Water Wars In History

Outside of air to breathe, what is the one commodity that all human beings need to survive? What is the one thing necessary for growing the crops that feed us? What is essential for both food and beverage? The answer, of course, is water. And because it is so vital to our health and wellbeing, it makes sense that water has been the impetus for war on many occasions throughout history. Here are several noteworthy conflicts that arose due to concerns over water.

America’s Dust Bowl of the Great Depression

In the 1930s, the United States experienced not only a drastic drop in the economy, but a weather phenomenon that caused a massive drought across the country’s heartland. As dust storms instead of rain storms swept across the plains where the majority of grains were grown, it caused both soil erosion for the land and extreme poverty for the farmers who lost their crops. In desperation, many of these Okies (farmers from Oklahoma and the Midwest) pulled up stakes and moved to California, where they were not warmly received. In fact, they were called “inferior” and “Communists” while being subject to beatings and the burning of their shanties. The Los Angeles police department was ordered to stop more Okies from coming into the state in 1936 in order to prevent further crimes against the farmers who were merely seeking water.

Japan and China, 1938

Not long thereafter, the Japanese invaded the neighbouring country of China. Resourceful Chinese used water to fend off their attackers by destroying dikes. The compromised dikes flooded the lands, preventing Japanese troops from advancing. Although this was an effective defence tactic, it also ended up killing tens of thousands of Chinese civilians who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Japanese, not to be outdone, used water in war, as well. They poisoned Chinese wells with typhoid and other types of dangerous bacterium as retaliation.

The Ganges and Indus Rivers, 1975

Bangladesh, India and Pakistan have long been in disputes over the waters of the Ganges and Indus Rivers along the borders of those countries. In the mid-1970s, Bangladesh, which had a growing population but few resources, was particularly vulnerable to geographic catastrophes such as soil erosion and flooding. India and Pakistan built a barrier in order to divert the flow of the rivers away from Bangladesh. This caused salt water to take the place of the fresh water and devastate a good deal of the small country’s natural resources while leaving its people to suffer. It is estimated that some 35 million residents of Bangladesh were adversely affected by the lack of fresh water, causing many of them to migrate to India. That in itself resulted in numerous deaths due to conflicts based on differences of religion, culture, ethnicity, and more. Even today, there are many conflicts brewing over the control of, or lack of, water throughout the world. Water is a precious commodity and one that many people will do anything to obtain. There is no doubt we will continue to experience water wars in the future.

About the Author

Damien Higgins writes for the UK's No.1 bottled water cooler supplier, Eden Springs. Try an Eden Springs water dispenser in your home or office for fresh, cool water all day long.