''Young people have the right to grow up in a healthy environment which provides facilities for them to grow and develop''

Two thirds of our body weight is water. We can go for two weeks or more without solid food but will die within two or three days if we do not replenish our body fluids with water or other substitutes which have a high water content.

Water seems plentiful, covering about three quarters of the earth's surface, but most of it is salt water in the oceans or frozen in the polar regions. The fresh water needed by humans is less than 1% of the world's supply and even that is unequally distributed.

Water is necessary for all forms of life and although there sometimes seems to be more or less water than usual, the amount of water in the world stays the same though it may be in different forms.

ACTIVITES

Here are some activities to help Scouts understand how we clean water. How we can obtain water with no tap nearby and, how vegetation uses water. Compare the water used in the United Kingdom with that in Uganda.

School children are taught about the importance of drinking only clean water in nearly all of the developing countries. The advice given here is taken from a magazine called 'Action', which was given free to children in Zimbabwe.

Keeping our Water Clean

Water is the source of all life. Without it we would die. Yet water which is dirty may also make us very sick. So we must make sure that our water is kept clean and pure. On these pages you will find lots of ideas for doing just this.

Read on, and make sure the water you drink is always clean.

Five Ways of Making Water Safer

Water which looks clean may still contain germs or harmful chemicals. So be careful and make your sure your water is safe for drinking.

 

	1 Boiling Boiling water kills germs but does not make the water clean. It also uses up a lot of fuel.
	2 Ageing Allow water to stand for 48 hours before drinking. This makes sure that harmful organisms such as blood flukes are dead.
	3 Adding Chemicals You can buy special chemicals which when added to water will kill all harmful organisms.
	4 Filtering A simple sand filter will remove most dirt as well as some germs. What you will need to make a simple water filter: Water Fine stone Rough pebbles and sand Fine sand Rough pebbles and sand Fine charcoal Rough pebbles and sand Fine stone Rough stone
	5 Sunlight Leaving water in bright sunlight for several hours will kill most germs.