Nature provides a great variety of habitats, unique places supporting a diversity of life. What happens when the balance between the Earth and all living things disrupts?
Mikhail Gorbachev: “An environmental catastrophe affects nature; it affect people; and not only our generations but also the generations that follow us”
Ted Danson, President American Oceans Campaign: “Its about your stewardship, of what you inherit and how well you take care of it and pass it on”.
Water is the most essential ingredient of Earths life support system. Different creatures; different plants; different needs, each one dependent on one precious resource: water.
Drinking water should always be clean and free of contaminants to ensure proper health and wellness. Water flows through every human endeavor. In the last few decades the delicate biological balance of water cycles in many places in the world has been disrupted. Population growth and pollution of water resources threatens the health of millions of people. Our need to support ever-higher levels of consumption and population often involves taking more and more of nature’s bounty.
This film explores how species survive in the souring heat of Namibia Desert and how scientist try to keep fish habitats alive in the spectacular Glen Canyon River Valley in the USA. Here the gigantic Colorado Dam obstructs the once wild Colorado River. It created a water reservoir distributing water and electricity to several American states…but the conservation of this aquatic resource is crucial for the survival of species. Scientists are imitating natural spring floods to recreate the nursing habitat and health of fish breeding grounds.
Since water is such an important component to our physiology, it would make sense that the quality of the water should be just as important as the quantity. One of the most important incentives for the formulation of ECC-water quality policies has been Europe’s Rhine River Management project. With the surprising result of salmons swimming upstream the Rhine again. Back in 1854, a cholera epidemic in Western Europe revealed that water quality is vital for civic health. While safe drinking water was once readily available for many, in the last decades, the self-cleansing abilities of water streams cannot keep up with unprecedented population increases and pollution. Waterborne diseases are now the cause of nearly 15 million death a year. Perhaps the most deadly and widespread, yet most preventable waterborne disease on earth is diarrhea. In Bangladesh, local communities work with private non-government organizations for solutions. In many parts of the former Soviet Union, like the Ukraine, out-dated industries have choked the waterways, unmonitored by crumbling bureaucracies and public service agencies. NGO’s like Terra Nostra help to assess the problems and establish programs to monitor wells, test the water, and encourage local activism.
VIPS in this episode: Dalai Lama, Ted Danson, Shimon Peres, Mikhail Gorbachev
Locations in this episode: Namibia, United States, Netherlands, Ecuador, Italy, England, Bangladesh, Ukraine, and Moldavia, Germany.
Themes in this episode: Survival Strategies, Species, Ecosystems, Nurturing Habitat, Water born Diseases, Water Pollution, Dams, Water Conservation, Clean Water.
• Aired worldwide over 60 countries, including PBS America nation wide.
