Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information contact:
Randi Crowder, 940-369-9355
rdc0121@unt.edu

DECREASING WATER SUPPLY COULD LEAD TO WORLD EPEDEMIC
Water experts gather to discuss these issues and more at conference

DENTON- March 5, 2007- Decreasing supplies of fresh water could lead to an increase in epidemics and international conflicts according to a report by the United Nations made March 2003. The world’s supply of fresh water continues to shrink and the availability of clean water is diminishing. According to the report, between now and 2015, about 270,000 people per day will need clean water. It is predicted by 2050 anywhere from 2 to 7 billion people will live under water scarcity, according to the report.

The WaterWays Conference held at the University of North Texas brings together scientists, artists, and philosophers of water to raise awareness. Activists for the world’s supply of water gather bi-annually to discuss water issues including water scarcity, quality and what it means for the future of humanity.

This year’s conference will be held March 13-15 in the Environmental Education, Science and Technology Building located at 1704 W. Mulberry Street on the UNT campus.
Featured speakers include Robert F. Kennedy Jr., president of Waterkeeper Alliance, and Ramaswamy R Iyer, Former Secretary of Water, Govt. of India. Other key note speakers include Rodney Love owner of Tierra Designs Rainwater Hervesting/Waterwise Landscaping in Denton, Irene J. Klaver, Director of UNT Philosophy of Water Project and director of Waterways, and John A. McLachlan, Director of RiverSphere and the Katrina Environmental Research and Restoration Network.

The speakers will discuss issues such as water-scarcity, the quantity of reserves, and the cultural perceptions of water. They will also speak on issues concerning the water basin and the restoration of riparian area.

The main topic of focus will be over the Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna (GBM) basin located in the Middle East. The GBM Basin ,commonly known as one of the most fertile basins in the world, serves as a major water supply for the people of India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and part of Tibet. Since billions of people populate the general area, water engineers are working to build dams for flood control, but trying to consider the culture of the people who live around the basin before the process. These issues and more will be discussed at the conference.

Artist Daniel Bozhkov designed and constructed a water system on the side of the Art Building on the UNT campus. His creation, called the “Rainmaker’s Workshop” will collect water from the roof of the building, two gardens and a 19-foot dump truck, and filter them into a canister twelve feet high. As New York artist and a faculty member at the Yale University School of the Arts, Bozhkov will speak of his recent works and underground waterworks Wednesday at 5 PM.