Natural resources committee calls for global water plan.

A worldwide plan to avert an impending global water crisis was called for by the Committee on Natural Resources at its second session (22 February-4 March, New York).

The strategy should define specific areas of priority to diminish significantly by the year 2010 the threat to freshwater resources, the 24-member expert body said in asking the UN Commission on Sustainable Development to undertake that task.

"Water shortages are becoming a common occurrence in industrialized and developing countries alike", stated a report examined by the Committee. "The world may be reaching a water crisis situation of global proportions."

The Committee also asked Governments to establish a dynamic and multisectoral approach to water resources management, including assessing and protecting potential sources of freshwater.

As for mineral resources--another major concern--the Committee wanted the Commission to forge a dialogue between the UN system and the international mining industry to develop new approaches to ensure a sustainable supply of mineral resources.

Workshops on mineral resource assessment projects were recommended. A report was asked on key advances in state-of-the-art technologies to minimize environmental degradation resulting from mining and related processing.

Reports

Among several interesting reports before the Committee was a 26-page document on water resources (E/C.7/1994/4), detailing critical concerns for the 1990s and regional trends in water resources management.

Available information suggested that Governments were "subsidizing services to the better-off population at higher levels, rather than to the urban low-income population and rural areas", the report stated.

With the bulk of population increase taking place in urban areas, the availability of safe water in cities "is fast becoming one of the most important factors limiting socio-economic development".

Under pressure from population and economic growth, food production problems "will be exacerbated by a deterioration of water quality and a degradation of irrigation systems to the point where they have to go out of use", the report added.

To find answers, Governments had to consider creating a "dynamic interactive, iterative approach" to water resources management. A "diagnostic assessment" of institutional arrangements and human resources capacity was crucial to formulating a strategy and action plan for the years to come.

While there had been progress in some areas, "very serious problems" persisted, sometimes verging on the "alarming" For example, the report called attention to progress in eradicating some water-borne diseases, notably guinea worm. But the outbreak of cholera in recent years "illustrates the possible magnitude of an impending health crisis", particularly in urban areas.

"More and more rivers, recipients of untreated urban waste discharges, are becoming open sewers, and pollution from the indiscriminate use of agrochemical products is often rampant", the report stated.

To ensure that water resources receive high priority on national and regional agendas, the report urged that more information be disseminated and water resource policy be integrated into planning and economic policies.

"Without a concerted effort to deal with economic growth, poverty and a more equitable distribution of income, developing countries will not be able to cope with issues related to the long-term sustainability of land and water development", the report stated.