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4th World Water Forum
Mexico City | March 16-22, 2006
World Water Conference
On Tuesday, participants at the 4th World Water Forum addressed the
theme of "Risk Management" in plenary and thematic sessions,
heard a keynote address by Mario Molina, 1995 Chemistry Nobel Prize
Laureate, and focused on the Asia-Pacific region. The Ministerial
Conference convened in parallel with the Forum, with ministers and
high-level officials from some 140 countries gathering in both closed
and open sessions.
Above: During the opening of the Ministerial Conference, children from
around the world voiced a Call for Action on water, sanitation and education.
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Tuesday, 21 March
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Regional Presentation
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Left: Kim Huk Su, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic and Social Commission
for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), welcomed the establishment of the
Asia-Pacific Water Forum.
Right: Abdukhohir Nazirov, Tajikistan's Minister
of Land Reclamation and Water Resources, reiterated Central Asia's
commitment to strengthening water cooperation in the region for the
achievement of the MDGs.
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Keynote Address
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Mario Molina, 1995 Chemistry Nobel Prize Laureate, addressed the
inter-relationship between global warming and the water cycle.
Characterizing our atmosphere's relative thickness to that of an
apple skin relative to an apple, he said the amount of available air is
limited, and stressed that mankind can indeed impact the atmosphere
negatively.
Molina underscored the dramatic impacts of climate change on the water
cycle, noting feedback mechanisms that will stimulate temperature
increase, including through a decreased reflection of solar energy due
to the melting of glaciers, and increased cloud cover that will
exacerbate the greenhouse effect. Noting that the complex relationships
in the water cycle are still poorly understood, he predicted that the
water cycle will intensify, causing extreme weather events such as
hurricanes and increasing the frequency and severity of droughts and
floods.
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Introduction to the Framework Theme
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Carl Strock, Commander of the US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE),
highlighted recent disasters including the Indian Ocean Tsunami and
Hurricane Katrina, saying they reinforced the notion of a global
community. He emphasized that all countries can be affected and said
that lessons learned can be applied globally.
Noting that the structure of the USACE helped to ensure a swift
response, Strock addressed lessons learned, including the unsuccessful
aspects of the relief effort, such as ineffective communication among
federal, state, and local authorities. He stressed the need for: a
national digital database that highlights risk areas; pre-positioned
response experts outside the impact area; a holistic and integrated
response; and better communication of the risks to the population in
order to provide best control and protection.
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Global Climate Change and Urban Flood Mitigation
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Left: Ricardo Troncoso-Gaytá, University of Baja California, presented
on the analysis and foresight of climatic scenarios on the Pacific side
of Baja California. He described phenomena affecting scenarios in the
region such as El Niño and tropical deforestation.
Right: Dolores Hipolito, Philippines' Department of Public Works and
Highways, explained that community participation in disaster prevention
measures ensures peoples' awareness, acceptance and mobilization.
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Hurricane Katrina and Other Major Water-Related Disasters
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Melanie Schultz van Haegen, the Netherlands Vice-Minister of Transport,
Public Works and Water Management, highlighted the country's 800
years of experience in risk management. Noting that 60 percent of the
Netherlands lies beneath sea level and recalling a disastrous flood in
1953, she described a new national policy that allows rivers to periodically
flood.
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Addressing lessons learned in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Steven
Stockton, USACE, described severe damage to the City of New Orleans, US,
which totaled US$ 100 billion, displaced 1.5 million people, and took
1420 lives. He highlighted rehabilitation efforts in the city, including
water drainage, and detailed the extended struggle in bringing about a
hurricane protection system.
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François Guerquin, Marseille Water Supply Company, said people cannot
prepare themselves for all disasters. He described his company's
efforts to provide services during humanitarian crises and described its
contribution to rehabilitation activities in Sri Lanka following the
Indian Ocean Tsunami.
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Sustainability of Water and Sanitation Services in the Context of
Disaster Risk Reduction
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Andrés Ruíz Morcillo, Director General, Commission for
Drinking Water and Sewerage of Quintana Roo, presented on the disaster
response to Hurricane Wilma in Cancun, Mexico, in 2005, noting that
preparedness is essential since communications are often disabled during
a hurricane.
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Hans Spruijt, UNICEF, presented on disaster relief in Ethiopia. Noting
that Ethiopia receives the world's highest level of per capita
emergency relief and the lowest level of per capita development aid, he
emphasized the need to shift from emergency relief approaches to
developmental approaches in disaster-prone regions.
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Session Chair Sálvano Briceño, Director of the UN
International Strategy for Disaster Reduction Inter-Agency Secretariat,
introduced the "Hyogo Framework for Action: 2005-2015," adopted
at the 2005 World Conference on Disaster Reduction to help countries
develop strategies for natural disaster risk management.
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Groundwater and Risk Management
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Presenting on local actions, Jeroen Aerts, Free University of Amsterdam,
highlighted the positive impacts of a project in eastern Kenya in which
more than 450 sand dams have been built with community members since
1995 to store water and mitigate drought.
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Hu SungGi, World Economic Forum - Japan, highlighted that reinforcement
of embankments, construction of dams and artificial ponds and increasing
land absorption capacity are strategies that have been used to reduce
the impact of extreme events in Japan, including typhoons.
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Bhanu Neupane, UNESCO, described a UNESCO project that assesses the
effects of the Indian Ocean Tsunami on coastal groundwater along the
southeastern coast of India and evaluates solutions to deal with similar
situations in the future.
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Flood Management
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Wang Shucheng, China's Minister of Water Resources, gave a keynote
address on the Chinese management strategy to prevent flooding. Stating
that flood management is a long-term challenge, he stressed the need for
implementation of scientific flood management for "harmonious
coexistence between man and nature," highlighting that flood control
systems must be adaptable to socioeconomic development.
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Minoru Kuriki, Director of Japan's National Institute for Land and
Infrastructure, described characteristics of rivers, conventional flood
control techniques, integrated flood management, and new approaches used
in Japan. He recommended changes in housing practices, the use of
inundation control facilities, preparations for exact and smooth
evacuations, and capacity building for effective relief, recovery and
reconstruction.
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Stating that over one billion people live on flood plains, Aly Shady,
President of the International Water Resources Association, stressed the
need for flood protection preparations, including: forecasting;
improving hydrological knowledge and data; devising plans and building
protection; establishing shelters during times of flood; building
institutional capacity; and carrying out restoration quickly and
effectively to allow for the continuation of normal life.
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Role of Dams and Reservoirs in Integrated Flood Management
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Stressing that flooding is a natural phenomenon, Ute Collier, WWF, said
increased risk is mainly anthropogenic. She noted that dams that are not
designed to accommodate larger floods pose a risk, and that dams inhibit
the beneficial aspects of floods, such as sedimentation.
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Li Lifeng, WWF, addressed changes in China's flood management policy
after the big 1998 Yangtze flood, including converting cultivated lands
to wetlands and lakes. Presenting a local case study, he noted
significant environmental, social and economic benefits, including
increased food production, ecotourism and hydrological restoration.
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Yosuke Tomizawa, Japanese Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and
Transport, presented a case study on flood management in the Kitakami
River basin, Japan. Noting that the basin's geological instability
and large amounts of precipitation exacerbate soil erosion and floods,
he said dams have proved to be an effective measure to protect the
population.
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Reducing Human Loss of Life Caused by Water-Related Disasters, Including
Tsunamis and Landslides
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Left: Suresh Yavalkar, Institute for Sustainable Development and Research
(ISDR), highlighted the outcomes of a national workshop on tsunami
rehabilitation, held in India in 2005, as a means to raise public
awareness.
Right: Noting "The Tsunami Challenge" project, Rei Asada, JWF,
described "Two Faced Sea," a book about disaster prevention
distributed at workshops and schools in Sri Lanka, and highlighted the
importance of knowledge sharing.
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Empowerment and Democratization Multi-Stakeholder Panel
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Margaret Catley-Carson, GWP, noted that an enabling environment is
required to foster democratization and empowerment but stressed that the
operators who have the ability to create an enabling environment often
do not know how to do so.
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Pedro Arrojo, New Water Culture Foundation, stated that water is an
ethical issue that cannot be addressed in the market because its value
extends beyond an economic value. He stated that human beings have a
right to a healthy ecosystem and that water is needed for the
sustainability of ecosystems.
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Ger Bergkamp, IUCN, argued that local communities need to build capacity
to engage in political negotiations and processes.
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Intergenerational Dialogue
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Donna Goodman, UNICEF, introduced the local actions on water, sanitation
and hygiene in schools, presented by youth representatives from Japan,
Kenya, Laos, Mexico, and the US.
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A young panelist from Kenya.
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Two young panelists from Laos.
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Ministerial Conference
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José Luis Luege Tamargo, Mexico's Secretary of Environment
and Natural Resources, welcomed ministers and high-level officials,
noting that over 140 delegations and 70 ministers were in attendance.
Underscoring the obligation to offer access to safe and clean water to
all citizens, he said access to water is linked to improving quality of
life and health and stressed the importance of focusing particularly on
the local level.
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Noting that lack of access to water is a major source of death and
disease in the world, Loïc Fauchon, WWC President, urged the 4th Forum
to affirm the right to water. He said women and children walking long
ways to find water is no longer acceptable, and recalled that we bear a
decisive responsibility to address this reality.
Fauchon announced the launch of WWC's "Water for Schools"
initiative, which seeks to provide access to water in one thousand
schools in ten countries.
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Ryutaro Hashimoto, Chair of the UN Advisory Board on Water and
Sanitation and former Prime Minister of Japan, gave a keynote address on
financing for local water projects, focusing on actions proposed in the
Board's Compendium of Actions. He said the Compendium sets out
actions that key actors should take to remove obstacles and bottlenecks
in achieving the internationally agreed water and sanitation targets,
with a focus on: financing; water operators partnerships; sanitation;
monitoring and reporting; IWRM; and water and disasters.
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Side Event: Protecting the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities
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Participants at a multi-stakeholder dialogue session on the UNEP Global
Plan of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from
Land-based Activities (GPA) were given an overview of the GPA, along
with presentations on the linkage between freshwater, coastal areas
and oceans, and on successes and challenges encountered by public
water and sanitation agencies in France. Panelists lamented that many
within the freshwater sector fail to recognize or understand its linkage
to coastal areas and oceans, noting that nearly half of Earth's
population and two thirds of its cities are in coastal areas.
Panelists noted that 80 percent of ocean pollution comes from
land-based activities, and called for greater dialogue on the linkage
between freshwater and oceans, and further education of policymakers.
In ensuing discussion, participants discussed ideas for the Second
Intergovernmental Review of the GPA, to be held 16-20 October 2006
in Beijing, China.
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Around the Forum
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Conference volunteers and participants alike wanted to pose for photos
with Nobel Laureate Mario José Molina in his home town of Mexico
City.
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After their conference, ministers toured the water fair...
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looking at posters and other information at the pavilions...
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...and learning about the latest water technologies.
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Camera-wielding crowds gathered at the booth of one pump and water
control company when one of the well-dressed young ladies working
at the booth changed into a bikini and demonstrated the jacuzzi on
display.
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More Information
4th World Water Forum Site
Conference Program
World Water Council
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Related Links
3rd World Water
Forum,
Kyoto, Shiga and Osaka, Japan, March 2003
Ramsar Convention on Wetlands
Ramsar COP-9,
Kampala, Uganda, November 2005
3rd Global
Conference on Oceans, Coasts and Islands,
Paris, France, January 2006
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