The paper also asserted that it has become clear that change will increase “climate water stress in already dry areas, and will undermine water quality in areas flooded either by rain or by sea water. Areas particularly sensitive to climate change are coastal zones and cities, estuaries and deltas, watersheds, mountains, small islands and the paper arid regions.” Moreover, predicted that overall availability of water will be seriously impacted by climate change “the mainly through drought, the decline in water supplies stored in glaciers and snow cover, and In already arid areas, climate models predict a major decrease in water availability due flooding.” to climate change. Furthermore, the paper tied climate change to increasing rates of water pollution and salinization, and stated that this decline in water quality will reduce the availability of potable drinking water. The paper specified that water temperatures, higher or lower “[i]ncreasing groundwater levels, floods and droughts raise the threat of heightened micro-organisms, chemical substances and radiological hazards in drinking and that and droughts will water,” “[f]loods exacerbate many forms of water pollution such as sediments, nutrients, organic carbon, pathogens and pesticides, and may distribute human excreta and its attendant health risks across entire neighbourhoods and Moreover, sea-level rise will lead to increased salinization of communities.” groundwater. In general, although the paper acknowledged that meeting a human right to water and sanitation is a function of power, poverty, and inequality, and a failure of governments to prioritize water allocation, it nevertheless concluded that of improved safe access to “the goal drinking water will certainly be much harder to achieve in regions where runoff and groundwater recharge decrease as a result of climate change.”
The paper also asserted that it has become clear that “climate change will increase water stress in already dry areas, and will undermine water quality in areas flooded either by rain or by sea water. Areas particularly sensitive to climate change are coastal zones and cities, estuaries and deltas, watersheds, mountains, small islands and arid regions.” Moreover, the paper predicted that “the overall availability of water will be seriously impacted by climate change mainly through drought, the decline in water supplies stored in glaciers and snow cover, and flooding.” In already arid areas, climate models predict a major decrease in water availability due to climate change. Furthermore, the paper tied climate change to increasing rates of water pollution and salinization, and stated that this decline in water quality will reduce the availability of potable drinking water. The paper specified that “[i]ncreasing water temperatures, higher or lower groundwater levels, floods and droughts raise the threat of heightened micro-organisms, chemical substances and radiological hazards in drinking water,” and that “[f]loods and droughts will exacerbate many forms of water pollution such as sediments, nutrients, organic carbon, pathogens and pesticides, and may distribute human excreta and its attendant health risks across entire neighbourhoods and communities.” Moreover, sea-level rise will lead to increased salinization of groundwater. In general, although the paper acknowledged that meeting a human right to water and sanitation is a function of power, poverty, and inequality, and a failure of governments to prioritize water allocation, it nevertheless concluded that “the goal of improved safe access to drinking water will certainly be much harder to achieve in regions where runoff and groundwater recharge decrease as a result of climate change.”
7.SpecialProceduresReport14August-2014.docx