Use water wisely

By Marianne David

Recalling King Parakramabahu’s famous quote on water conservation and utilisation – ‘do not release even a drop of rain water to the sea without putting it to good use’ – Environmental Scientist Professor Sarath Kotagama called on Sri Lankans to “regain what was once ours by going back to King Parakramabahu”.

“If you are a Sri Lankan, you have inherited the wise use of water. We gave that wisdom to the world from Sri Lanka. We needn’t be preached to by the world on water conservation – we should be doing it from here,” asserted Kotagama.

Kotagama said that although Sri Lanka gave this philosophy to the world 2,500 years ago and despite it being the first message to the world on the inaugural World Water Day, the world was now telling Sri Lanka how to conserve water.

He was speaking at a special ‘Green Forum’ lecture organised by the Cinnamon Grand Colombo’s Sustainability Division on ‘Water Conservation’ on Tuesday 20 March at the Oak Room, as a prelude to World Water Day, celebrated on 22 March.

The event was aimed at raising awareness amongst staff and the community on the significance of water, its usage, conservation and the need to halt the wastage that occurs in our day-to-day activities. The 400-strong audience consisted of Cinnamon Grand staff members, Sri Lanka Institute of Tourism and Hotel Management members and the hotel’s suppliers.

Going green

Cinnamon Grand has launched a special team to aid its vision of becoming a greener corporate entity and the ‘Green Forum’ is the hotel’s special environmental education and awareness initiative for the hotel staff to understand their role in sustainability.

“Water issues are an urgent concern for individuals, communities, countries as well as companies. Awareness raised through shared knowledge and action driven through that knowledge is the key for positive change. Knowledge is a very powerful tool in our journey and it is very important that we understand the role each of us can play in the greater effort to sustain our planet,” asserted Cinnamon Grand Colombo Manager – Marketing Communications & Sustainability Tharika Goonathilake.

“It is very important that we do things to help the planet, not harm it. The journey is long and we haven’t got there yet, but it starts with knowledge. The ‘Green Forum’ will help staff understand the impact of their actions.”

With four areas of focus this year – water, electricity, waste and carbon footprint reduction – the hotel aims to conduct monthly sessions to raise awareness and educate staffers, creating a forum of knowledge and advice by bringing together diverse personalities from the environment sector.

Life is water

Commenting on the state of the water crisis in the world, Professor Kotagama said with World Water Day falling on 22 March, we can be more effective and efficient by thinking of our actions, emphasising on the importance of recognising overuse and excesses.

“It is selfish to talk about water when it is needed by all organisms and the system itself – not man alone. Water is important to all of us, including the animal and plant kingdoms, not just man. Life is present due to water. Life is water; that is the truth.”

Asserting that human beings are artificial beings, Kotagama said that among the countless types of chemicals we have produced for usage, the one thing that man is yet to produce is water. “We have changed the character of water, by changing salt water to fresh water, but it’s still natural water.”

Listing the qualities of water, Kotagama said that it is a universal solvent since everything in the world dissolves in water, the best conductor and a medium for chemical reactions. “Anything we eat is digested and absorbed into the body through a water system. We must have water, else the system fails. Even to breathe, you need water, otherwise the oxygen will not enter your system and carbon dioxide will not leave the system. At that boundary, water is a prerequisite.”

Unique thermal properties

Water also has unique thermal properties: high specific heat, high latent heat, absorbent, buffer, coolant and shock. “Depending on the temperature, the state of water changes, but water is water. Almost everything on earth is dependent on the thermal properties of water,” said Kotagama.

In fact, Sri Lanka’s entire weather patterns are based on water, with the two monsoons the country experiences arising from the sea. “As an ocean island, Sri Lanka depends on the seas surrounding it. We are very good at diverting our waste into the sea and we continue to do this. It’s high time to halt this practice. The ocean absorbs that waste and still functions as a buffer.”

Water has three forms and serves the earth in all of them: Solids – when water becomes very cold and freezes, it has a definite form and shape; Liquids – when water takes the shape of its container it is in; gases – when water is seen in a vapour form and has no definite size or shape. There is no place on earth where relative humidity is zero.

“Even in the desert, if you know how, you can obtain water. There is a beetle that is capable of doing this naturally and the technology has also been transformed in Dubai. This is bio-mimicry,” said Kotagama.

Where did we go wrong?

“Sri Lankans knew how to do things with water; we knew this well then and used this knowledge – from moving water upstream to changing its pressure and the gradient of one foot per mile. We did it then but now we can’t. Now we say we are wasting water and that we should conserve it. When we have done all this, where did we go wrong? How did we lose our way and become unable to use the knowledge we had?”

Professor Kotagama asserted that man’s worst invention was the air conditioner, when considered in environmental terms.

Touching on the thermocline, he said it was significant since 99% of the fish we eat are from the thermocline and if not for this, we would not have the benefit of harvesting fish.

Water also has high surface tension, due to which another layer of life is possible, with millions of organisms living on this layer. “Even the tallest tree can take water right to the top, with no power plant or pumping system. Water flows continuously.”

As for its cohesive properties, he said that using nanotechnology, we are able to do certain things. “Soon there will be clean water detergents and vehicles will apply no detergent surfaces. This was learnt from Sri Lanka, from the surface of the nelum leaf. Water enabled us to make this connection. The nelum leaf is the cleanest surface on earth; the secret is its nanostructure. Today we are converting this for our use.”

Water also has its uses as a tool – it makes no vibrations, is able to make fine cuts and is very fast, said Kotagama, citing the example of the Kelani Bridge, where water was used as a cutting tool in carrying out modifications.

A finite resource

Emphasising on the fact that water is a finite resource despite it having an amazing cycle, he said: “You don’t get water in any form from outer space. We only get energy from the sun from outer space.”

Dividing the water on earth into segments, he said that 97% is salt water, 3% is fresh water and only 0.3% is left for our consumption. Of this, 70% is used for agriculture, 8% for domestic needs and 22% for industries. However, we still pollute water immensely and constantly. Thankfully, it is one of the most resilient resources on earth.

“Every day for every activity we need water; 66% of the human body is made of water and just 2% dehydration causes performance to decrease by 20%. We need water for everything from bathing and washing clothes to maintaining gardens to agriculture, industry, tourism, transport, sports and security,” said Kotagama.

Conserving water

In conclusion, he outlined simple methods people should adopt in order to conserve water: “We use treated water to flush the toilets here. A simple method to save water is by putting a filled 1.5 litre PET bottle into the cistern, which will result in less water being used when flushing. Turn off the faucet when brushing teeth and turn off the shower when applying soap/shampoo. Wait until night to water the lawn. Use a pail when you wash your car. Fix leaks and use rain barrels. Conserve water; we are not saying don’t use water, but calling on people to conserve it.”