Report
Contents
Report in Word Format
|
Appropriate Technology for Sewage Pollution Control in the Wider Caribbean Region | Report
Contents |
| Caribbean Environment Programme Technical Report #43 1998 | All CEP Technical Reports |
Communities in the Wider Caribbean Region have a strong desire to improve their
environment. This desire was clearly expressed in the country presentations given by
delegates to the UNEP Workshop on Adopting, Applying and Operating Environmentally Sound
Technologies for Domestic and Industrial Wastewater Treatment.
There was as well a general realization that the solution to environmental problems facing the marine environment in the region lies with communities themselves, and that the future will be shaped by steps and actions taken within the region. Furthermore a significant contribution can be made by the country delegates attending the workshop. It was therefore a pleasant and rewarding experience for the group from Murdoch University to facilitate the workshop to help define the existing problems more clearly, to consider technologies that have been developed within the region and elsewhere, and to assist country delegates with developing strategies that they can implement in the short, medium and long term in their countries.
The process described above began quite some time before the workshop with countries in the region identifying national experts to send as delegates to the workshop, and with the preparation of country papers by the delegates. At about the same time, specialists familiar with the environmental problems faced by developing nations came to present technologies that can provide solutions to the problems that were identified by country representatives.
From the country papers (Part 2 in this book) it becomes obvious that the existing situation in the Wider Caribbean Region is generally similar, differing only in the degree of the problems experienced. There is a lack of collection and treatment of wastewater, with much of it ending in the marine environment and impacting negatively on it. The marine environment is a major tourist attraction that needs to be protected to ensure its long term viability. Where there is collection and treatment of wastewater, the facilities are not generally operated or maintained to specification. Lack of resources, personnel, training of personnel, institutional arrangement or enforcement of legislation were mentioned as possible causes. While there is cultural and economic diversity in the Wider Caribbean it appears that the experience in the region is not very different from the experience elsewhere as illustrated by the case study of Cape Verde, an island located west of the continent of Africa.
Invited speakers presented papers (Part 1 of this book) on technologies that have been successfully used in both developed and developing countries. We think this is an important point to make because technologies that are proposed for developing countries should not be seen as being appropriate only for the latter. We are very pleased to see papers from the United States, Canada, South America and Australia giving examples where technologies have been demonstrated to be equally applicable in both, having regard to long term sustainability.
While papers were presented on specific technologies for wastewater management, these were placed in a wider context by other presentations. The other presentations covered subjects ranging from technology choice and sustainable development, the basic scientific understanding required to assist with the choice of technology, impact of waste disposal on the marine environment, to the development of a protocol to control pollution of the marine environment of the Wider Caribbean Region developed by countries in the region.
Two major benefits of workshops are the networking of delegates and the exchange of ideas that make the contribution of individual papers greater than their sum. We are pleased to report that these two were very evident during the workshop. Presenters from outside and within the region were questioned about their ideas and their applicability for the region. Sources of information were made available and a number of these were formally presented.
A significant outcome of the workshop is the deliberation of delegates on what steps they can take in the short, medium and long term to assist with efforts to protect the marine environment in the region from land based discharges of wastewater. These were formalized on the last day of the workshop through discussion groups summarising the existing conditions, current technologies and future options.
We trust that the networking achieved at the workshop and the outcome of the workshop, which includes this publication containing proceedings of the workshop, will contribute towards achieving a better marine environment in the Wider Caribbean Region. We would like to suggest that we follow up the recommendations made at the workshop after a year or two to assess where steps have been taken and improvements made, and what further steps are required to achieve the goal.
We commend the initiative of UNEP IETC and UNEP - CAR/RCU and invite readers to evaluate the papers for application in their specific community, country or region. We would also like to welcome comments and suggestions on papers presented at the workshop and on the workshop itself.
Goen Ho
Foreword | Editorial | Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Appendice 1 | Appendice 2 | Appendice 3 | Appendice 4 | Appendice 5
| Report Contents | Last Updated: |