates of 50% are not uncommon in urban systems.

Because of the high initial investments, many less wealthy nations cannot afford to develop or sustain appropriate infrastructure, and as a consequence people in these areas may spend a correspondingly higher fraction of their income on water. 2003 statistics from El Salvador, for example, indicate that the poorest 20% of households spend more than 10% of their total income on water. In the United Kingdom authorities define spending of more than 3% of one's income on water as a hardship.

United States
In the US, the typical water consumption per capita, at home, is 69.3 US gallons (262 l; 57.7 imp gal) of water per day. Of this, only 1% of the water provided by public water suppliers is for drinking and cooking. Uses include (in decreasing order) toilets, washing machines, showers, baths, faucets, and leaks. Public water systems, defined as systems that serve more than 25 customers or 15 service connections, are regulated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Safe Drinking Water Act. In some parts of the country water supplies are dangerously low due to drought and depletion of the aquifers, particularly in the West and the South East region of the U.S.[better source needed] Many of the dry, desert areas in the U.S. have this problem. According to AZCentral, "Arizona’s groundwater levels are plummeting in many areas... The water levels in more than 2,000 wells have dropped more than 100 feet since they were first drilled." That sample size is approximately a fourth of Arizona's drinking-water wells.

[Main article: Drinking water quality in the United States]

In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sets standards for public water systems under the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). As of 2019 EPA has issued 88 standards for microorganisms, chemicals and radionuclides. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled water as a food product under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act(FFDCA). Bottled water is not necessarily more pure, or more tested, than public tap water. Peter W. Preuss, former head of EPA's division analyzing environmental risks, has been "particularly concerned" about current drinking water standards, and suggested in 2009 that regulations against certain chemicals should be tightened.

In 2010 the EPA showed that 54 active pharmaceutical ingredients and ten metabolites had been found in treated drinking water. An earlier study from 2005 by the EPA and the Geographical Survey[who?] states that 40% of water was contaminated with nonprescription pharmaceuticals, and it has been reported that 8 of the 12 most commonly occurring chemicals in drinking water are estrogenic hormones. Of the pharmaceutical components found in drinking water, the EPA only regulates lindane. In 2009, the EPA did announce another 13 chemicals, hormones, and antibiotics that could potentially be regulated.

EPA published a proposed rule on June 26, 2019 that would establish a standard for perchlorate. The Agency is proposing a maximum contaminant level of 0.056 mg/L.

Canada
The drinking water in Canada's cities is regularly tested and considered safe, but on many native reserves clean drinking water is considered a luxury. The Canadian government regulates water quality for off-reserve communities, not on reserves where indigenous people live, making it extremely difficult for indigenous people to have access to clean, sanitary water. According to the Human Rights Watch, First Nations reserves in Canada were found to have water contaminations that included coliform, E. coli, Trihalomethane, and uranium, which may cause gastrointestinal diseases or increased risks for cancer. The latest Canadian government of 2015 was to spend additional funds to fix the problem but has not had success.

Mexico
Amidst the water crisis occurring in Mexico, Mexico City has been sinking downwards approximately 1 meter every year. Due to years of draining groundwater for public and agricultural use, the negative effects of relying on groundwater has influenced the Mexican government to call attention towards a campaign titled "February 2010: The City May Run Out of Water." Mexico continues to pump out groundwater from deeper ground layers, causing the drainage of soil and weak ground. According to the World Health Organization in 2015, approximately 100% of urban populations used at least basic drinking water sources, whereas approximately 94% of rural populations used at least basic drinking-water.

European Union
Main article: Water supply and sanitation in the European Union

The EU sets legislation on water quality. Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2000 establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy, known as the water framework directive, is the primary piece of legislation governing water. This drinking water directive relates specifically to water intended for human consumption.

Each member state is responsible for establishing the required policing measures to ensure that the legislation is implemented. For example, in the UK the Water Quality Regulations prescribe maximum values for substances that affect wholesomeness and the Drinking Water Inspectorate polices the water companies.

Russian Federation
Further information: Water supply and sanitation in Russia

A list of normative documents that regulate the quality of drinking water in Russia:


 * Sanitary norms and rules SanPin 2.1.4.1074-01 "Drinking Water. Hygienic requirements for water quality of centralized drinking water supply. Quality Control. "
 * Sanitary norms and rules SanPin 2.1.4.1116-02 "Drinking Water. Hygienic requirements for water quality, packaged in a container. Quality Control. "

Climate change aspects
Climate change impacts potable water in the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) area, where around 1.4 billion people are dependent on the five main rivers of Himalaya mountains. Although the impact will vary from place to place, it is predicted that the amount of meltwater will initially increase due to retreating glaciers and then gradually decrease because of reducing in glacier mass. In those areas where the amount of available water decreases, climate change makes it difficult to improve access to safe drinkable water. HKH area faces rapid urbanization causing a severe shortage of water and pressure on water resources. Rural areas will also suffer because of a lack of effective water management infrastructure and limited access to drinking water. More people will migrate because of the scarcity of drinking water. This situation will increase inequality by leaving the poor behind that cause higher mortality and suicide rate, and accelerate further urbanization.

Water quality
* insert whole text of 'Water quality'*

Health aspects
Contaminated water is estimated to result in more than half a million deaths per year. Contaminated water together with lack of sanitation was estimated to cause about one percent of disability adjusted life years worldwide in 2010. As contaminated water takes its toll on the health of those exposed, the duration of exposure plays a part in the effects of certain diseases.

Diarrheal diseases
Over 90% of deaths from diarrheal diseases in the developing world today occur in children under five years old. According to the World Health Organization, the most common diseases linked with poor water quality are cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, typhoid, and polio. Malnutrition, especially protein-energy malnutrition, can decrease the children's resistance to infections, including water-related diarrheal diseases. Between 2000 and 2003, 769,000 children under five years old in sub-Saharan Africa died each year from diarrheal diseases. As a result from poor water quality and bad sanitation, an estimated 829,000 people die each year from diarrhoea. Only thirty-six percent of the population in the sub-Saharan region have access to proper means of sanitation. More than 2,000 children's lives are lost every day. In South Asia, 683,000 children under five years old died each year from diarrheal disease from 2000 to 2003. During the same period, in developed countries, 700 children under five years old died from diarrheal disease. Improved water supply reduces diarrhea morbidity by 25% and improvements in drinking water through proper storage in the home and chlorination reduces diarrhea episodes by 39%.

Benefits of proper hydration
Life is built on the basis of water. It has a crucial role in optimizing a majority of bodily processes and systems. Therefore, the lack of consumption of water can lead to death in just a few days. Furthermore, without proper hydration, the body is not able to effectively perform processes such as the process of metabolism or thermoregulation. Additionally, being dehydrated affects physiological efficiency, cognitive efficiency, and other biological processes that involve the heart, the gastrointestinal tract, and the kidney, and more.

Physiologically, especially during exercise in warmer temperatures, dehydration can cause people to experience hyperthermia, lesser efficiency in blood flowing to the body's muscles, and more. Along with this, hydration affects a person's energy levels, a person's weight, can cause headaches, and it even has links to chronic diseases. Cognitively, dehydration can lead to a person's lack of concentration, a lack of short term memory retention, and a lack of attentiveness.