The Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean on earth. This massive body of water, spanning more than 168 million square kilometres, covers an area larger than the world's landmasses combined. The Pacific Ocean stores more than half of the world's open water supply. The Sustainable Development Goal on water and sanitation promotes greater access to water and universal and equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water for all by 2030. Safe water is fundamental to health and wellbeing; untreated human excretion contaminates groundwater and surface water supplies used for drinking, irrigation, bathing, and cleaning. The theme for World Water Day on March 22 is "Accelerating Change" to address the water and sanitation crisis, and protecting nature is at the centre of sustainable water strategies in the region.
Access to safe water is crucial for reducing the disease burden attributable to unsafe water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH). Each year, 525, 000 children aged 5 years and younger die due to diarrhoea, which is largely preventable through access to clean water and adequate sanitation and hygiene. In 2018, almost 90 million people in the region did not use safe drinking water amenities, and more than 400 million did not use basic sanitation amenities. Inadequate access to WASH is particularly common in the Pacific Islands. During 2010–20, while access to basic drinking water improved in most Asia–Pacific countries and territories, the Solomon Islands reported the greatest decrease of nearly 10%. Moreover, rural areas in the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu had substantially fewer households with basic water and soap amenities compared with urban areas, hampering public health interventions for COVID-19 and further contributing to socioeconomic inequalities in these Pacific Islands countries. People with disabilities might be especially vulnerable to inadequate access to WASH. In northern Vanuatu, Mactaggart and colleagues showed that people with disabilities reported more barriers to accessing water at home when needed and more barriers to collecting water independently compared with people without disabilities. These challenges contribute to socioeconomic inequalities and greater suffering experienced by people with disabilities. Similar barriers to adequate WASH were reported by people who menstruate or experience incontinence, highlighting the necessity of a fully inclusive WASH policy in Vanuatu.
Climate change and water security are inseparable issues. We experience the impacts of climate change through water availability, accessibility, quality, and stability. The Pacific is one of the most natural-disaster-prone regions in the world. Rising sea levels and more tropical storms prevent access to safe water and jeopardise the function of essential health infrastructures, especially in the Pacific Islands, where health facilities are commonly located near coastlines. 2020 and 2021 were two of the hottest years on record, which saw an unsurpassed number of storms, floods, heatwaves, bushfires, and droughts across the region. Each year, an estimated 3.5 million deaths are attributable to environmental-related causes, including waterborne diseases. For example, Super Typhoon Odette (Rai), which struck southern and central regions of the Philippines in December, 2021, prevented access to safe water and sanitation and was potentially linked to 400 cases of diarrhoea and gastroenteritis caused by drinking contaminated water. In 2022, cholera cases were three times greater compared with the previous year in the Philippines. Thus, reliable and sustainable water management strategies are vital to building resilience to climate change.
The Western Pacific region has made some notable strides in improving access to safe water. Between 2000 and 2015, basic water coverage increased by 15% within the region. Water safety plans (WSPs), designed to ensure safe drinking water through assessment and management of risks from catchment to people, were instigated in 15 countries, including 92 rural and 140 urban water supplies across the region. Furthermore, climate-resilient WSPs have been developed to guide water suppliers and WSP teams to evaluate and incorporate climate change risks into water safety planning. Other initiatives include the Are You Water Resilient programme (a collaborative programme, spearheaded by the Asian Development Bank Water Sector Group to support countries in Asia and the Pacific to become water-secure and resilient) and the water security and sanitation project in the Pacific and East Asia (organised through a collaboration between the World Bank, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and the Global Water Security and Sanitation Partnership). In the town of Bialla, Papua New Guinea, improved access to clean water has enabled residents to lead healthier lives, such as being able to send children to school with clean clothes and food. The Solomon Islands' Urban Water Supply and Sanitation Sector Project also focuses on building and upgrading water production and treatment systems, as well as optimising sewerage and sanitation systems. Recently, the Western Australian government announced a plan to build the state's third desalination plant.
Progress in access to safe water and sanitation is a testament to the dedication and determination within the region to build resilient communities living in safe and healthy environments. It is uplifting to see increased awareness and integration of the impacts of climate change in developing and implementing sustainable water strategies. An integrated interdisciplinary approach to the region's complex and unique challenges for equitable access to safe and affordable drinking water in a changing climate must remain a priority.