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June 1997 Rising to the Surface: Water Tops U.N. Environmental Agenda By Lyn C. Billman-Golemme

Rising to the Surface Water Tops U.N. Environmental Agenda By Lyn C. Billman-Golemme Freshwater protection has moved to the top of the international agenda. According to the United Nations document, "The Comprehensive Assessment of the Freshwater Resources of The World," if current trends in water use continue, an estimated two-thirds of the world population will suffer water shortages in the next 25 years,

In "Global Change and Sustainable Development: Critical Trends," the Report of the Secretary-General of the U.N., the multifaceted features of water value and protection are addressed. There is increased awareness that the contamination of water resources is reducing the amount of water available for human use. Since 1945, global water withdrawals have risen faster than the rate of population growth. A number of developing countries are trying to adjust to the shift in population from rural to urban settings through reallocation of water use rights, water trading and plans to buy out farmers - all with the aim of redistributing water. If the scales tip too much in the other direction, there could be serious implications for food production.

The importance of having high quality water for human health and a healthy society is evident by the increased spending to ensure such water. Even so, an estimated 30 percent of wastewater in developed countries and 90 percent in developing countries is still dumped raw into local rivers, lakes or marine waters, increasing health risks.

In many developing countries decreasing water quality represents one of the most serious health hazards and constraints on socio-economic development. During the period designated by the U.N. as the Water Decade (1981-1991) the impressive gains in the number of people provided with water services was offset by population growth, especially in urban areas. In 1994, an estimated 1.2 billion people in developing countries lacked safe water supplies and nearly three billion lacked access to sanitation services, resulting in an overall decrease in the number of people with water services. The World Health Organization estimates that almost half the world's population is suffering from serious waterborne or water-related diseases, resulting in close to five million deaths each year.

Demand for water supplies has resulted in a rapid increase in the number of significant dams built. In 1950, there were roughly 5,000 dams; today there are nearly 38,000. In many of the world's great rivers, the volume and rate of water flow is almost completely controlled, so much so that some cases with no water at reaches the sea. This has negatively impacted aquatic habitats, led to the decline of fish stocks, and decreased biodiversity.

Freshwater resource protection is one of the top priorities identified by the Commission on Sustainable Development. A Freshwater Caucus was formed among nongovernmental organizations and government delegates at a U.N. meeting this April. The Caucus is exploring mechanisms to develop policies and implement water resource protection using an integrated watershed management approach.

Future economic development and increased urban dwelling will push water management more and more into the political, health and social arenas. Present and future economic development depends on the availability of enough water to meet those needs. Water resource protection planning now will have a long term effect on maintaining health, eradicating poverty, and providing socio-economic development and environmental protection. Lyn C. Billman-Golemme represented the American Planning Association at the recent Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) session at the U.N. She was the facilitator for the Freshwater Caucus. Billman-Golemme is a land use planning consultant, who also serves on the national steering committee of the Citizens Network for Sustainable Development.

Some additional information. 
      

Water resources are essential for satisfying basic human needs, health and food production, the preservation of ecosystems and for economic and social development in general. There is growing concern over the increasing stress on water supplies caused by unsustainable use patterns, affecting both water quality and quantity and the wide-spread lack of access to safe water supply and suitable sanitation in many developing countries. This calls for the highest priority to be given to the serious freshwater problems....

There is an urgent need to assign high priority to the formulation and implementation of policies and programs for integrated watershed management, including issues related to pollution and waste, the interrelationship between water and mountains, forests, upstream and downstream users, biodiversity and the preservation of aquatic systems, land degradation and desertification.

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