September 18 - World Water Monitoring Day
Every year since September 18, 2003, World Water Monitoring Day is observed. This environmental holiday, founded on the initiative of the American Clean Water Foundation, has become an information and educational program aimed at raising public awareness of the Earth's water resources issues and contributing to pollution protection. The program provides an opportunity for people to conduct basic monitoring of the state of local water bodies. Traditionally on this day it is customary to take water samples from different surface water bodies of our planet to assess its safety for the lives of humans and living organisms.
Surface water monitoring is a system of regular monitoring of the state of the water directing at detecting the negative processes in a timely manner, predicting their development, preventing harmful effects and identifying measures aimed at the rational use and protection of surface waters.
Initially, World Water Monitoring Day was scheduled for October 18, in honor of the US Congress's October 18, 1972, Clean Water Act. This document was dedicated to the issues of restoration and protection of national water resources. However, over time, the holiday became popular and began to be held in other countries as well. Therefore, since 2007, its date has been postponed to a month earlier, to facilitate the participation of those countries whose waters in their territories at this time of year are already freezing.
Every year more and more people take part in the celebration of Water Monitoring Day. According to the WWMD website, in 2011, 340,000 people from 77 countries participated in the Day's activities. Today, 1.6 million people from 146 countries monitor their water bodies.
Water is an element without which life on Earth would not have appeared. The human body, like all living things, cannot exist without living moisture and consists of 3/4 of water. High quality water make it possible to protect people from disease-causing bacteria and viruses, so paying attention to its quality is an important task for every inhabitant of the planet who think about their health and longevity.
Yulduz ASTANOVA,
II year student of
the Faculty International Economic Relations
of
the Institute of International Relations
of
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan.