Safe Water: World
Water Week
August 22, 2005 — By ENN
ARLINGTON, Virginia — Can economic
growth, sustainable development, improved public health and reduced
poverty levels of underprivileged communities all come from a glass of
clean drinking water? According to the annual gathering of the global
water community at this week's World Water Week events in Stockholm,
Sweden (August 21-26), that glass of water is where the health and
advancement of impoverished communities around the globe must begin.
With nearly one person in five globally lacking access to safe drinking
water, healthy water practices and products are fundamental to the
preservation, protection and improvement of both individual and
community well-being.
According to C. T. "Kip" Howlett, Jr., Secretariat of the World Chlorine
Council (WCC) the products of chlorine, whether in the form of polyvinyl
chloride (PVC) piping for community water transport or as a household
water disinfectant, offer disadvantaged populations around the world an
opportunity for a healthier future.
"The presence of waterborne disease is an unmistakable sign of a
community in distress," says Howlett. "The results of this daily public
health disaster -- poverty, disease, malnutrition, environmental
deterioration and high infant mortality -- can be drastically reduced
through simple and direct interventions of chlorine-based products."
Under the banner of "Safe Water Delivered Safely," WCC supports
humanitarian efforts to save and improve lives around the world through
development and investment in international clean water projects and
global relief efforts. These efforts include the following:
--Tsunami Relief Efforts: In the wake of the tsunami that hit South Asia
in December 2004, WHO advised that ensuring access to safe water was
critical to preventing outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera
and typhoid. Within days, WCC member associations, Euro Chlor and the
Chlorine Chemistry Council, coordinated an industry response, raising
over $150,000 to aid water and sanitation efforts being carried out by
the American Red Cross.
--Household Water Treatment and Safe Storage: WCC is a partner of the
International Network to Promote Household Water Treatment and Safe
Storage, organized by the World Health Organization. Through this
network, WCC supports the widespread adoption of simple, low-cost
technologies that can dramatically improve the quality of water used in
individual homes, and help reduce the global burden of waterborne
disease. For example, in communities where safe water supplies are not
available, specially packaged chlorine bleach used to disinfect
household water has been shown to reduce diarrhea cases 25-50%.
--West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI): WCC actively supports the West
Africa Water Initiative (WAWI), a multi- partner alliance working in
some of the most arid regions of western Africa. WAWI projects are
focused on providing sustainable water supplies, reducing disease, and
improving water management in Ghana, Mali, and Niger. Unveiled at the
2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, WAWI is a leading example
of the "partnership" model for achieving the United Nation's Millennium
Development Goals. WCC will provide PVC pipe and other materials that
will be used by World Vision, UNICEF and other WAWI partners to
construct bore wells and sanitary latrines.
For more information about the World Chlorine Council, please visit
http://www.worldchlorine.com.
For more information on World Water Week, please go to http://www.worldwaterweek.org.
Created in 1993, the World Chlorine Council (WCC) is a global network of
national and regional trade associations and their member companies
representing the chlorine and chlorinated products industries. The WCC
coordinates international efforts to improve understanding and awareness
of the benefits of chlorine chemistry; furthers the practice and
understanding of responsible stewardship; and anticipates and responds
to relevant health, environmental and public policy issues.
Source: PRNewswire, World Chlorine Council
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