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27 May 2021 New York, United States

"Water Under Fire": UNICEF Report Calls For End To WASH Attacks

UNICEF publishes the third in its series of reports on the devastating impacts on children caused when water and sanitation infrastructure is compromised during conflict. Urges adherence to humanitarian and human rights law as well as improved monitoring and advocacy.

30 Apr 2021 OTTOWA, Canada

Canadian Trade Union Urges Pension Investor To Withdraw From Brazilian Water Deal

Canada Pension Plan Investments comes under fire for its participation in privatisation of Brazilian public water utility. Trade union CUPE calls out "outrageous" use of "workers' retirement funds to profit from people's need for clean water". Challenges wisdom of deal amid political uncertainty.

17 Dec 2020 PRETORIA, South Africa

Environmental Approval For Thabametsi Withdrawn; Coal Project Officially Dead

The North Gauteng (South Africa) High Court has set aside the environmental authorisation for the 1500 MW Thabametsi power station, thereby ending the long saga of environmental dispute brought by NGOs Earthlife Africa, GroundWork, and Friends of the Earth against Thabametsi and the state of Limpopo...

10 Mar 2020 WASHINGTON DC, United States

PFAS Water Contamination Claims Mount Dramatically

The National Rural Water Association (NRWA) of the United States has filed a PFAS class action lawsuit in the US District Court for the District of Columbia against the makers of firefighting foam products, accusing them of contaminating groundwater with carcinogens. PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl chemicals,) are a class of heat and water-resistant chemicals that are used in a wide variety of applications including flame-retardants, and non-stick and industrial products, and are contained in many consumer goods such as raincoats, cookware and packaging...

3 Feb 2020 GENEVA, Switzerland

The World's Underreported Humanitarian Crises

An annual assessment of global online media coverage of "underreported" humanitarian crises, many related to water challenges, indicates increasing linkage between such events and man-made climate change.Humanitarian agency CARE International launched its fourth such analysis 28 January, examining 40 disasters and conflicts that have affected at least a million people to determine which are the most under-reported...

17 Dec 2019 WASHINGTON DC, United States

US Military PFAS Restriction Legislation Fails To Satisfy Environment Lobby

The United States Congress agreed in draft, 11 December, a Defence Spending Biill that bars the military from use of firefighting foam containing toxic chemicals (per- and poly- fluoroalkyl, or PFAS) linked to cancer. But the bill has left out key provisions to reduce ongoing release of the chemicals and/or to clean up groundwater and other contamination...

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9 Dec 2019 WASHINGTON DC, United States

US Military Bases Face Water Shortages Associated With Climate Change

More than 100 military bases in the United States are at risk of water shortages associated with climate change according to a new report from the country's Government Accountability Office (GAO). Some have already experienced restrictions, while others may face curtailments in the next few weeks.The current GAO report's remit is not specifically climate change, but cites the 2018 Fourth National Climate Assessment by the US Global Change Research Program, which is the leading federal authority on global change science...

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19 Nov 2019 LONDON, United Kingdom

World's Cities Report Climate Change Impacts; Most Lag In Mitigation, Adaptation Measures

Carbon Disclosure Project’s (CDP) global environment disclosure system has released its newest report on cities, revealing that of the 620 respondents in 2018, 530 revealed that they are experiencing the impacts of climate change. The combined population of these cities is over 515 million.From energy, to water supplies, cities are expecting to see many of their most fundamental pillars come under threat in the coming years...

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8 May 2019 WASHINGTON DC, United States

United States: PFAS Contaminates Drinking Water Systems Serving 19 Million People

The known extent of contamination of United States communities with the highly toxic fluorinated compounds known as PFAS continues to grow at an alarming rate. As of March 2019, at least 610 locations in 43 states are now known to be affected, including drinking water systems serving an estimated 19 million people...

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1 May 2019 NEW YORK NY, United States

Urgent Call For Humanitarian Relief In Ukraine

After five years of conflict over 3.5 million people in eastern Ukraine are in urgent need of humanitarian assistance and protection, the United Nations Security Council was told last week. UN Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Ursula Mueller, addressing the Security Council April 25 on the humanitarian situation in eastern Ukraine, reporting that so far in 2019, 24 incidents have affected water and sanitation facilities and 12 have directly affected schools...

30 Apr 2019 WASHINGTON DC, United States

New USEPA PFAS Recommendations "Not A Serious Response To Drinking Water Contamination Crisis"

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) last week released Draft Interim Recommendations to Address Groundwater Contaminated with Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctane Sulfonate (PFOS) to a chorus of criticism from environmental protection activist organizations.USEPA is seeking public comment on the draft set of recommendations for cleaning up groundwater contaminated with PFOA and PFOS...

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24 Mar 2019 NEW YORK NY, United States

"Water Under Fire": Children Might Survive The Bullets, Die From Unsafe Water, Poor Sanitation, Hygiene

In protracted conflicts children younger than 15 are, on average, nearly three times more likely to die from diarrhoeal disease linked to unsafe water and sanitation than violence directly linked to conflict and war, according to a March 2019 UNICEF advocacy alert.For younger children, the impact of unsafe water, sanitation and hygiene is greater: Children under 5 are more than 20 times more likely to die from diarrhoeal disease linked to unsafe water and sanitation than violence in conflict...