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Water and Sanitation
The availability of constant good quality water and proper sanitation is fundamental to sustainable development, public health, quality of life and preservation of the environment. Water resources and sanitation are inextricably linked, as waste disposal often has a direct impact on the quality of freshwater resources in the low-lying Pacific ACP States and coastal areas. The economic cost of poor water quality, water supply and sanitation is high in terms of diminished productivity, higher public health costs, and lost development opportunities. The impact also has a gender and economic bias as the heaviest toll is borne by women and children of the poorer communities. The problem is exacerbated in the land-scarce Pacific ACP States with the rapid growth of urban and peri-urban populations exposed to health problems and contagious diseases.
Key areas that need addressing if these problems are to be alleviated include:
- availability of data on water utilities, wastage quality, infrastructure and health,
- groundwater assessment surveys, hydrological monitoring, geological and vegetation mapping,
- management and land use planning,
- socio-economic analysis.
The SOPAC-EU Project is built upon SOPAC’s long experience of water supply implementation in the region, and has access to its comprehensive database holdings. It also seeks advice from SOPAC’s Water and Sanitation Specialist and to make use of counterparts with local knowledge of water supply and sanitation issues gained on SOPAC-led in-country training courses.
The project concentrates on improved planning practices installed for safe and adequate water supplies and sanitation systems.
Contributors to this page: arti
and
Franck
.
Page last modified on Monday 23 of January, 2006 [04:01:40 UTC] by arti .
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