National water summit - Learn to cherish water

THE second national water summit opens in Croke Park this morning and though all of us could do with some cheering news it is unlikely to be found there.

Hard though it is to imagine we are on the brink of water shortages. In the Dublin area 550 million litres are used each day and there is just a 2% margin between finite supply and demand.

There are huge infrastructural challenges — especially leaking pipes — to be confronted but unless we start to change our mindset about how we misuse water we are heading for disaster.