1. DID YOU KNOW…
• Earth is 70% water
• Humans require fresh water to survive
• Fresh water is only 3.5% of what is available on Earth
• Less than 1% of this is readily available for human use

2. WHAT KIND OF ACTIVITIES REQUIRE WATER?

3. WHAT WILL HAPPEN IF WE DO NOT HAVE
ENOUGH WATER?
• An average human will survive up to 3 days without water
• We will not be able to do the activities previously mentioned
• We will fall sick more easily
• We will have to rely on other sources of water, which might be contaminated

4. SICKNESSES DUE TO LACK OF WATER OR
DRINKING CONTAMINATED WATER
• Not drinking enough
• Headache, dizziness
• Dry mouth
• Slowed motor movements
• May lead to death
• Drinking contaminated water
• Diarrhoea
• Fever
• Stomach ache
• May lead to death

5. TUVALU, TINY ISLANDS IN THE SEA
• Tuvalu (pronounced as too-vah-loo) are tiny islands
surrounded by sea water
• It is the fourth smallest country in the world
• Home to around 10,000 people (that’s less than the
number of people you find in Yishun!)
• Citizens of Tuvalu are called Tuvaluans

6. WHY DOES TUVALU ONLY RELY ON RAINWATER
FOR FRESH WATER SUPPLIES?
• Despite Tuvalu being surrounded by
water, Tuvaluans cannot use the sea water
other than to bathe or wash dishes
• Fresh water in Tuvalu usually comes from
rain
• Tuvaluans will leave empty buckets out
so that it can collect rainwater when it
rains
• Tuvalu used to have fresh water
supplies, but those were destroyed when
the British army built an airline base on top
of it

7. WHAT IS THE GOVERNMENT DOING TO HELP
TUVALU WITH ITS WATER CRISIS?
• Seek help from neighbouring countries, like Australia and New Zealand
• Build a desalination plant
• Rationing supplies when a drought hits
• Find alternate ways to provide fresh and clean water to its citizens
Did you know?
During a drought in
2011, Tuvaluan schools had to be
closed so that they could turn into
water ration stations, where
families could pick up water
supplies? Students had to help
distribute water to the families.

8. LOOKING AT SINGAPORE…
WHAT ARE SOME WAYS SINGAPORE ENSURES
CLEAN WATER FOR ALL?
Singapore is similar to Tuvalu. We are small in land size, and
have to rely on rainwater to supply us with fresh water.
However, we have some strategies to ensure enough fresh
water for all Singaporeans:
1. Local rainwater catchment areas (reservoirs)
2. Desalination plants
3. Reclaimed water plant (NEWater)
4. Imported water (from Johor Bahru)

9. HOW DO I SAVE AND CONSERVE WATER?