We Seek Water
Reposted from the It’s Our Environment
Several links below exit EPA 
By Pam Lazos, Region 3
In the 1972-1975 TV series, “Kung Fu,” David Carradine walks the American West, looking for his family, performing awesome martial arts moves, and uttering the often-used refrain: “I seek water.”
Over a weekend this summer, while camping with family and friends at Worlds End State Park in Sullivan County, Pa., there was water everywhere, yet we did the same.
We had rented a group tent site – primitive camping. So instead of the usual bank of bathroom facilities, we were afforded a “pit”. It was more glamorous than your usual pit because it had two individual rooms inside a small building with each boasting a locking door and a raised toilet-like structure, but no water. Think port-a-potty, but rooted to the ground.
Down the road was another building with two rooms, luxurious in comparison, each containing its own toilet and shower stalls plus hot and cold running water. These bathrooms were for the cabin rentals, not the group sites; however, I admit to visiting them several times.
Because we had no water at our source, or maybe it’s just a natural human tendency, we spent the rest of the weekend in search of it. Some of us went kayaking, some of us went hiking around the lake at nearby Eagles Mere, and some of us went fishing in the Loyalsock Creek. All of our activities had water at their core. Even the hike up Butternut Trail to the well-hidden vista passed across the creek several times and sported a few small waterfalls.
Coming back from the lake, the girls carried their water bottles on their heads, reminding me of the women in other parts of the world who walk miles to the nearest water source carrying a four-pound jerry can (40 pounds full) which will provide about five gallons. This is the minimum one person needs for drinking and hygiene per day, but not enough for a family. Gathering water takes hours for these women. Sometimes they collect water from water holes that are also used by animals in the area. This can lead to sickness among the women and their families.
About 3.4 million people die from waterborne diseases each year, mostly in developing countries. So arduous is the task of collecting water that many girls are pulled out of school at an early age to help their mothers, resulting in their continued illiteracy and poverty.
Watching my girls, frolicking with their water bottles on their heads, I sent up a prayer of thanks for the abundance of water in our lives and the blessings and opportunities that flow from it. We have the tools and technology to bring fresh, pure water to everyone. Get involved with any one of many organizations, working both locally and internationally to solve these complex water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) issues. Together, we can create an environment where everyone has access to clean water.
About the Author: Pam Lazos works in Region 3’s Office of Regional Counsel chasing water scofflaws and enforcing the Clean Water Act. In her free time, when her family allows, she writes both fact and fiction, but mostly she likes to laugh.