The World Health Organisation Guidelines for Water Quality
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has developed and adopted universal criteria for water quality safe for human use in order to encourage healthy health and physical fitness. The guidelines were established in Geneva in 1993 and are adopted by both developed and developing countries worldwide.
These guidelines are used as the average measure for regulation and standard-setting as to which water is fit or unfit for human consumption through recognition of priorities that should be accorded to ensuring microbial safety and principle values for multiple chemical vulnerabilities (WHO, 2004).
Promotion of Public Health
These guidelines are aimed at promoting the protection of public health through advocating for development of local health-based standards and targets, adoption and implementation of preventive risk management approaches that cover water catchment areas to individual consumers and formulation of independent surveillance aimed at ensuring that water safety plans are being implemented effectively with regards to the set international principles (WHO, 2002).
Millennium Development Goals, Goal 7
These are international development goals that were established in 2000 in the United Nations' Millennium Summit, following the adoption of the UN Millennium Declaration. The goals are ascribed to by all 189 member states of the United Nations and were spearheaded with support from over 22 international organizations which joined efforts to aid in the achievement of the laid goals.
Goal number 7 provides for ensuring environmental sustainability. It aims at promoting sustainable engineered systems which are in support of humans meeting their needs without jeopardizing the ability of future generations. With regards to accessibility to clean water, the goal constrains human development activities that may result in distortion in the ecosystem such as deforestation as it leads to drying up of water catchment areas; release of industrial wastes to water sources among others (Sachs, 2005).
Universal Declaration of Human Rights
This is a document that sets out a common standard of achievements for all individuals and nations with regards to fundamental human rights that are to be universally accepted and protected. The Declaration was put forward by UN General Assembly on 10th December 1948 and is ascribed to by all 189 signatory states to the United Nations (Puybaret, 2008).
With respect to access to clean water, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights can be seen to spearhead factors that promote healthy and clean water which is appropriate for healthy human existence. Recognition of equal and inalienable rights such as right to life and right to health constrains individuals from acting in a way to cause interference with accessibility to clean water for all humans, regardless of status or locality. This also ensures the government in conjunction with the local authorities; provide clean and accessible water to marginalized and dry areas of their states.
International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights
This is a multilateral treaty formed by the UN General Assembly on 16th December 1966 but became functional on 3rd January, 19976. It was enforced by 164 countries by 2015 and a further six countries which have signed but not ratified the covenant. It ensures its member states work towards granting of economic, social and cultural rights to individuals and the Non-Self-Governing and Trust Territories. This includes right to health and right to adequate standard of living (Hoag, 2011).
For the adequate standard of living and right to health, several conditions must be met which include access and availability of clean and safe water to drink. Without water or clean water for that matter, an individual is prone to fall ill of contamination or dehydrated due to lack or insufficient water. Thus, this International Covenant provides for accessibility of clean water for sustainability of healthy human life.
References
Hoag, R. W. (2011). International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. In Encyclopedia of Global Justice (pp. 546-547). Springer Netherlands.
Puybaret, E. (2008). Universal Declaration of Human Rights. United Nations Publications.
Sachs, J. D. (2005). Investing in development: a practical plan to achieve the millennium development goals. Earthscan.
World Health Organization. (2002). The World Health Report 2002: Reducing risk, promoting a healthy life. World Health Organization.
World Health Organization. (2004). Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality (Vol. 1). World Health Organization.
