To ensure the availability and sustainability of water resources and sanitation for all (United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6), water managers and the communities they serve are investing in approaches that are both broad and deep.
The delegations that help drive the One Water approach to water management are wide-ranging and often serendipitous, as Grace van Deelen explains in “Delegations Drive One Water Dialogues.” “One Water,” van Deelen writes, “treats drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater as a single, interconnected entity…bringing together water utilities, community members, business and industry leaders, researchers, politicians, engineers, and advocacy groups.
A comprehensive framework like One Water may also help address a long-standing injustice: why communities of color are more likely to have higher levels of contaminants in their drinking water.
In addition to applying integrated water management approaches involving at-risk communities, some scientists suggest that unconventional water resources should be explored for their potential to mitigate water insecurity. That’s the thrust of this month’s opinion, “Deep Groundwater Might Be a Sustainable Solution to the Water Crisis.” Contamination and overuse of shallow groundwater supplies are creating a need for in-depth analysis on the health, safety, and financial concerns associated with accessing deep aquifers, argue scientist-authors Claudia Bertoni, Fridtjov Ruden, Elizabeth Quiroga Jordan, and Helene Ruden.
Meeting water challenges requires the twin scientific skills of intersectional collaboration and data-driven research. This month’s stories show how Earth scientists are already pursuing such approaches and how they are looking to further develop the knowledge and networks to create more.
—Caryl-Sue Micalizio, Editor in Chief
