A Series of Appreciation for Water: Part 1

12/15/2022

The musings of Mark Biaggi
Supported by Megan Shahan, Wendy Millet, and Jessica Hartzell

How often do you stop to consider—really consider—the source of the water that flows from your tap? Are you lucky enough to have safe, reliable access to water to drink? Or are you one of 2 million Americans who do not have basic indoor plumbing and running water?

The human body is, on average, 60% water.  While the surface of the Earth—the “Blue Planet”—is nearly ¾ water, 97% is non-potable, leaving 3% fresh water. Of that, a mere 0.5% of all water on Earth is available to drink, the remainder inaccessible, locked up in snow, glaciers, or too deep to reach. Above and below ground, the abundance of life on Earth is driven by water availability. 

Soil microbiology depends on water, plants depend on soil microbes. A healthy soil biome is made of billions of microorganisms that manage the nutrients plants need. Microorganisms feed the plants’ roots as well as each other in a show of the brilliant and complex interdependencies of Nature. Those microorganisms—bacteria, fungi, algae, nematodes, and protozoa, to name a few—move around the soil on water molecules. Without water, these microorganisms die or hibernate, and without a thriving microbial community in the soil, plants too will slow their growth or die. The cycle of life, birth, growth, death, and rebirth is broken for lack of water.

The food we eat, not to mention the air we breathe, hinges on the health of these relationships. As you slow down and reflect this winter, look for simple moments of wonder that can arise as the rain (or snow) falls or as you savor a glass of water. In the new year, tune in as we explore our dynamic relationship with water and soil as part of an on-going series.