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For tools and case studies please go to: www.waterdisaster.org (under development)
Mandate and coordination in emergencies
UNICEF is the lead agency coordinating the WASH cluster, which is the group of organisations active in providing WASH services in emergencies. Their website is www.humanitarianreform.org. IWA is a new member of the WASH cluster.
Minimum standards - The Sphere Project
The initiative was launched in 1997 by a group of humanitarian NGOs and the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement, who framed a Humanitarian Charter and identified Minimum Standards to be attained in disaster assistance, in each of five key sectors (water supply and sanitation, nutrition, food aid, shelter and health services). The revised edition (2004) of the Sphere Handbook is available online on their website. Chapter two deals with water supply, sanitation and hygiene promotion. Sphere training materials are also provided online.
Many different professionals are needed in an emergency
Engineers, planners, architects and their professional institutions - An emergency and its reconstruction phase and following disaster risk management cycle is overwhelming in its demands of diverse expertise, effective coordination at different times. A good summary of the responsibilities and capabilities of engineers, planners, architects and their professional institutions in reducing disaster risk and responsing to disaster impacts is available in the publication: The Built Environment Professions in Disaster Risk Reduction and Response - A guide for humanitarian agencies.
Water technologies for emergencies
Relevant for individuals - Technologies and knowledge about Household Water Treatment and Safe Treatment (HWTSS) is very applicable during emergencies. Many agencies recommend their usage (such as Red Cross) in field manuals, and much research is ongoing also for development purposes. A network of people who are working in this field is coordinated by WHO (Network on HWTSS - see below link).
Utility preparedness - Water utilities have their own programmes for preparedness, sometimes as part of their Water Safety Plans. ISO has published new guidelines on managing drinking water supplies during crises. The ISO International Workshop Agreement IWA6, Guidelines for the management of drinking water utilities under crisis conditions, is the first of its type backed by international consensus. The IWA6 guidelines constitute the first stage of a comprehensive suite of standards for water security.
The ISO group is now working to provide the in-depth and coherent guideline for utilities on emergency preparedness, presented during the Stockholm World Water Week in 2009. You can find the presentation here.
Sanitation technologies in emergencies
Often, a general lack of awareness of the importance of sanitation is observed with the organizations during emergencies. Although handbooks and standards exist and are in use, inadequate emphasis are put on the sanitation aspects in their application.
In emergencies, on site sanitation technologies are used in the immediate phase. Eawag has put together the most comprehensive compendium of sanitation systems and technologies available online here. Some sanitation manuals are however more adapted to emergency situations. A list of useful documents are:
IWA together with emergency agencies and the sanitation community are currently trying to make practices more sustainable. This includes:
Community mobilization tools
Consulting and engaging the community is an essential part of any programme wanting to be successful with its end user. At the 1st Forum for Urban Disaster Resiliency in Mexico Nov 2009, Dr Juliet Waterkeyn from Africa Ahead presented her work with Community Health Clubs in Zimbabwe which showed to be a successful remedy to the recent cholera epidemics there. She has also implemented the methodology at IDP camps in Uganda. See her presentaiton here. Read more about Africa Aheads work on their website.
Developed countries and their people run a relative smaller risk to be affected by disasters. The important link between development and disasters is available as a globas overview by UNDP's Bureau for crisis prevention and recovery, in the publication: Reducing disaster risk, a challenge for development.
Urban assessments
Learning Alliances
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