Monday, March 26, 2007 Editorial: “Water-secure world”
THIS is the convention: “Water is life... human beings (are made of) about 60 percent (water), fish about 80 percent, plants between 80 percent and 90 percent... Seventy percent of the earth’s surface is covered by water.”
If it such an omnipresent element, why is water then endangered?
Since freshwater represents only three percent of the water available on the earth’s surface-with the other 97 percent contained in the ocean and thus unsuitable or expensive to convert for drinking or irrigation-the conservation, protection and management of water is the overriding message of last March 22’s World Water Day.
To contribute to greater awareness of the collective stake and responsibility, Sun.Star Cebu ran a four-part special report probing the state of Cebu’s water situation.
Runaway
Cebu City’s groundwater can no longer meet local demand.
This is according to the Water Resources Management Action Plan for Central Cebu (2005-2030) made by the University of San Carlos-Water Resources Center (WRC).
Cherry Ann T. Lim writes in the first part of the special report published last March 20 that the hydrology experts point out that only 10 percent of the rainfall in Central Cebu is used for water supply because of inadequate infrastructure to catch and store rainfall and prevent this from running off to the sea, unused.
The aquifers are also contaminated by coastal sewage in the absence of a major system collecting, treating and disposing of the waste. (The problem is expanded on by Linette C. Ramos in the March 22 third part of the series.) Illegal wells also compound the over-extraction of groundwater, leading to the intrusion of saltwater in the aquifer, reports Liberty A. Pinili.
No longer liquid
The effects of the water crisis cut across all demographics.
Rianne C. Tecson writes in the main story of the March 21 second part of the special reports the problem’s different faces: inaccessibility of potable water in some mountain barangays; and the high cost and dubious safety of the water bought by the urban poor from local vendors.
In a related story, Tecson and Ramos write that entrepreneurs are required to secure permits and licenses from government as proof that standards for water safety are met.
However, the lack of government resources to monitor violations puts the pressure on homeowners to report if subdivision and condominium developers renege on water system plans, Mayette Q. Tabada reports.
Plugging the hole
Solutions to plug the water crisis range from the integrated to the personal. Pinili writes in the main story of the Mar. 22 third part of the special reports that stakeholder participation is needed to give teeth to the National Integrated and Protected Areas System Act, which protects watersheds.
Ramos tackles other measures: the Cebu City ordinance requiring homeowners and building developers to construct rainwater tanks and reservoirs; Shangri-la’s Mactan Island Resort and Spa’s desalination plant to reduce dependence on groundwater; and the Metropolitan Cebu Water District’s price hike and campaign for water conservation.
In Jeanette P. Malinao’s main story featured in the special reports’ March 23 conclusion, local government units, suppliers and stakeholders need to cooperate to ensure sustainable water for all. As Pinili reports, there is no shortage of projects anticipating future water demands.
To renew water, the Sun.Star special reports emphasize this other conventional water fact: the element crosses all boundaries, political or otherwise.
