World Water Day is celebrated on the 22nd of March each year as a means of focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating sustainable management for fresh water resources. This year, the theme for World Water Day is “Transboundary Waters: Shared Water – Shared Opportunities”.

View Of Road Bay

By nurturing the opportunities for cooperation in transboundary water management, the United Nations believe that this can help the world build mutual respect, understanding and trust among countries and promote peace, security and sustainable economic growth.

Globally, there are 263 transboundary lakes and rivers which account for 60 per cent of freshwater flow. In addition, there are approximately 300 transboundary aquifer systems on which 2 billion people worldwide depend for their groundwater. However, these transboundary waters (shared rivers, lakes and groundwater) are being depleted and degraded due to population growth, poorly managed development and weak governance. This in turns hampers sustainable development and underscores the need for cooperation between the major water use sectors for example, agriculture and industry.

Locally, we in Anguilla rely on water sources for our livelihood, food security and health benefits among other opportunities. For instance, our bulk water suppliers use groundwater to supplement our cistern water and farmers use groundwater to irrigate their crops. Coastal water is another water source we depend on for our livelihood and other benefits. For example, the photo of Sandy Ground depicts multiple users of coastal water such as importing of cargo, yachting, bathing and other recreational activities. In addition, our coastal waters provide good aesthetics for tourism marketing. These are just a few examples on how many people and agencies share water for its benefits and how we all have a shared responsibility to conserve and protect it for future generations.

We can all prevent pollution of our water sources, construct septic tanks correctly and dispose of garbage properly so that contamination does not leach into the aquifers or drain into the sea. Remember, water travels in a cycle and by contaminating one of our water sources another may be affected. The Water Lab is just one of the partners involved in water resource management but all of us are responsible to ensure that our activities and actions do not have a detrimental effect on our water resources, livelihoods and health. SO DO YOUR PART TO ENSURE THAT OUR SHARED WATERS WILL ALWAYS PROVIDE SHARED OPPORTUNITIES BOTH NOW AND IN THE FUTURE.

- Press Release

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