THE MAGAZINE FOR THE DRAINAGE,WATER &WASTEWATER INDUSTRIES


Club cross-companymentoring programme is to create a step-change in the number of women attaining senior leadership and board roles in their respective organisations. Through itsWomen onWater campaign, BritishWater is already leading the charge in helping the water industry to becomemore inclusive, which iswhywe are so pleased it has joined


the programme.


“Ensuring that organisations keep focus and attention on their gender diversity goals is more important than ever andmentoring is an effective catalyst to create connection, inclusion and growth through diversity.We look forward toworkingwith BritishWater and the newmentors andmentees itwill introduce


us to.”


Applications received by BritishWaterwill be assessed by an impartial panel and, after the successfulmentor-mentee applicants are matched, itwill facilitate the relationshipwith the 30%Clubmentoring programme team and become the communication hub for events.


COVID-19 pandemic should be a wake-up call for water security


Urgent action onwater security is essential to better prepare societies for future global health crises, say experts at the University of Birminghamin the UK and Northwestern University in the US.


In a comment article published in Nature Sustainability, the researchers are urging policymakers across theworld to focus on behavioural change, knowledge promotion and investment inwater infrastructure. The call follows studies revealing nearly a quarter of households in lowandmiddle income countries have been unable to followbasic guidelines on handwashing – recognised as critical for preventing the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.


Professor David Hannah,who holds the UNESCO Chair inWater Sciences at the University of Birmingham’s School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, says: “The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the urgent need for global action onwater security. This is a basic human right that is not beingmet in large sections of theworld’s population and COVID-19 has provided us with awake-up call thatwe cannot afford to ignore.”


Specific areaswhich need addressing include: •


Improvingwater infrastructure and technologies


• Protectingwater sources is key to ensuring safe drinkingwater. Approaches should include adequatewater treatment and distribution systems, aswell as developingways to recycle and reuse domesticwastewater and rainwater. These sorts ofmeasuresmay bemore cost effective than building expensive newinfrastructures such as dams or purifyingwater after it has become polluted.


• Promoting behavioural change FOLLOW US


• Local leaders and communities should grasp the opportunities to promote and embed good hygiene behaviours in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes rethinking our appreciation of the value ofwater and howto use it sustainably. This is important since future predictions on climate and population changemean even communitieswith good access towatermay face an uncertain future.


• Promoting alternatives


• Predicting and planning for relief efforts such as temporary taps or hand sanitiser productswill be increasingly important as climate change and population growth progress. Opportunities for handwashing varywidely across regions and even within households, so hotspots (areas with insufficient cleanwater) and hot moments (periods of timewhen clean water is inaccessible) need to be adequately forecast and prepared for.


Co-author Professor Iseult Lynch says: “The COVID-19 pandemicmay serve as an opportunity to change behaviours. For example, over-reliance on commercially


bottledwater can quickly become self- sustaining and disincentivise investment in sustainablewater infrastructure. Rethinking the value ofwater as amulti-purpose resource and howto use it sustainably is required urgently.”


“Both theWorld Health Organisation and UNICEF acknowledge the scale of this challenge,” adds co-author Professor Stefan Krause, in the University of Birmingham’s School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. “Water insecurity has consequences for thewell-being – bothmental and physical – of billions of people. The costs of not preparing for future criseswill be catastrophic.”


Sera L. Young, Associate Professor, Anthropology & Global Health, at Northwestern University, says: “This is a great example of howour HWISE scale, that measures householdwater insecurity experiences,makes visible the often invisible crisis ofwater insecurity. Inequalities in access to a resource fundamental for existence, and for preventing transmission of COVID,must not continue.My co-authors and I lay out some key actions that canmake theworld morewater secure, and safer for us all.”


October 2020 | drain TRADER 25


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