ALLISON HENDERSON / COLLEEN GEORGE / SHANNON DYCK
News Writers

Having just reached the halfway point of the International Decade for Action “Water for Life,” it is time to take pause and ask: How is our university contributing to the development of safe and sustainable water sources? Is it doing enough?

Our rising energy consumption, growing global population, climate change and heavy agricultural and industrial activities place an ever-increasing pressure on our global water resources. In addition to the many environmental problems fresh water scarcity poses, it also has the potential to fuel greater socioeconomic conflicts and crises. 

More than 1.1 billion people are unable to access clean drinking water and over 3.4 million people die from waterborne diseases each year, making water access one of the leading causes of death in the world. Unsustainable use of water resources can endanger livelihoods, food security and public health, as well as further perpetuate social inequalities and poverty.

Therefore, the sustainable use and equitable distribution of water resources is one of the most pressing issues facing humanity today. In response, the United Nations named 2005-15 the Decade for Action “Water for Life” in order to promote “action-oriented activities and policies that ensure the long-term sustainable management of water resources, in terms of both quantity and quality.”

The University of Saskatchewan is well-positioned to become an international leader in addressing such contemporary water security issues. According to the University of Saskatchewan’s Water Research website, “More than 65 leading U of S faculty and hundreds of student researchers are making a difference in diverse areas of water research.”

With significant expertise in a number of areas — engineering, agriculture, biology, geography, hydrology, geology, toxicology, public health, education and policy — and now with the interdisciplinary School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS), the U of S is on its way to become a global leader in water research that reaches across disciplines to make an international difference.

The sustainable use and equitable distribution of water resources is one of the most pressing issues facing humanity today.

Adding to this U of S expertise is the appointment of Dr. Howard Wheater, a world expert in hydrology and sustainable water resources who joined the U of S in October 2010. Dr. Wheater was selected as a Canada Excellence Research Chair in Water Security in April 2010 as a result of a highly competitive, federal program. This Chair is supported through a grant of $10 million from the federal government that has been matched by equal contributions from the provincial government and the U of S.

In addition, in-kind contributions have been made by Environment Canada and the Saskatchewan Research Council. As Dr. Wheater explains, “strategic investments will be made through the Canada Excellence Research Chair in Water Security towards research in the following three theme areas: climate change and water security, land-water management and environmental change, and sustainable development of natural resources.”

Dr. Wheater, who holds a primary appointment in the new School of Environment and Sustainability at the U of S, will play an instrumental leadership role in establishing the Global Institute for Water Security, an interdisciplinary institute for collaboration, innovation and technological advancement.

According to Karsten Liber, executive director of SENS, “this new institute will link together existing members of our university’s strong water research community to address key issues of water quantity and quality.” Under the umbrella of the institute, the research agenda will have an even broader focus which may include social sciences, public policy, and health.

In keeping with this potential, students in the School of Environment and Sustainability study a wide variety of water-related topics. The areas being researched include, for example, rainwater harvesting, how to maximize soil water storage, the energy-water nexus, and cumulative effects assessments in river watersheds. To honour SENS’s emerging commitment to water, students from the SENS Students’ Association are also leading a water campaign, “Better than Bottled”, to encourage sustainable water use on campus.

Considering that working towards sustainability and equity goes much beyond research and into the realm of our everyday life, the questions this group hopes to address are: What are we, as students, doing to help ensure water is being used sustainably on campus? Or maybe more importantly, are we doing enough?

Water is at the heart of the most pressing issues of the 21st century: energy, biodiversity, food security, poverty and health. Although the challenges associated with water security may seem daunting, if the Global Institute for Water Security achieves its goals, students and faculty at the U of S will play a key role in addressing these issues.

For more information, see the U of S School of Environment and Sustainability and the U of S Water Research websites.

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image: U of S water research