Tomorrow is World Water Day and we would like to introduce you to one of our partners who has written an excellent article discussing this important topic. Please meet the Prince Edward County Sustainability Group. They will be hosting their own fundraising sale on April 20th and rain barrels are $60 each. To order your own rain barrel or learn more about this group please visit their webpage: RainBarrel.ca/csgpicton
Submitted by Don Ross for County Sustainability Group
“Water, water everywhere, only if we share”
This is the clever slogan submitted by a young girl from India, chosen from over 12,000 others for the 2013 campaign of International World Water Day. This event is held annually on March 22 as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and sustainable management of these resources. An international day to celebrate freshwater started at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) by designating March 22, 1993 as the first World Water Day.
Each year World Water Day highlights a specific aspect of freshwater. March 22, 2013, will showcase water cooperation, which has multiple dimensions including cultural, educational, scientific, religious, ethical, social, political, legal, institutional and economic aspects. A multidisciplinary approach is essential to blend such concepts into a holistic vision. In order to be successful and long-lasting, water cooperation needs a common understanding of what the needs and challenges are around water.
I encourage you to visit www.unwater.org/water-cooperation-2013 where you will discover a wealth of information about what needs to be done to protect our most important resource. What follows is taken directly from the site to give you a small sip of knowledge from the fountain of information available to drink from:
“Water is vital for life, pivotal for human development and necessary to keep our environment healthy. There is a fixed amount of water on the planet and with increasing population, economic development and changing lifestyles, undue pressure has been put on the world’s limited water resources leading to increased competition for water and creating situations of potential conflict. But water can be used as an instrument of peace and development, as every action involving water management requires effective cooperation between multiple actors, whether at the local or international scale.”
“Water is a vital element for human existence and all ecosystems on Earth, naturally shared through the hydrological cycle. It is the most precious resource on our planet. The fulfillment of basic human needs, our environment, socio-economic development and poverty reduction are all heavily dependent on water. Although there is enough freshwater on the globe for everyone, resources are unevenly distributed in time and space. In many regions, clean freshwater is becoming increasingly scarce due to population growth, urbanization, changes in lifestyle, economic development, pollution and climate change. The growing pressure on water resources creates potential competition between different uses and users and makes it more difficult to manage water in a sustainable and equitable manner.”
“Good management of water is especially challenging due to some of its unique characteristics: the hydrological cycle is highly complex and perturbations have multiple effects on quantity, quality and availability elsewhere; water cuts across all social, environmental and economic activities and touches upon multiple sectors; and water does not respect political and cultural boundaries, be they local, regional or national. Water is a shared resource and its management needs to take into account a wide variety of conflicting interests.”
“Access to water can be a source of a conflict, but it is also a catalyst for cooperation and peace building. Cooperation on such a practical and vital issue as water management and drinking water supply and sanitation services can help overcome cultural, political and social tensions, and can also build trust and social peace between different groups; genders, communities, regions or states.”
“Universal access to efficient drinking water supply and sanitation services is the foundation for the fulfillment of basic human needs and contributes to the achievement of all the Millennium Development Goals. Inclusive, participatory and gender sensitive governance of water and cooperation between different stakeholders can help to overcome inequity and prevent conflicts in access to water and thus contribute to poverty eradication, socioeconomic development and improve the living conditions and educational chances, especially of women and children.”
Submitted by Don Ross for County Sustainability Group
This article was originally published in the County Weekly News
Go to www.rainbarrel.ca/csgpicton to order your $60 rain barrel and honour World Water Day while supporting our efforts and PECI Student Environmental Bursary.