THE HEALTH aspirations of many people in the Americas are closely linked to what both poets and physicians call life's vital liquid. Clean drinking water is still a luxury for 90 million people in the Americas, and crises such as the last cholera epidemic potentially threaten countries of the area, where investments have not reached the levels needed to improve the water and sanitation situation.
One of the goals of the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) is reducing death and disease of children in the region and saving the lives of 100,000 children who die of preventable diseases, including diarrhoea, in which quality of drinking water plays a notable role. Water disinfection and access to drinking water are two imperative needs in the Americas.
"The situation with regard to water and sanitation is still critical," says Dr. Mauricio Pardon Ojeda, director of the Division of Health and Environment of PAHO. "Although there has been progress in terms of coverage, there still are large areas of inequalities, especially in water services in urban fringe areas and rural areas. That is a reflection of the lack of adequate investments in the sector," he explained.
However, coverage is not the only measure. Quality of services is equally important, and where the quality of drinking water is not good, according to Dr. Pardon, the flourishing bottled water industry reflects the population's perception of the water from faucets.
The alarming sanitation situation can be exemplified with one fact: only about 15 per cent of waste water is treated correctly, and this could worsen. The situation already has a heavy impact on rivers and streams, with contamination of surface water and groundwater of coastal areas in the region.
"If adequate measures are not taken promptly, this could become a crisis of enormous proportions, similar to that which we had with cholera. The necessary investments in water and sanitation in the countries are not being made", Dr. Pardon says.
