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Water
is a renewable resource that continuously circulates between the
atmosphere, the surface of the earth and underground, in what
we call the hydro-geobiological cycle. We are accustomed to it
always being there, satisfying our needs. It can also produce
fear when it takes the form of natural phenomena we call extreme
or disastrous. Fresh water makes up around 2.5% of the Earth's
total volume of water. The most important freshwater resources
are underground (around 30%), water we often don't think about
much since we can't see it, and freshwater wetlands (approximately
0.35%.) In Central America aquifers represent our major source
of water. These are being exhausted, however, and the region is
now tapping into rivers and lakes. In El Salvador, for example,
heavy use is being made of surface water from the Lempa River.
Human beings utilize water for four major activities: domestic
use, agriculture (especially irrigation), industry and supply
and consumption. Most people in Central America see water as a
resource that will never run out, thanks to the copious rainfall
in our countries. But water does not exist all by itself. For
this vital resource to continue with the quality required for
human consumption, the ecosystems that make its existence possible
must be conserved. Forests and freshwater wetlands are essential
for producing and maintaining the quality of this resource. Water
use and management does not take into consideration certain functions
that are often carried out by these ecosystems, such as regulating
flow, water storage, carbon fixing, and energy production from
photosynthesis. Land use planning is necessary, and must include
an integrated approach to catchment management if water resources
are to be conserved and restored in our Central American region.
There is concern about water in many sectors all over the world,
making this problem as significant as global warming and holes
in the ozone layer. Important efforts are being made to bring
different sectors together for comprehensive planning and management
of this resource. International organisms involved in these initiatives
include the Global Water Partnership (GWP), the World Water Council
(WWC), the World Commission on Dams (WCD), the IUCN Freshwater
Initiative and others at the regional level. Nevertheless, water
resources are seriously threatened, not just by unwise and excessive
use for domestic activities and irrigating crops, but as the result
of poor management of solid and liquid waste and the advance of
the agricultural frontier. This last phenomenon is causing the
destruction of forests and the transformation of continental wetlands--ecosystems
that help produce and maintain good quality water. Conversion
of these ecosystems has reduced the buffering qualities of wetlands,
which act as a sponge in slowing down violent flows of water.
They also mitigate flooding in the lower areas of basins, where
coastal wetlands (including mangroves) play a vital role as barriers
against floods and storms. A good part of the problem also lies
in the lack of knowledge about these ecosystems. Even though in
many cases they contain important volumes of water and natural
resources, the potential and quality of these resources is not
understood, despite the fact that most of the region's wetlands
with international importance are freshwater.
During its passage through Central America
in October 1998, Hurricane Mitch was a natural event that showed
in drastic and painful ways just how serious it can be to manage
natural ecosystems unwisely. The document, "1999 State of
the Region" (European Union, UNDP) pinpoints the urgent need
to improve national and regional land use planning. It also urges
the establishment of systems for monitoring, interpretation, education
and prevention, which would allow countries to take immediate
action within the framework of integrated catchment management.
One significant initiative in this field is the participatory
preparation of the Action Plan for Water in the Central American
Isthmus (Plan de Acción para Agua en el Istmo Centroamericano
- PACADIRH), the first effort toward regional integration concerning
this important theme. Many more efforts are needed to unify hydrologists,
hydraulic engineers and ecologists, a vital multidisciplinary
combination for a more holistic and comprehensive approach. Other
elements essential for integrated management and conservation
plans include legislative and regulatory frameworks, local and
private sector participation, and effective communication with
decision-makers.
The IUCN Wetlands and Coastal Zones Program
for Mesoamerica has dedicated this fourth informational bulletin
to the theme of water conservation and management in Central America,
providing information on the principal problems concerning this
resource, noteworthy regional experiences, and global initiatives
that should serve as a framework for action in our region. Each
of our countries has a long ways to go. The basis for any comprehensive
management effort lies in the availability of information about
water resources, catchment areas and their quality. Sharing this
information is the work of every woman and man in Central America.
"Giver and taker of life; essential
element of all existence and untamable destroyer; spiritual expression
of purity and contaminated purveyor of affliction; bringer of
blessings and of tragedy; agent of social, economic and political
discord. Water is all these things ........(Page, 1997). "
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