ROME, (IPS) – The UN General Assembly will launch the International Decade for Action: Water for sustainable development (2018-2028) on World Water Day, 22 March 2018.
According to UNGA President Miroslav Lajcak, outlining his priorities for 2018, the event will “contribute to the review of SDG 6” during the 2018 session of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).
Today, there are over 663 million people living without a safe water supply close to home, spending countless hours queuing or trekking to distant sources, and coping with the health impacts of using contaminated water.
This year’s theme Nature for Water explores how we can use nature to overcome the water challenges of the 21st century.
Environmental damage, together with climate change, is driving the water-related crises we see around the world. Floods, drought and water pollution are all made worse by degraded vegetation, soil, rivers and lakes.
When we neglect our ecosystems, we make it harder to provide everyone with the water we need to survive and thrive.
Nature-based solutions have the potential to solve many of our water challenges. We need to do so much more with ‘green’ infrastructure and harmonize it with ‘grey’ infrastructure wherever possible. Planting new forests, reconnecting rivers to floodplains, and restoring wetlands will rebalance the water cycle and improve human health and livelihoods.
Sustainable Development Goal 6 – ensuring availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all by 2030 – includes a target to halve the proportion of untreated wastewater and increase water recycling and safe reuse.
World Water Day is coordinated by UN-Water – the UN’s inter-agency collaboration mechanism for all freshwater related issues – in collaboration with governments and partners.
Facts & Figures
-Globally, over 80% of the wastewater generated by society flows back into the ecosystem without being treated or reused. (Sato et al, 2013)
-1.8 billion people use a source of drinking water contaminated with faeces, putting them at risk of contracting cholera, dysentery, typhoid and polio. Unsafe water, poor sanitation and hygiene cause around 842,000 deaths each year. (WHO/UNICEF 2014/WHO 2014)
-The opportunities from exploiting wastewater as a resource are enormous. Safely managed wastewater is an affordable and sustainable source of water, energy, nutrients and other recoverable materials.
Thank you DNO for this update.
I am delighted to inform you that a special Water Blessing Event will be held at Hampstead, on Sunday 25 March. The arrival time to the ceremony is 11:00 am. All concerned Dominican are being invited to join us and to bring alone the Family, and Friends.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria we as a people have a great deal to be thankful for.
But what did Arthie M do with the 365 fresh water rivers they gave him to EXPORT WATER to help those people that are so in need of drinking water!? Matt, could you please help find out what went wrong? because up till now one don’t think he has exported not a spoon of water?!