Half of Children at Risk for Lack of Clean Water

More than half of all children in Argentina are at risk of illness because of lack of access to clean, running water, while a large proportion are also threatened by polluting industries and the use of pesticides in agriculture, according to a study by the ombudsman’s office.

"Los efectos de la contaminación ambiental en la niñez. Una cuestión de derechos" (The Effects of Environmental Pollution on Children: A Question of Rights) is the title of a report released this month by the national ombudsman’s office, carried out with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the United Nations children’s agency (UNICEF), the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO).

The authors say the report will be updated as the risks posed by new productive activities are evaluated.

According to PAHO statistics cited by the report, around four million children die every year worldwide of health problems caused by environmental risk factors.

More than one-third of the causes of child mortality are related to modifiable environmental factors, says the study. These include lack of access to safe water, inadequate waste disposal, pollution, accidents and occupational illnesses or injuries in the countryside, industry or informal sector activities.

The study shows a series of maps indicating the geographical distribution of the main environmental risks faced by children in Argentina, which are accentuated in the case of poor families with an unemployed head of household lacking health insurance.

"The idea was a prevention tool that can be used by municipal governments, the provinces and the national state, not to denounce the damages but to identify the populations of children who are at risk or vulnerable to pollution," Horacio Esber, director of social rights in the ombudsman’s office, told IPS.


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