Will big cities run out of drinking water?
The International Water Assessment Centre under the
UN/ECE Water Convention comes on stream
Geneva, 23 September 2000
"Recent spills of toxic substances in Baia Mare in
Romania and Mitrovica in Kosovo have once again revealed the dramatic situation of rivers
in some European countries. The international community must wake up to the results of
decades of water mismanagement," says Mrs. Danuta Hübner, Executive Secretary of the
United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE). "We must know the exact
nature and extent of the environmental problems facing our rivers. This is why it is so
important to set up the International Water Assessment Centre under the aegis of the
UN/ECE Water Convention with the support of the Government of the Netherlands."
The Centre will initially monitor eight rivers in eastern Europe and
Central Asia: the Bug (Belarus, Poland, Ukraine), the Ipoly (Hungary, Slovakia), the Kura
(Azerbaijan, Georgia), the Latoritca/Uzh (Slovakia, Ukraine), the Mures (Hungary,
Romania), the Morava (Czech Republic, Slovakia), the Serverski Donets (Russian Federation,
Ukraine) and the Tobol (Kazakhstan, Russian Federation). All these rivers face
environmental problems.
The River Bug marks the border between Poland and Ukraine and between
Poland and Belarus. Its water resources are particularly important to the 2.5 million
people who live in its catchment area. The City of Warsaw also largely depends on the
River Bug for its water supply. In recent years agriculture in its basin has intensified,
especially in Belarus, where other regions can no longer be used for agriculture because
of the nuclear accident at Chernobyl. The expansion of agriculture means higher levels of
pesticide and herbicide pollution in the basins groundwater and surface water. But
near industrial cities the quality of the Bugs water is also threatened by excessive
levels of heavy metals, organic nutrients and phosphorus. Inadequate sewer systems and
waste-water treatment add to the problem, especially in the dry season. Both the upper and
the lower reaches of the Bug are affected by pollution.
A drinking water reservoir near Baku is also threatened as a result of
mining and agriculture in the catchment area of the River Kura in Armenia, Georgia and
Azerbaijan. The Mures, on the other hand, is exposed to the same risk of industrial
accidents in the mining and manufacturing sectors as the Tisza, which was poisoned by the
cyanide spill in Baia Mare. Finally, the River Pripet (Ukraine, Belarus) may also be
included. It is still contaminated by radioactivity as a result of the Chernobyl nuclear
accident.
The International Water Assessment Centre will open in Lelystad
(Netherlands) on Saturday, 23 September 2000. It will carry out tailor-made assessments of
international rivers and lakes to set priorities to protect our rivers, to choose the best
management practices and to examine the effectiveness of the UN/ECE Convention on the
Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes. This will help
riparian countries decide where to invest to improve water quality. The Centre will also
provide training.
The Centres role in harmonizing the assessment criteria and
legislation in Europe will be important too. The Centre will provide advice on such
questions as: what kind of information is relevant to the management of transboundary
waters; how can the information needs of decision makers and the public be met most
effectively; and how can countries in transition get reliable information at low cost?
For further information, please contact:
Rainer ENDERLEIN
UN/ECE Environment and Human Settlements Division
Palais des Nations, office 313
CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Phone: +41 22 917 23 73
Mobile: +31 620 777 511 (in the Netherlands)
Fax: +41 22 907 01 07
E-mail: [email protected]
In order to provide you with a better
service, we would appreciate it if you would send a copy of your article to: Information Unit, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UN/ECE), Palais des
Nations, Room 356, CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland,
Tel: +(41 22) 917 44 44, Fax: +(41 22) 917 05 05,
E-mail: [email protected], Website: http://www.unece.org
Thank you. |