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March 22 is World Water Day! March 22nd, 2012
Water is essential for life, and yet increasingly, both in the United States and around the world, water is becoming a scarce commodity. Once largely taken for granted, clean, accessible, affordable water has become a hotly debated and much studied subject.
We have a few things to share on the occasion of World Water Day that may be of interest:
- Bishop Michael Pfeifer, OMI of the Diocese of San Angelo, Texas has written a reflection on water from the perspective of the drought-stricken region of west Texas, which we gladly share here. The article has been published in the San Angelo Standard Times. (Download PDF)
- The UN Millennium Development Goal on access to water has been met, three years early! The goal was to reduce by half the number of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water. According to a report issued today by UNICEF and WHO, between 1990 and 2010, over two billion people gained access to improved drinking water sources, such as piped supplies and protected wells. The related goal on sanitation has yet to be met, but increased attention to this is encouraging.
- Corporations are increasingly examining their water use, measuring risk, and looking at the impacts on local communities and the ecosystems on which they depend. The Oblate Faith-Consistent Investment initiative has focused on water as a key issue affecting the poor, and is engaged in substantive dialogs with major US multinational corporations on the subject. Read the Statement of Principles and Recommended Practices for Corporate Water Stewardship developed by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).
UN Report says fresh water is seriously threatened March 20th, 2012
The fourth UN World World Water Development Report says that the increase in world population and global warming, worsening floods and droughts, threaten freshwater resources if nothing is done to improve management.
With a world population exceeding seven billion people, food needs are expected to increase by 70% by 2050, with an increasing demand for animal products requiring huge amounts of water.
The paper was also alarmed by the sharp rise in transnational purchase of agricultural land, which increased from 20 million hectares in 2009 to over 70 million today. It was noted that in the agreements signed between countries, water is never explicitly mentioned.
Richard Connor, the lead author of the report emphasizes that these pressures are likely to exacerbate economic disparities between countries at the expense of the poorest. “Water is the pillar upon which the social and economic development rest.”
MDG Target on Access to Safe Drinking Water Met! March 12th, 2012
“Today we recognize a great achievement for the people of the world. This is one of the first [Millennium Development Goals] MDG targets to be met. The successful efforts to provide greater access to drinking water are a testament to all who see the MDGs not as a dream, but as a vital tool for improving the lives of millions of the poorest people.”
– United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a statement responding to a report released by the World Health Organization and the UN Children’s Fund.
The WHO/UNICEF report concluded that the world has met the MDG target of halving the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water well before the 2015 deadline. However, while they praised this accomplishment, several media outlets and observers (including Stephanie Cappa on the InterAction blog), have pointed out that the related MDG target on sanitation is off-track and unlikely to be met by 2015.
Read the report: Safe Drinking Water and Sanitation 2012 update
Lenten Reflections on Water February 24th, 2012
The World Council of Churches offers a unique Lenten practice, in solidarity with half the world, for whom water is scarce, whose waters are polluted or who have difficult access to water. This resource is available through the WCC-sponsored Ecumenical Water Network, a network of churches and Christian organizations promoting people’s access to water around the world.
Praying, reflecting and acting for a just economy of WATER:
Threat to Water from Mining in Peru Mobilizes Masses February 5th, 2012
Thousands of Peruvians from the Amazon to Lima have mobilized against a serious threat to the water in the Cajamarca region of Peru. Residents there, mostly indigenous peoples, are deeply concerned about the threat to their water from a proposed mining development by the American company, Newmont Mining. Oblates in the US have engaged Newmont about the impact of their operations on communities where they have mining operations. The Yanacocha mine has been a priority in those conversations though the recent turmoil in the Cajamarca region is related to the proposed development of Minas Congas and extension of the Yanacocha project. The Oblates in Peru are supporting the March for Water that has been organized by civil society in the impacted areas.
The movement claims “the right to be consulted, to be respected and heard in decisions about its development model, for socially-just participation in economic growth, the prohibition of mining in the headwaters of rivers, and a stop to mining with cyanide and mercury that is causing so much damage to land and water.” The marchers are proclaiming their human right to water, and drawing support from churches and civil society alike in a several day march from Cajamarca to Lima. The Great National Water mobilization began on February 1st and will conclude with a convocation in Lima on February 9-10.
Read a full description of the mobilization (in English translation):
“SMALL STREAMS MAKE THE GREAT RIVER OF LIFE”: THE GREAT NATIONAL WATER MOBILIZATION”
Materials in Spanish are also available under News in the Spanish section of this website
