International Workshop on Water and Health: A European Perspective

As water is our number one aliment, the quality of drinking water directly influences public health and plays a major economic role both as a tradable good and a cost factor in our healthcare system.

The workshop focuses on key topics of the current phase (VII) of UNESCO's International Hydrological Programme (IHP), Water and Life Support Systems, and the work under the UNECE/WHO-Europe Protocol on Water and Health. Water quality issues in Europe are not as eye-catching as in many other parts of the world, yet there is a lot of concern about emerging pollutants, water and health in the context of societal and environment change. Deterioration of water quality, overexploitation of freshwater resources, hydrological hazards, climate change and adverse effects of landscape degradation and sectoral management all pose risks to human health, and potentially impact ecosystem values and services.