INTERNATIONAL NEWS
Climate talks must consider water, not just carbon
The COP-5 climate talks set to take economies, communities, and public
place in December must include health. We know that it is the medi-
water as a key component of the um through which climate change
negotiation process. This was the manifests its most serious effects.
core message to come from water “To be effective, climate negotia-
experts meeting in Stockholm for tions must factor in the impact and
World Water Week. importance of water for the world
The Stockholm Statement and, indeed, human well-being.”
<http://www.siwi.org/documents/W The statement says that adapta-
WW_PDF/Stockholm_Statement_09 tion to unavoidable climate change
0821.pdf> that articulated the dele- must be part of any global climate
gates’ concerns was unanimously change package, and that will include
supported during the plenary session securing reliable water resources.
on the final day of the gathering. It also calls for knowledge sharing,
Anders Berntell, executive director better access to technology for devel-
of the Stockholm International Water oping countries and finance that will
Institute, which hosted the talks, said: allow them to deliver sanitation and
“Water is a fundamental element in clean water for their people. Water is a fundamental element n communities and public health
Water shortages:
Asian crisis fear
When
Poor management of limited water resources
could lead to chronic food shortages and social
upheaval in Asia. This was the key message of sci-
RAG...
entists reporting to the UN.
Extensive research conducted on behalf of the
UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)
and the International Water Management Institute
(IWMI) concluded that countries in south and
east Asia need to spend billions of dollars to
becomes a modernise their agricultural sectors of face severe
shortages in coming decades.
“Asia’s food demand is expected to double by
2050,” said Colin Chartres, IWMI director. “Relying
DRAG
on trade to meet a large part of this demand will
impose a politically untenable burden on the
economies of many developing countries.
“If we don't invest we will see food crises like
the one in 2007 repeated over and over again.”
…choose a CHOPPER pump
Australia prepares
Sewage streams containing debris and rag can block pumps,
for a drier future
giving you the problem of expensive downtime and repairs
Almost one and half million dollars will be poured
VAUGHAN Chopper pumps are designed and built to handle debris
into the Australian outback to prepare it for a
and rag that block other types of ‘solids handling pumps’.
future with less water.
New South Wales will receive $1.45M
Wet well, dry well, submersible or self-priming…
(£755,000), from the government's $12.9B long-
…whatever your solids handling application – choose a Chopper pump
term water fund, to improve efficiency it was
announced. The funding will go towards a num-
ber of water saving initiatives across the state
Cut the drag from rag, save time and money
including converting farms from the traditional
furrow irrigation – where water is pumped into
fields for crops – to the more environmentally
www.pandmpumps.co.uk sales@thesolidsolution.co.uk tel: 01487 830123
friendly centre pivot sprinkler system.
10 Water & Wastewater Treatment September 2009