How about water quality monitoring on Planet Earth?

It was the ultimate irony. The moon was bombed to find water. Prior to that, the discovery of water molecules in the moon had made it to the headlines of every newspaper.

Living in waste?

The World Water Assessment Programme has just confirmed what everyone knew. Human-generated water pollution is rising all over the world and is seriously threatening human and ecosystem health.

The debates drag on

At the recent World Water Forum in Istanbul, it was good to hear some new topics being discussed such as the energy-water linkage, the need for water-related data and the impact of the financial crisis on the water sector.

But one set of debates that never seem to go away are the ‘Is water a human right?’ debate which leads to the ‘Shouldn’t water be free?’ debate which opens the floodgates for “Should water be managed by the public or private sector?” debate.

The Politics of Water at Davos

Discussing water at the World Economic Forum in Davos where the world’s political and business leaders gather is quite a recent phenomenon. “Water has moved up the global and Davos agenda,” declared Peter Gleick, President of the Pacific Insititute while speaking at a session titled ‘The Politics of Water’.

Urgent need for Asia-wide water quality monitoring

 We have heard about civil society movements for human rights, women’s rights and a plethora of other rights. We have heard about public protests against privatisation of water, building of dams, rise in prices and oppressive political regimes. But, have we ever heard of citizens coming together in large groups to measure and collect data?

Experts deliberate on Asian Water and Sanitation

At the Experts Consultation Meeting held in Singapore on Thursday, a gamut of issues ailing the water and sanitation sector were put forth by experts from funding organisations, water utilities, researchers, NGOs and a slew of other organisations.

Water experts are working around the clock to prepare a forward-looking document called Asian Water and Development Outlook (AWDO) which will act as a guide for policy makers of the region. AWDO will articulate the overall directions for water and sanitation activities needed to be pursued in an integrated manner by national leaders.

Ignorance of urban existence

It is now official. In 2007, for the first time in history, half the world’s population lives in urban areas. Urban Asian population is not far behind and is expected to become at par with rural numbers by 2020.

Perhaps, one aspect which has not been much discussed about urban existence is the all-pervading ignorance about the mechanisms and processes that connect suppliers and consumers. An interesting film I saw on the net at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUlkOLLa31s revealed that most urban dwellers are completely ignorant about where they get their tap water from and what happens to the stuff they flush down their toilets.

Is my water drugged?

When I brought home my pack of antibiotics from the doctor last month, it was with a heavy heart – not just for the unwanted side effects that I had been sentenced to bear but the damage to the environment.

Mankind is dosing itself with such high levels of pharmaceuticals including painkillers, tranquilizers, anti-depressants, antibiotics, birth control pills, estrogen replacement therapies, chemotherapy agents, anti-seizure medications, etc that these compounds are finding their way into rivers, groundwater and ultimately drinking water. Municipal sewage treatment plants are generally not equipped to remove complex pharmaceuticals and these dangerous compounds are poised to make a huge impact in the coming decades.

Filtering some thoughts on water

As an editor of a water magazine, I am frequently asked “Should we filter tap water? What kind of filter is the best? Should we go for reverse osmosis (RO) water?” Or I hear someone saying “I always buy bottled water when I travel. It’s better to be safe than sorry”. Then there are those who won’t be bothered to drink anything other than tap water.

In most Asian countries drinking water straight from the tap is not a good idea. Water borne diseases like typhoid and gastroenteritis have not disappeared. While municipal authorities do treat water in cities, quality control is not effective. Besides, there is always scope for re-contamination in pipelines. Most pipelines are old and might be adding lead, asbestos, copper, or PVC breakdown products to the water, all of which are toxic. The pipes may also be decayed or leaky, allowing bacteria to proliferate or ground contaminants (pesticides, arsenic, and other petrochemicals) to seep into the pipes. Cysts of protozoa (giardia) can persist even in chlorinated water.