Sanitation Sustains Clean Environments

In the developing world, roughly 90 % of sewage

is discharged untreated into rivers, lakes and coastal areas,1with a widespread negative impact on health.

A healthy living environment depends on adequate sanitation. If open defecation is widely practised, a health living environment that supports human dignity and is free of disease-transmitting conditions is possible. This is one reason countries called for an end to open defecation, in the United Nations resolution that established the Drive to 2015.

*Faecal matter contamination is costing us valuable and productive land.   *Improved sanitation leads to an improved environment.   *Climate change calls for innovative sanitation solutions.

Resources

Fact Sheet #5 - Sanitation Sustains Clean Environments_English

Fact Sheet #5 - Sanitation Sustains Clean Environments_French

^{1Corcoran, Emily, et al., editors, Sick Water? The central role of wastewater management in sustainable development - A rapid response assessment, United Nations Environment Programme, UN-HABITAT and GRID-Arendal, www.grida.no, 2010.}

Photo Credit: Eric Miller, World Bank