We face a global sanitation crisis. Today, 3.6 billion people are still living with poor quality toilets that ruin their health and pollute their environment. Every day, more than 800 children die from diarrhea linked to unsafe water, sanitation and poor hygiene.
This year, World Toilet Day focuses on the impact of the sanitation crisis on groundwater.
Inadequate sanitation systems spread human waste into rivers, lakes and soil, polluting the water resources under our feet. However, this problem seems to be invisible. Invisible because it happens underground. Invisible because it happens in the poorest and most marginalized communities.
Groundwater is our most abundant source of freshwater. It supports our drinking water supplies, sanitation systems, farming, industry and ecosystems. As climate change worsens and populations grow, groundwater is vital for our survival.
Safely managed sanitation protects groundwater from human waste pollution. Sustainable Development Goal 6.2 is the world’s promise to ensure safe toilets for all by 2030. This means everyone having access to a toilet connected to a sanitation system that effectively removes and treats human waste. But, we are seriously off track to meet this target.
We must work on average four times faster to ensure everyone has a safe toilet by 2030. The connection between sanitation and groundwater cannot be overlooked. Time is running out. We must make the invisible visible.
Digital editor's note: This year World Toilet Day and Portable Sanitation Day fall on Saturday, Nov. 19. Enjoy this week's related content in honor of the occasion and be sure to review portable sanitation stats here before quizzing yourself here.
