How much is that water in the window?

I don’t mean to be rude, but I doubt if the opportunity to save RM11.60 will translate into alliances for the ruling state of Selangor. Or maybe I’m just being cynical – assuming that the free water project is geared towards buying loyalty.

If the program was intended for the welfare of the 11.5 million Selangor residents, then congratulations to the powers that be for thinking about the rakyat.

But at the risk of sounding like a disgruntled KL citizen who will still be laden with a water bill come June, here’s why I think free water isn’t necessarily a good idea.

In the first place, might I remind you of the ‘Save Water’ campaign run by the government not too long ago? Oh, you remember the ads – a happy family spraying water all over the garden or whilst washing a car; followed by a stark reminder to use pails of measured water instead of a free-for-all water hose.

Now, how in the name of H2O is getting free water from the government going to assure us that we don’t plunge into a state of infinite pool parties?

Imagine this – dad’s taking a 20-minute shower, mum’s leaving the tap on while she washes the vegetables, sis does her laundry every morning instead of when the load is full, bro attacking the Kancil as if he’s a fireman at the burning WTC and baby sis playing in the man-made rain as she floods the garden.

And the reason for this – “The water is free, mah! Since we are getting 20 cubic metre of water, might as well use it. And if we use less than that, then rugilah!”

And if the family’s use goes beyond the quota? Well, then it’s, “Only pay RM5 mah! No big deal lah!”

See my point?

Of course, now I sound like I’m saying Malaysians are a wasteful lot. Far from it. At 2000 cubic metre per person per year, the US is the world’s leading water consumers. So with only a given 20 cubic metre per month, we’re not the biggest contributors of water usage.

Assuming we all stick to that quota.

But we don’t say ‘Give a man an inch, and he’ll take a mile’ for no reason.

So the point remains – will free water be used or abused?

As much as we’re leaning toward increased green awareness and are working towards implementing recycling bins nationwide, the fact that we need government parenting on conservative use of water blaring from tv screens indicates we’re not yet as environmental friendly as we’d like to think.

And while there are scores of good or poor consumers who deserve to be rewarded with free water (a renewable natural resource and therefore a right for all beings?) – the move to provide free water could wind up being a step backward in our quest for it’s conservative use.

Consider this; while the blue planet is famous for its 97% make-up of water – only 0.036% is available for use. Why? Because most of it is undrinkable seawater and only 0.5% is consumer friendly freshwater. Of this, only 10,000,000 km3 of water is stored underground and faster than nature can replace this, we are depleting it for drinking water (50%), industrial water (40%) and irrigation water (20%). The rest of the water is in lakes or rainfall and over 5,000km3 is in reservoirs.

Then, there is the uneven water distribution in the world. Even as we bathe in a sprinkle of heated sky juice at home, 1.8 million people die every year from diarrhoel diseases (including cholera) due to lack of clean water and hygiene –the equivalent of 15 killer tsunamis a year.

But “Hey!”, some asks. “What has our water got to do with people miles away?” Surely we’re not expected to ferry tones of water to African countries?

Those who are secretly glad our causeway friends has to rely on us for water may rub their hands in glee and think that countries with a natural resource disadvantage should make political compromises in obtaining these economic goods. And not expect us to forfeit our gifts in the land of opportunities.

But here’s a fact: UNESCO’s World Water Development Report (WWWDR, 2003) predict that available water will decrease by 30%-40% in the next 20 years. Clean water is said to eventually become the next valued commodity – like oil – to be traded by water-rich countries such as Canada, Chile, Norway and Columbia.

So the possibility that we may one day be in our neighbour’s shoes – seeking clean water from other countries – are very real.

And I seriously doubt if our Malaysian Boleh patriotism will extend to bottling recycled water in pretty packaging branded, ‘Air Kita’. (Because then, the term ‘Air Kita’ will bring a whole new meaning, won’t it?)

How do we know this repugnant scenario is possible?

The World Business Council for Sustainable Development reports that 120 million people in South East Asia are already without improved drinking water source.

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) which consists of 30 countries globally, needs at least USD200 billion annually to replace aging water infrastructure to continuously provide supply, reduce leakage rates and protect water quality.

“When expenses exceed revenues, water service deteriorates and is not sustainable” – OECD.

Case in point – Northern Ireland does not have water bills – yet. Cost of water supply is instead a part of domestic rates that also covers education, health and transport.

However, recently, Northern Ireland faces pressure to conform its water infrastructure – pipes, sewage plants etc – to EU water standards by 2010. This requires GBP 3 billion over the next 10 years. Lack of investment means the way to obtain this amount is through water bills – an act that will simultaneously liberate government funds into other worthy concerns.

Although water seems to magically appear from the sky, UNESCO defines the cost of supplying water as the capital and operating costs for abstracting, treating and transferring water to the point of use.

Should we then be concerned that without revenue consumers’ water bills, the standards of our local supply chain of clean water might be compromised?

I mean, after all, we’re asking the Selangor government to sponsor RM17 million monthly and expect top-notch handling of our water system with no cost cutting tricks in the maintenance of our water structure.

On top of that, we’re letting the Selangor government cut down its budget on local educational or health plans development in order to subsidise our water.

All because we wanted to save RM11.40.

Which would give us what? A McDonald’s set meal consisting of a Grilled Chicken Foldover, fries and a cola drink.

Is that the value we place on our water?

South Africa is already promoting it’s own version of Free Water Systems. This directs grey water – water from baths, showers, hand basins and clothes washing machine – to be filtered and reused to water the garden. An estimate of 40% of about 200,000 residents in the town of Santa Barbara in California, USA already uses grey water systems.

The SMART rainmetre system collects rain water that is naturally clean to be stored in tanks for future use – thus reducing the need for processed freshwater. In fact, a 200m2 roof can collect 9000L of water per month.

The specially designed Toilet Stop minimizes water wastage in flushes by releasing water only as long as you hold the flushing handle. An inventive method capable of reducing your total water bills by 20%.

With so much creativity invested in reducing our consumption of water, why are we snatching Selangor’s water of it’s value by stripping it of it’s price tag?

I suppose, at the end of the day, we really do want to save that RM11.40.