Freshwater

This paper focuses principally on the global drop in basic water supply and sanitation over the last 10 years. It considers critical international and regional aspects relating to the continued freshwater overuse, mis-use and infrastructural problems. Some solutions are addressed with regards to enabling greater access to water, as well as furthering sustainable water use and management.

Briefing Paper on Freshwater - PDF format (up-dated August 2001)

Briefing paper on Freshwater - Rich Text format (up-dated August 2001)

Other useful resources...

Click for links to resources on: 

Issues  

Community Empowerment and Information Management

Environment

Financial and Economic Mechanisms

Human right to water

Integrated water resource management

Food Security

Freshwater and UN conferences

Water and conflict

Organisations  

International 

Regional organisations & agreements

Non-Government Organizations

Businesses

Academic Organizations

Media

ISSUES  

Community Empowerment and Information Management

• Freshwater Resources Chapter 18. Agenda 21, Earth Summit 2002. UNCED (1992)   
• Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21 Ch. 18 Freshwater United Nations General Assembly 19^th Special Session New York, 23-27 June 1997 Resolution A/RES/S-19/2 19 September 1997 S/19-2.
• Report on the Sixth Session of UN CSD,  ECOSOC (1998)
• Ministerial Declaration of The Hague on Water Security. Second World Water Forum, March 2000.  
• Report on the NGO sessions at Second World Water Forum "Perspectives on Freshwater: Issues and recommendations of NGOs
• Water Matters  WaterAid and Tearfund campaign for water and sanitation to be key issues at Earth Summit 2002

Environment

• Global International Waters Assessment - global assessment of international waters, the ecological status of and the causes of environmental problems in 66 water areas in the world.
• IUCN Water and Nature Initiative and Vision for Water and Nature (pdf)
• WWF Living waters campaign

Financial and Economic Mechanisms

• World Water Vision: Making Water Everybody’s Business.  World Water Council.  Cosgrove, W. and Rijsberman, F. (2000) 
• Industry as a Partner of Sustainable Development: Water Management. International Water Association with UNEP (2002) 

Human Right to Water

• The Human Right to Water. Peter Gleick, Pacific Institute for studies in Development, Environment and Security

Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM)

• Toward Water Security: A Framework for Action.  Global Water Partnership (GWP) Secretariat.  (2000)
• World in transition.  Ways toward Sustainable Management of Freshwater Resources.  German Advisory Council on Global Change.  1997 Annual Report.  WGBU (1999)
• Sustainable water use in Europe  by European Environment Agency.

Food Security

• A Vision of water for food and rural development. WWC (2000)

Freshwater and the UN Conferences - click here

Water and Conflict

• Waternet on water, conflict and politics in Middle East

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ORGANISATIONS

International

• Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and AQUASTAT - FAO's global information system of water and agriculture developed by the Land and Water Development Division
• Global Environment Facility, water links (GEF) 
• Global International Waters Assessment 
• Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development: Environment (OECD) 
• International Conference on Freshwater (Dublin + 10) Bonn, December 2001
• United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization International Hydrological Programme (UNESCO)
• United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF)
• United Nations Environment Program’s Freshwater page 
• UNDP/World Bank Water and Sanitation Programme 
• UN ACC Interagency Sub-committee on Water Resources 
• United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)-Sustainable Energy and Environment Division 
• Water Supply and Sanitation Collaborative Council (WSSCC)
• World Health Organization, sanitation link (WHO) 
• World Meteorological Organization (WMO)]
• World Bank World Development Indicators.
• World Water Assessment Programme a UN-wide programme, coordinated by UNESCO', which seeks to develop the tools and skills needed to achieve a better understanding of basic processes, management practices and policies for enhancing the supply and quality of global freshwater resources.

Regional

• Middle East Multilateral Working Group on Water Resources 
• UN Economic Commission for Europe, water link  (ECE) 
• Water policy in the European Union 
• UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the South Pacific, water link (ESCAP)
• UN Economic and Social Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) 
• UN Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) 
• UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) 

Regional Agreements :

• UN ECE Convention on Environmental Impact Assessment in a Transboundary Context, Espoo (Finland), on 25 February 1991

• UN ECE Convention on the Protection and Use of Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes,  Helsinki, on 17 March 1992 (a) Protocol on Water and Health, London, on 17 June 1999  

• UN ECE Convention on Access to Information, Public Participation in Decision-making and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters, Aarhus (Denmark), on 25 June 1998  

Non-Government Organizations

• American Water Works Association 
• BothENDS 
• Centre for Science and the Environment , India
• Global Water Partnership (GWP) 
• Great Lakes Information Network (GLIN) 
• Green Cross International, water programme 
• GreenPeace
• International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED)
• International Water Association (ISA) 
• SNV Netherlands Development Organization
• LakeNet
• Monitor International
• National Ground Water Association 
• Natural Resources Defense Council 
• Novib
• Plan International 
• Sierra Club water link
• Solidarité Eau Europe
• Terrene Institute
• WaterAid
• Water Environment Federation 
• WaterPartners 
• Water Systems Council (WSC)
• World Wildlife Fund (WWF) 
• The World Conservation Union (IUCN)
• NGOs and freshwater website 

 Businesses

• Anglian Water 
• Azurix 
• Berliner Wasser Betriebe 
• Bouygues 
• Dragados 
• Enron 
• Groupe Suez Lyonnaise des Eaux 
• Harza
• Impregilo 
• International Chamber of Commerce (ICC): Environment and Sustainable Development 
• Severn Trent 
• Stockholm Vatten
• Thames water
• Unilever
• Vivendi 
• Water Bank - works with water and irrigation districts to develop efficient methods of trading project water for irrigation, municipal or industrial uses online
• World Business Council for Sustainable Development, water projects 

 Academic Organizations

• American Institute of Hydrology 
• Centre for Science and Environment (CSE)
• Department of Water Sanitation in Developing Countries (SANDEC) 
• Foundation for Water Research
• IHE Delft, Hydrology for Environment, Life and Policy - HELP http://www.nwl.ac.uk/ih/help/ 
• International Institute for Aerospace Survey and Earth Sciences, water rsources (ITC)
• United Nations University, International Network on Water, Environment and Health
• International Water and Sanitation Centre (IRC)
• Netherlands Institute of Applied Geosciences
• Pacific Institute for studies in Development, Environment and Security 
• Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI)
• Swiss Federal Institute for Environmental Science and Technology (EAWAG)
• Water Environment International consulting services on water environment aspects of international development in developing Asia & Africa. 
• Water, Engineering, and Development Centre (WEDC)
• Worldwatch Institute
• World Resources Institute: Water Resources and Freshwater Ecosystems  
• The Worlds Water - Information on the World's Freshwater Resources

Media

• Agua Latina - prize winning technical water magazine for Latin America
• Bellanet
• CNN Interactive
• EuroNews
• Global Environment Outlook 2000 (UNEP)
• Great Lakes Information Network
• International Network of Basin Organisations (INBO)
• Network for Change 
• RiverNet
• Water Online

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Up-dated December 2001. If you would like your organisation / information linked to this page please contact: [email protected]