A polite Japanese lady will cover her mouth when she giggles.
She will bow her head to hide her eyes when she is embarrassed.
One could only imagine the crisis this creature faces inside the ladies' room.
She enters the cubicle, closes the door, pulls the latch and sits. Soon, the crowded washroom
reverberates with the sound of her urine splashing into the water at the bottom of the toilet
bowl.
An unfavorable nuisance of modern life, you may say. A source of deep humiliation if you
happen to be a Japanese woman.
Her solution for years has been to conceal the noise. Not by a well-timed cough.
But by flushing the toilet whilst relieving herself. The familiar commotion created by the
gurgling cistern drowns out of her business.
Depending on the length of her stay, the toilet may be flushed up to three or four times.
And she may walk out quietly, without anyone knowing of the noise that she has made.
Her face saved.
Unfortunately, the water is not. With each flush, 10 litres of water disappears into the
sewerage. That's 30 litres a visit. And over 100 litres daily.
Now, multiply that by the number of women in all of Japan.
A self-conscious avoidance of shame results in a shameful loss of pure drinking water.
And water is now one of the most precious commodities in the East.
Over 70% of India's water supplies are contaminated. In New Delhi, the Yzmuna River is
deluged with 50 million gallons of untreated sewerage, 5 million gallons of industrial effluent
and 125 thousand gallons of DDT. Not in a year. But each hopeless day.
The mighty Ganges swallows the raw human waste of no less than 114 crowded cities.
Shanghai spends millions piping clean water to its vast urban sprawl from over 900 miles away
So too does Singapore and Bangkok. The Philippines and Indonesia inexplicably lose over one
third of all water pumped to their thirsty cities.
Saudi Arabia's supply will be exhausted early next century. The next war in the Middle East
won't be over crude black oil, but crystal clear water.
India and Pakistan are almost certain to find themselves in a similar position as they attempt
to resolve the competition for the thick murk that flows through the Hindus river basin.
Hong Kong has the pleasure of possessing more Rolls Royce automobiles per capital than any o
other country. Yet you risk your life from drinking from the tap there.
Ironic then, that the source of life brings death. Bubbling with disease, fouled water robs the
lives of 25 thousand Asians daily. 10 million a year.
The majority of them small children too frail to fight.
The world bank estimates it will cost at least $128 billion in the next 10 years to simply meet
the basic drinking and sanitation needs of Asia.
An amount almost beyond comprehension.
The crisis is real. It will not go away.
It calls for us all to re-evaluate how we use the clean water that is available.
And for the more ingenious ones amongst us to find solutions.
In Japan, electronic gadgets are now installed in the ladies' rooms. Attached to these gadgets are
speakers. They emulate the sound of a flushing toilet.
Now there is no need for the timid women to flush any more than is necessary.
The Fuji Bank has installed this system and already reports a $70 000 saving on water bills
each year.
How can you begin to change things? The battle begins in your home.
Everytime you turn a tap, look at the stream. You wouldn't last three days without it.
More than food, or love, or wealth, you need water to survive.
TREAT WATER WITH RESPECT.
oh... i have 1 more cap to share ^____^
