Friday, April 29, 2005

Water a global issue

Capital Press (Idaho) article:

"Water is the most widely occurring substance on earth, but only about 2.5 percent of it is fresh water, and 90 percent of that is found in the polar ice caps. There's still sufficient water for the world population's needs, said Dr. Richard A. Meganck, rector of the Institute for Water Education, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

"'The question is, then, do we actually have a crisis? The answer is a firm yes. The crisis is one of management, resulting from bad management, government, institutions and delivery systems,' Meganck said in his keynote address.

"UNESCO's goal is to provide drinkable water to within one kilometer of people who don�t have it by 2015, he said.

"'Clean water is at the heart of all poverty reduction,' he said. 'There are nations where women and girls spend four hours a day just hauling firewood and water. The most important single improvement we could do to relieve them of being beasts of burden is to bring water within one kilometer of all their homes.'"

The article is base on a two-day symposium sponsored by the Andrus Center for Public Policy at Boise State University.

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