It was a great day at the SIWW/LET conference. The challenges of providing safe drinking water and sanitation services was paramount in many discussions and applicable to countries around the world. In the Plenary Forum on Sustainable Water Solutions for Cities, B&V’s Len Rodman joined with a representative from China as well as a representative from the World Bank to talk about the challenges today in the water sector. China has developed a national program focused on water to address safe drinking water, fix the huge number of unsafe dams they have, and improve the water environment. They are investing millions over the next 3 years to reach even remote areas of China with safe drinking water. Another key area that needs to be addressed is sanitation. Providing safe drinking water alone will not guarantee healthy communities and we must address sanitation issues. (A subject no one is comfortable talking about in public, noted by the moderator. I take exception to that as it is my favorite subject!).

Beyond looking at new facilities, we really need to look at our existing infrastructure and address the rapidly declining health of what we have in place – mainly what we have underground. As Len noted, it is always more rewarding to build something that everyone can see and appreciate – it documents progress. But underground infrastructure is easy to forget/ignore. I liken it to getting a new air conditioner (which we just did at my house). A lot of money and not something I am going to look at and appreciate; however, at the 37 – 38 C temperatures in KC and our air conditioner is working – I appreciate the investment!. We need to invest now in the critical infrastructure – not wait for failure.

So what does it take to solve our global water issues? Per Len, it takes collaboration and thinking beyond our own borders. The world is truly seamless in our ability to communicate (take this Blog for instance), we need to be seamless in our solutions and develop solutions that serve many – that means more than just me and you!!

Posted by Cindy Wallis-Lage