Asia Water Wire - Policy

INDONESIA: Providing Clean Water Or Dirty Business?

Wed, 28 Nov 2007 03:04:37 -0600

By Andreas Harsono*

BANDUNG, Indonesia, Nov 28 (IPS/AMIC) - Water vendor Annur Sukarya makes a 500 percent profit on his investments each month, the envy of any businessman. “I’m just trying to help my neighbours,” he argues.

ASIA: Mekong River Commission Remiss - Activists

Thu, 15 Nov 2007 00:27:01 -0600

By Marwaan Macan-Markar

BANGKOK, Nov 14 (IPS) - The campaign to save South-east Asia’s largest waterway from being blocked by a series of massive dams picked up pace this week, with activists accusing a regional river authority of abandoning its mission to protect the Mekong River.

PHILIPPINES: Private-Sector Success or Conspiracy?

Mon, 12 Nov 2007 03:00:45 -0600

By Kalinga Seneviratne*

MANILA, Nov 12 (IPS/AMIC) - Supporters call it a model for the future. But critics say it is a conspiracy by multilateral financial institutions to privatise water supplies and open the floodgates for multinational corporations to reap profits from Asia’s poor.

SRI LANKA: Tsunami Alert Systems Working - Too Well

Mon, 24 Sep 2007 00:20:17 -0500

By Feizal Samath

COLOMBO, Sep 19 (IPS) - A tsunami alert, last week, sent thousands of Sri Lankans living along the coasts of this island nation fleeing inland, but authorities were exultant that the early warning systems installed after the disastrous Dec. 26, 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami were working.

SEI Marks 2007 World Water Week

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 22:50:02 -0500

In commemoration of the 2007 World Water Week on Aug 12-18, the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI) will conduct a series of seminars and other activities in Stockholm. The events will be held at the Stockholm City Conference Centre in Barnhusgatan 12-14, Stockholm, Sweden.

SEI York Centre's Stacey Noel leads the seminar on "Poverty, Wealth and Water: Prioritising Water Investments" on Aug 12 with a literature review on water linkages with growth and poverty reduction, while Dr. Jennie Barron, also of SEI York Centre, will present research on rainfall variability and GDP growth in Africa.

On Aug 13, the Green Blue Water Initiative aims to promote the integration of land and water management and governance across scales.

The Water and Climate Day on Aug 15 will present sessions on "Mainstreaming Climate into Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) and Millennium Development Goals (MGDs)" and on "Risks and Adaptation for Cities and Utilities".

The first session will discuss the vulnerability of developing countries to the impacts of climate change and how to improve the ability to adapt to these changes and increase resilience. SEI executive director Johan Rockström will present a report on building water resilience in tropical agriculture.

SEI Stockholm research fellow Holger Stoff will introduce the second session, which will discuss the urgency for mainstreaming climate adaptation into infrastructure and other planning for urban environment.

EcoSanRes, SEI's international environment and development programme on ecological sanitation, will also make its presence felt in such events as "Sanitation 21 — Let's Do Planning and Design Better" and "The Killing Fields of Sanitation — Political Neglect".

The World Water Week in Stockholm aims to annually present and exchange views and experiences between members of scientific, business, policy and civil society communities in order to advance efforts related to water, the environment, livelihoods and poverty reduction.

ASIA: Divining Rod, Anyone?

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 05:30:03 -0500

By Chris Oliver

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — Asia: It's home to more than 60% of the world's population and not nearly as much of its drinking water.

‘Water War’ Brewing on the Horizon?

Wed, 06 Dec 2006 20:54:34 -0600

By Egamberdy Kabulov

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, Dec 4 (Asia Water Wire) — To tax or not to tax – that is the question that Kyrgyz parliamentarians are mulling over these days on Uzbekistan’s use of their water resources. With this ongoing debate, not only is water being regarded as a precious natural resource, but also a political tool it seems.

Floods A Burden Borne By The Poor

Fri, 15 Dec 2006 02:05:56 -0600

By Gerald Goh

BANGKOK, Nov 20 (Asia Water Wire) – While relief operations are underway for the inundated provinces of central Thailand, debate goes on as to how government policies have impacted on rural farmers living in flood-affected areas.

Turning a 'Water Woe' into a Welcome 'Win'

Tue, 24 Oct 2006 23:22:12 -0500

By Ed Hagamann

MARIKINA CITY, Philippines, Sep 27 (Asia Water Wire) – More than a decade since it invaded the Marikina River, it looks like the ‘curse’ of the ‘janitor fish’, popular among aquarium enthusiasts, may finally turn into a blessing with efforts by the local government and the work of a budding scientist.

Thus far, the janitor fish's infiltration and domination of other fish in the Marikina River, in Metro Manila, have caused much dismay and frustration to local fishermen.

Target -- Water Technology from Singapore

Tue, 24 Oct 2006 23:18:45 -0500

By Antoaneta Bezlova

BEIJING, Sep 21 (IPS) - Faced with water problems that many fear are beyond repair, China is looking to tap Singapore's expertise in growing and thriving on limited water resources.

Troubled Waters Between Honduras and El Salvador

Sun, 25 Jun 2006 22:03:44 -0500

By Thelma Mejía*

TEGUCIGALPA (Tierramérica) - The construction of El Tigre dam on the Lempa River, which forms a border between Honduras and El Salvador, has unleashed a wave of contradictory opinions. Some claim there will be a loss of sovereignty over natural resources, while others say the resulting reservoir will prevent another war between the two countries, this time over water.

Whaling Ban Is Met With Gourmet Offerings

Thu, 28 Sep 2006 05:23:59 -0500

By Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO (IPS) - Japan is defiantly preparing for the annual meet of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), in the West Indies this June, by going on a promotion drive for whale meat and other products.

A whale meat festival held at the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, in May, featured gourmet dishes such as whale sashimi, sushi, stews and a host of frozen and canned items.

Water Falls Under WTO Regime?

Wed, 17 May 2006 02:54:11 -0500

By Anil Netto

PENANG (IPS) - Malaysian activists have expressed concern that two bills before parliament could pave the way for giant transnational corporations to corner significant stakes in the country's domestic water sector.

The bills, called the Water Services Industry bill and the National Water Services Commission (or SPAN, its Malay acronym) bill would transfer control of water from the various states to a federal-level regulatory authority. The government says this would ensure that all Malaysians have access to affordable and clean, treated water.

Pakistan Debates New Water and Sanitation Policies

Mon, 08 May 2006 04:02:35 -0500

By Irfan Shahzad

ISLAMABAD (Asia Water Wire) - For the first time in almost six decades, Pakistan has put together two major policies related with water use and conservation.

The National Drinking Water Policy (NDWP) and the National Sanitation Policy (NSP) will become official upon cabinet approval.

Activists Share Reservations About Global Forum

Mon, 20 Mar 2006 22:13:46 -0600

By Diego Cevallos

MEXICO CITY (IPS) - "Access to water is a basic right": while this is the message voiced by the organisers of the 4th World Water Forum in Mexico City, civil society activists take a dim view of this international event, as they believe it will promote the privatisation of water resources.

The official forum and a parallel civil society gathering combined will draw a total of 15,000 participants to the Mexican capital from Mar. 16 to 22. While both sides present similar figures on the availability and scarcity of water around the planet and declare that it is a public resource that must be universally available, they do not agree on the mechanisms for achieving this goal.