UN Calls for Wastewater Focus

In my research, I focus on toxic chemicals that cannot be removed from wastewater treatment. And a lot of studies aim to develop advanced wastewater treatment technologies to remove more toxic chemicals in order to reduce loadings of toxic chemicals to the environment, which would affect ecosystems and in turn human health.

While developed countries such as Canada and the USA have over 90% of wastewater treated, sanitation of wastewater is still a big challenge faced by many low-income countries.  The global data indicate that only 20% of global wastewater is currently being treated. Wastewater in some developing countries is barely treated before released to the environment. Low-income countries possessing only 8 per cent of the required capacity to treat wastewater effectively. Such untreated wastewater is likely to contaminate water supplies and cause diseases. A UN-Water Analytical Brief, produced by the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and UN-Habitat, on behalf of UN-Water, describes the damage being done to ecosystems and biodiversity as 'dire' and warns of the threat wastewater will increasingly pose to human health, economic activity, and water security if left unaddressed.

It is obvious that sustainable wastewater management will become a key task for the world to apply in the coming years.

UN and WHO officials pointed out  "Wastewater management has been neglected in the rush to commercialize drinking water production, a situation exacerbated by a fragmented water management system in many countries, and the use of different technologies that are often designed separately and retrofitted to existing systems."

"Around 70 per cent of industrial discharge in developing countries goes untreated. And eutrophication - from wastewater and agricultural run-off - has, according to recent estimates, reduced biodiversity in rivers, lakes and wetlands by about one-third globally."

"It is time to turn this environmental and human health challenge into an opportunity. Agriculture consumes 70 per cent of global water withdrawal, but agricultural irrigation from reclaimed wastewater is on the rise, and is being used to irrigate 20 to 45 million hectares worldwide. This is just a fraction of what is possible if policy and available technologies converge to ensure that wastewater and water quality are fully integrated into a more holistic water agenda as part of the post-2015 process,"

"To be successful and sustainable, wastewater management must be an integral part of the critical levers of urban planning and legislation resulting in productive, healthy and livable cities. The upcoming UN Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development, Habitat III, will be an opportunity to underscore the importance of effective wastewater management and highlight the role of wastewater in the new urban agenda."

References and read more:
www.unwater.org/publications/publications-detail/en/c/275896/
http://www.unep.org/newscentre/Default.aspx?DocumentID=2818&ArticleID=11130&l=en#sthash.KH72aIVy.dpuf