World Water Day

The 22 March was designated as World Water Day at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development. Each year, a specific aspect of water is highlighted
In 2015, the theme for World Water Day is ‘Water and Sustainable Development’. It’s about how water links to all areas we need to consider to create the future we want. This issue is also the theme of the annual UN World Water Development Report which is launched on World Water Day.
At global level, 70% of drinking water is used for irrigation. Irrigated land shares about 20% of agricultural land but produces 40% of the globally consumed food. Among the EU countries, Romania ranks first for degree of population dissatisfaction with the quality of water, 94% of our population considers this a real problem. The survey, conducted among the 27 EU Member States shows that 91% of Italians and 89% of French considere the water quality a great problem in their country and 59% of Finns, 58% of Austrians and 52% of Germans think that it there is no serious problem with water in their countries.
Three out of every four Europeans (i.e. 73%) believe that the EU should consider additional measures to solve the water issues. The most popular measures are higher fines for polluters, an equitable pricing policy or financial incentives.
The cleanest springs and, therefore the most precious are found within the protected areas. Among other services provided by the natural protected areas, the drinking water gains the lead.