¡¡¡¡NAIROBI, Oct. 3 (Xinhua) -- The coastal habitats, fisheries, marine wildlife and the people of the Asian, North West Pacific and West African sea regions are the most threatened in the world from untreated sewage discharged into coastal waters, the United Nations Environment Program said here Thursday.

¡¡¡¡In a report which is issued here, UNEP puts people living in the South Asian Seas region at highest risk from sewage-related diseases and death, as more than 800 million people in the area donot have basic sanitation.

¡¡¡¡The report has been prepared by UNEP in response to a target onsanitation agreed at the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) concluded last month in Johannesburg, South Africa.

¡¡¡¡At WSSD, more than 190 countries agreed to take action to halvethe number of people that have no access to basic sanitation by 2015.

¡¡¡¡"This report will assist the UNEP Regional Seas Programs in taking appropriate action to contribute to achieving the WSSD-target," said UNEP spokesman Eric Falt.

¡¡¡¡Almost 40 percent of the world population live in coastal areas,less than 60 km from the shoreline, according to the report.

¡¡¡¡"The level of untreated domestic wastes being discharged into South Asia's coastal waters are likely to be the highest in the world, increasing the risk of shellfish contamination and the chance of toxic algal blooms poisoning fish and wildlife," said the report.

¡¡¡¡Precious habitats, such as South Asia's coral reefs, are likelyto be under increased stress as a result of the high levels of nutrients and suspended solids linked with the discharges.

¡¡¡¡The report showed that the second most vulnerable region are the seas of East Asia, where 515 million people in coastal countries are without access to proper sanitation services.

¡¡¡¡And this region is followed by the seas of the North West Pacific where 414 million people have no access to basic sanitation systems.

¡¡¡¡"Lack of adequate sanitation has been emerging as one of the biggest threats to human health," said UNEP Executive Director Klaus Toepfer.

¡¡¡¡It is estimated that global economic burden due to ill-health, disease and death which are related to the pollution of coastal waters is running at 16 billion US dollars a year, he said.

¡¡¡¡This is also an environmental issue affecting the health of coastal waters, coastal wildlife and coastal habitats while impacting the livelihoods of fishermen and the tourist industry, Toepfer noted.

¡¡¡¡"An urgent effort is needed to reduce the risks by harnessing the will and finances of governments, local authorities, affected communities, business and industry," he said, adding that this newstudy highlights the regions where efforts are most urgently needed.

¡¡¡¡One way of doing this is to set realistic but ambitious Wastewater Emission Targets (WET), echoing those that have been developed in many parts of the world for emissions of toxic chemicals and noxious gases from power stations and factories, said Toepfer.

¡¡¡¡"These, linked to a time table when the targets should be met, will allow us tackle this scourge once and for all so that the current and future generations can have access to safe, healthy, drinking water and enjoy coastal areas free from contaminated bathing waters and polluted natural resources," he said.

¡¡¡¡Cees van de Guchte, a UNEP senior program officer, said that WETcan serve as instruments for prioritization, resource allocation and progress reporting towards achieving the global target on sanitation.

¡¡¡¡"One additional target, which we believe is do-able at the global level, is to have a minimum of 20 per cent of coastal cities implementing sustainable and environmentally sound water supply and wastewater treatment systems by 2012," he said.

¡¡¡¡This can be met using alternative technological, infrastructure,managerial and financial approaches to the traditional large scaleinvestments, paying due attention to operation and maintenance costs and to equitable water service pricing, he said.

¡¡¡¡The ultimate goal is to provide safe drinking water and proper sanitation to all the world's people by 2025, he noted.

¡¡¡¡"Some experts estimate that this would cost 180 billion dollarsa year: 2-3 times more then present investments in the water sector. It may seem high, but the benefits in terms of disease reduction and dramatic environmental improvements to the coastal and marine environment are also high," he said.

¡¡¡¡The report noted that in many developing parts of the world, the increased levels of sanitation coverage and wastewater treatment are being overwhelmed by rising populations.

¡¡¡¡For example in the South Asian Seas region, access to improved sanitation during the period 1990 to 2000 has benefited 220 million people.

¡¡¡¡But during that period, the population grew by 222 million, leaving 825 million still without access to acceptable sanitation systems and thousands of miles of coastline vulnerable to pollution.

¡¡¡¡In the East African region, the number of people having no access to basic sanitation even doubled over the last decade to 19million.

¡¡¡¡Van de Guchte said that in some places, wastewater treatment systems, mirroring those such as in Europe and the United States, might be needed.

¡¡¡¡However, numerous, alternative and low-cost techniques also exist, he said, noting that these include dry sanitation and natural sewage filtering systems such as ponds, reed beds and mangrove swamps, and possibilities for re-use and refilling of groundwater reservoirs.

¡¡¡¡He pointed to the fact that many mangrove swamps and reed beds,important habitats for wildlife such as birds and fishes, are being cleared and drained for agriculture and other activities.

¡¡¡¡"If more people are aware of their use as 'natural' waste watertreatment systems, then more will be conserved for their economic and health benefits as well as for their importance for nature andwildlife," he said. (by Wang Jingzhong)Enditem