Boys fishing in Bagerhat, Bangladesh

April 22, 2010: The state of the environment on this year's Earth Day is precarious, especially in poor countries where the health of children and families is threatened daily by polluted air and waterways.

For example, according to the IRIN news service, a severe water shortage has seized Bangladesh's capital of Dhaka since the end of last month. Lack of clean water has produced a spike in water-borne diseases such as diarrhea. Diarrhea is a leading cause of death among the world's poor children.

SOS Children's Villages works in Bangladesh and in impoverished nations worldwide to give hope and refuge to children who've lost homes and parents to disease and natural disaster. SOS cannot reverse the environmental degradation plaguing countries in which it operates. But SOS does provide safe, hygienic homes and communities for its children and educates local families on disease prevention.

Bangladesh's Water Crisis

Nationwide, more than 30 million Bangladeshis lack access to safe drinking water, according to the World Health Organization. The region's spring dry season typically produces water shortages. This year's hot temperatures and power shortages, which prevent water pumping, have exacerbated the problem for Dhaka's 15 million people.

Most Dhaka residents get water piped from deep wells; the others rely on treated surface water. Without electricity to work the pumps that draw water from lower depths, families are receiving poor-quality, foul tap water.

Hospitals in Bangladesh are reporting admissions of almost 1,000 patients a day suffering from diarrhea, triple the normal average.

IRIN reports that some experts believe Dhaka is too dependent on ground water, whose levels are shrinking because of heavy urbanization. Ainun Nishat, a senior adviser on climate change at the International Union for Conservation of Nature, argues that overusing ground water is also harmful to the environment. He suggests that the Bangladeshi government adopt a long-term solution such as making greater use of surface water from rain. Others propose recycling water used in homes.

SOS Children's Villages in Bangladesh

SOS Mother with child -- SOS Children's Villages - Dhaka, Bangladesh

Bangladesh is one of the world's poorest and most densely populated countries. Poverty and natural disasters there produce huge numbers of abandoned children. SOS-Bangladesh runs five Children's Villages as well as clinics, schools (some of Bangladesh's best) and social centers.

Give a Bangladeshi child hope for a better life. Make a donation to SOS Children's Villages today.