Geneva, 17 March 1999
WATER AND
HEALTH IN EUROPE:
"MEDIEVAL" DISEASES LURKING IN THE WATER SUPPLIES
As the United Nations World
Water Day (22 March) approaches, 1 European in 7 does not have
access to safe water. The United Nations Economic Commission for
Europe (UN/ECE) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are
tackling the crisis in water and health, and months of
negotiation with European governments have produced a legally
binding protocol to combat water-related disease. It will be put
before environment and health ministers in London in June.
Cholera, typhoid fever and
hepatitis A are water-related diseases often associated with
developing countries or perhaps medieval Europe. Yet at the dawn
of the third millennium, these diseases are making a comeback in
some European countries. In Albania, for example, 25 people died
of cholera in 1994 after drinking contaminated water. In Latvia,
several hundred cases of hepatitis A and bacterial dysentery are
attributed to contaminated drinking water each year. In
Tajikistan, some 4 000 cases of typhoid fever were reported in
1996 following heavy rainfall. In the past decade there have been
some 190 outbreaks of bacterial dysentery, 70 outbreaks of
hepatitis A and 45 outbreaks of typhoid fever associated with
drinking water and recreational water in Europe and central Asia.
These are only the best known
water-related diseases. Others, which are even more widespread,
are hitting even countries otherwise known for their high level
of sanitation. In Sweden in the past decade, for example, there
have been six outbreaks of waterborne campylobacteriosis, which
causes gastroenteritis. In fact, a total of 27 000 people
suffered from waterborne disease in Sweden in those ten years.
During the same period, the United Kingdom reported 13 outbreaks
of cryptosporidiosis, which also causes gastroenteritis and can
usually be traced back to agricultural pollution. "Yet this is only the tip of the proverbial
iceberg, as data related to waterborne diseases are often not
reported as such," stresses Kaj Bärlund, Director of the
Environment and Human Settlements Division of UN/ECE. "Access to safe drinking water cannot be taken for
granted, especially not in eastern Europe."
Most public water supplies are
routinely monitored, but private supplies may not be subject to
the same quality standards. In the Russian Federation, half the
population uses water that fails to meet quality standards. In
Latvia, 55% of water samples from shallow wells fail to meet
microbiological standards. Yet half the rural population relies
on these wells as a source of drinking water. Some 50% of
Armenian supplies also fail to meet quality standards. Even in
countries where most residents are connected to a water supply
network, there may be frequent interruptions in supply. In
southern Russia, water may be available for only a few hours a
day. In Romania, some supply systems do not function for more
than 12 hours a day. Around 30% of Italy's islanders also suffer interruptions in their
water supply. Apart from contamination with microbes and viruses,
water may also be polluted with lead, arsenic, fluorides or
nitrates. Agriculture also affects water quality through run-off
containing pesticides and fertilizers.
"If we persist with intensive agriculture,
industrialization and overexploitation of our water resources, it
will become increasingly difficult to ensure a supply of safe
water in many parts of Europe, including a number of big cities," warns Günter Klein, Director, Environment and
Health at WHO's Regional Office for Europe. "It is high time countries committed themselves to
protecting the health of their inhabitants by working together
with all the sectors. Safe water is one of the vital sources of
good health, and intersectoral collaboration and partnership is
essential, both within and among European Member States. This
will be a prerequisite for sustainable development and
harmonization in the European Region and this protocol will be a
helpful tool for achieving health for all in the 21st century."
The Protocol on Water and Health
to the UN/ECE Convention on the Protection and Use of
Transboundary Watercourses and International Lakes should help
countries to reduce such outbreaks by providing safe drinking
water and recreational water to people throughout Europe. The
Protocol has been drawn up under the auspices of UN/ECE and the
WHO Regional Office for Europe. Its ultimate aim is to reduce,
control and prevent water-related disease. It is expected to be
signed at the Third Ministerial Conference for Environment and
Health, in London on 16-18 June.
This press release is issued
jointly with the WHO Regional Office for Europe. The full draft
text of the Protocol, together with the background documents and
details of the Third Ministerial Conference, can be found on
www.who.dk/London99.
For further information,
please contact:
Mr Kaj Bärlund, Director
UN/ECE
Environment and Human Settlements
Division
Palais
des Nations, office 334
CH
- 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland
Tel:
(+41 22) 917 23 70
Fax:
(+41 22) 907 01 07
E-mail: [email protected] |
Dr Günter Klein, Director
Environment
and Health
WHO
Regional Office for Europe
8,
Scherfigsvej
DK
- 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark
Tel:
(+45) 39171346
Fax:
(+45) 39171878
E-mail: [email protected] |