NAIROBI, Jan. 14, 2013 -- UN-Habitat's Executive Director Dr. Joan Clos announced the launch of a new Global Consultation on Wastewater Management and Water Quality for the Post-2015 Development Agenda.

"The global population is expected to exceed nine billion by 2050 with majority of growth expected in developing country urban areas with inadequate infrastructure. The pace of urbanization is a critical issue. The management of all forms of water and especially wastewater is often conveniently forgotten in the political debate while in reality it is a time bomb waiting to explode," Dr. Clos said.

In a televised statement (www.worldwewant2015.org/water/wastewater) he also said that with current extreme climate events, continaminated water is likely to constitute an increasingly important risk to public health and a threat to recovery from disaster.

"A new emphasis should be placed the on prevention of wastewater as a critical component in order to ensure efficiency of the water cycle," Dr. Clos said. "This is best done by reducing the consumption of water to acceptable levels and by reducing the amount of harmful pollutants entering the water system."

UN-Habitat will lead the consultation, as part of the Thematic Consultation on Water, to discuss the role of wastewater management and water quality for global development goals after 2015. The consultation will solicit views from people at all levels key priorities in this area.

The consultation is taking place as an online debate on the World We Want 2015 website from Jan. 14 to Feb. 17. It will culiminate with a high-level meeting on the Post-2015 Development Agenda on Water: Water Resources Management and Wastewater Management & Water Quality in Geneva from Feb. 27-28. For further information, click here.

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