Thank you very much for the opportunity to contribute ideas and potential solutions to this incredibly important issue and discussion.
When considering a long term strategy concerning water and food security it is obvious that water is the dominant factor in the equation. When considering water security the entire water cycle and the environments it depends upon to function effectively need to be addressed.
"We recognize the key role that ecosystems play in maintaining water quantity and quality and support actions within the respective national boundaries to protect and sustainably manage these ecosystems." (The Future We Want RES/A/66/288 para.122)
“The Future We Want’ of the Rio+20 Conference (2012). Resolution 62/196, which was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2007, referred to ‘the global importance of mountains as the source of most of the Earth’s freshwater”.
(UNESCO 2013, ‘Climate Change impacts on Mountain Regions of the World’)
“Given their important role in water supply and regulation, the protection, sustainable management and restoration of mountain ecosystems will be essential.”
(UNESCO 2013, ‘Climate Change impacts on Mountain Regions of the World’)
“Maintaining the integrity of ecosystems before they become compromised is an essential component of achieving water security and reducing the potential for conflicts. The continuous pace of human development is threatening the capacity of ecosystems to adapt, raising concerns that ecosystems will reach a tipping point after which they are no longer able to provide sustaining functions and services, and will become unable to recover their integrity and functions (Maas, 2012). Establishing sustainability boundaries will set the capacity of ecosystems before their limit is surpassed, acting as a preventative measure before crises and conflicts arise.” (U.N Analytical Brief 22/3/13)
“Ensuring that ecosystems are protected and conserved is central to achieving water security – both for people and for nature. Ecosystems are vital to sustaining the quantity and quality of water available within a watershed, on which both nature and people rely. Maintaining the integrity of ecosystems is essential for supporting the diverse needs of humans, including domestic, agricultural, energy and industrial water use, and for the sustainability of ecosystems, including protecting the water- provisioning services they provide.” (U.N Analytical Brief 22/3/13)
Given this vast body of knowledge from numerous UN sources, it would seem that all the information for securing water is already complete. Now what is needed is the formulation of a global action plan to implement the protection and restoration of the environments essential for the renewal function of freshwater to secure an adequate amount of freshwater for present and future generations. This will also enable the potential production of food for both present and future generations.
Thank you for your consideration
Regards
Stella Joy
For further information please visit our Homepage in MAHB Stanford University
Stella Joy