Nrgrg

{draw:frame}

UNEP

Welcome to our Committee!

Honorable delegates, it is a pleasure for us, Maria Margarita Rivera and to be presiding this committee. We are sure that the outcomes of your work will fulfill our expectations, as your talents and capacities for this enriching activity are infinite. As a reminder, it is your duty to act taking into consideration the parliamentary procedure and adequate behavior which makes up a delegate of the United Nations. Without further ado, we would like to introduce a guide that was made upon tons of effort and dedication concerning our committee’s topic: Freshwater management. We hope you enjoy this experience as much as we will.

Topic 1: Freshwater Management

Water is Essential for Life

Water supplies are falling while the demand is dramatically growing at an unsustainable rate. Over the next 20 years, the average supply of water worldwide per person is expected to drop by a third.

By the middle of this century, seven billion people in 60 countries may be faced with water scarcity (at least 2 billion in 48 countries will face such a harsh reality).

One liter of wastewater pollutes about eight liters of freshwater. An estimated 12,000 km³ of polluted water worldwide, which is more than the total amount contained in the world’s ten largest river basins at any given moment. Therefore, if pollution keeps pace with population growth, the world will effectively lose 18,000 km³ of freshwater by 2050 – almost nine times the total amount countries currently use each year for irrigation, which is by far the largest consumer of the resource.

Asian rivers are the most polluted in the world, with three times as many bacteria from human waste as the global average. These rivers have 20 times more lead than those of industrialized countries.

Water consumption has almost doubled in the last 50 years. A child born in the developed world consumes 30 to 50 times...