Global charity's fresh water mission starts in Hong Kong

An abundance of clean fresh water is critical for people and nature to thrive. Yet more people have cell phones than have access to safe drinking water, and the plants and animals in freshwater ecosystems are the most threatened on the planet.

So says Peter Seligmann, the head of global environmental charity Conservation International (CI), which is launching a project to help assure the quality of Hongkongers’ drinking water. The city will be a test bed for the development of CI’s Freshwater Health Index before it is rolled out worldwide.

According to the United Nations, by 2030, global demand for water will exceed supply by 40 per cent and half of the world’s people will likely face water shortages. 

Hong Kong gets most of its fresh water from the Dongjiang (East River) in Guangdong. CI will focus on helping Hong Kong assess - and then secure - the quality, abundance and long-term reliability of its fresh-water supply from the river, a tributary of the Pearl River. (This is distinct from working on the quality of fresh water at the end point - what finally flows out of the tap.  This may vary based on the age and quality of a particular building's pipes.)

Working at the source is critical: Hong Kong imports 70-80 per cent of its fresh water from the Dongjiang, upon which seven other major cities with growing populations and industrial users also rely. The risks of water scarcity and  of pollution are rising.

At stake, Seligmann said, is “the prosperity of Hong Kong’s economy, as well as the adequacy of drinking water supply – and hence human well-being”.