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Since 1993, every year on 22 March, United Nation Observance celebrates World Water Day to raise awareness of the 2 billion people currently living without access to safe water. A fundamental focus of World Water Day is to stimulate action towards Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 – the promise that everyone would have safely managed water and sanitation by 2030.

Water is essential for life, and its availability is a critical issue for human survival and development. But right now, we are seriously off-track to meet SDG 6. The world faces a looming water crisis due to population growth, urbanization, climate change, and pollution. – Billions of people and countless establishments don’t have the safe water they need for consumption and sanitation. According to the United Nations, at current rates in 2030, 1.6 billion people will lack safely managed drinking water, 2.8 billion people will lack safely managed sanitation and 1.9 billion people will lack basic hand hygiene facilities.

This year, the focus of the UN observance is on accelerating change to solve the water and sanitation crisis. It highlights the need to ensure that everyone has access to safe and affordable water and sanitation services. It is a call to action to address the inequalities in access to water resources and to work towards a sustainable and equitable water future.

To achieve this goal, it is essential to prioritize water management, conservation, and protection. Governments, businesses, and communities must work together to ensure that water resources are used sustainably and efficiently. This includes implementing policies that promote water conservation and efficiency, investing in water infrastructure and technology, and managing water resources in a transparent and participatory manner.

Water scarcity and pollution have significant economic, social, and environmental impacts. They affect human health, food security, energy production, and biodiversity. Therefore, it is crucial to invest in water-related research and development to address these challenges and promote sustainable water use.

In conclusion, World Water Day 2023 is an opportunity to raise awareness about the importance of water resources and the urgent need to ensure access to safe and affordable water for all. It is a call to action for governments, businesses, and communities to prioritize water management and conservation to ensure a sustainable and equitable water future. Let us all come together to make a difference and leave no one behind.

While the world is forced to consider alternatives to water sources, the quality of the water produced/recovered from the conventional water sources becomes more critical. As such, water testing and monitoring is taking on a more important role in our daily lives. The most common parameters that are frequently sampled or monitored for water quality include temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH, conductivity, oxidation reduction potential (ORP), and turbidity. Other industry-specific water monitoring parameters may also include measuring total algae, or laboratory parameters such as biological oxygen demand (BOD) or total organic carbon (TOC).

How can GICG helps?

GICG seeks to assist various industries in monitoring water quality by providing appropriate technical advice and testing for water quality parameters, which includes (but is not limited to):

• Temperature
• Dissolved Oxygen Content
• pH
• Conductivity
• Turbidity
• Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD)
• Total Organic Carbon (TOC)

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has many standards for water management, spanning a variety of areas from wastewater and sewerage networks to water reuse, efficient irrigation, water footprint monitoring, and service activities relating to drinking water supply systems, such as:

• ISO 24518 – to help communities manage their drinking water and wastewater services in the event of a crisis of water utilities,
• ISO 24521 gives practical guidance on the management and maintenance of basic on-site domestic wastewater services,
• ISO 30500 Non-sewered sanitation systems – Prefabricated integration treatment units – General safety and performance requirements for design and testing.

Learn more about our testing services: https://gicgrp.com/testing/

Or email us at services.sg@gicgrp.com

Learn more about our sustainability services: https://gicgrp.com/sustainability-assurance/

References:

World Water Day 2023 website: worldwaterday.org

UN World Water Development Report 2023:

https://www.worldwaterday.org/stories-2023/story/un-world-water-development-report-2023