When the pandemic was just starting over a year ago, Hawaii residents bought up cases of bottled water, clearing supermarket shelves out of concern there would not be enough water. In retrospect, we now know those fears were unfounded as the pandemic did not affect our water supply.

Those events and other incidents that threaten our ability to access basic necessities strike fear into our hearts. No one likes the feeling of being vulnerable.

Yet, for many in the world, lack of safe water is a normal way of life. The United Nations estimates there are 2.2 billion people today who do not have access to clean, safe water, either because of improper sanitation systems or a lack of fresh water sources. The UN commemorates World Water Day every year on this day, March 22, to draw attention to this global health crisis. It’s especially important to not lose sight of this as we continue to battle COVID-19.

On Oahu, where 70% of the state’s population resides, we use more than 140 million gallons of potable water each day. Wai is the source of all life. In addition to the cultural significance and reverence for water, there are practical everyday uses of water. When we turn on our faucets, we expect to have water for showers, to brush our teeth, or tend to our garden. We may not realize the water we use to wash our clothes or wash our cars started as rain and took years to become available in underground aquifers.

There are myriad threats to a safe, secure water supply on our island: climate change and continuing sea level rise throw our delicate ecosystems off kilter, aging fuel storage tanks pose risks to precious aquifers, and there is insufficient protection of our watersheds to foster the cycle of forests replenishing groundwater instead of having the water runoff into the ocean.

While we may not currently have a water crisis in Hawaii, we know that any kind of disruption can easily tip the scale further and create more inequities in our community. Just as we saw the pandemic create a sharper divide between the haves and have-nots, we can expect a water crisis to do the same in Hawaii.

During the pandemic, we saw great aloha for the vulnerable in our community who needed meals and food, but many may not realize there were families and businesses struggling to pay their water bills, and the Board of Water Supply suspended shutoffs for nonpayment.

Delinquencies also impact the ability to invest in infrastructure to maintain a reliable water distribution system.

By world standards, we live very comfortable lives. A water crisis may be the furthest thing from our minds, but it should be on our radar. Extreme and erratic weather conditions in the world today can easily turn the tables. The UN has warned climate change is causing severe droughts and flooding. This makes the availability of water less stable and predictable.

We all can and must do our part to steward the natural resources that have been entrusted to us. Just as we see Hawaii’s strong commitment to adopt more renewable energy, we must be willing to shape our water future. Protection of our drinking water, water conservation, diversifying our resources, reuse, and caring for our mauka watersheds for recharge of our aquifers are vitally important to create a better, more sustainable future.

Ernest Lau is manager and chief engineer of the Honolulu Board of Water Supply.