SDG6 – Clean Water and Sanitation: Balancing the Water Cycle for Sustainable Life on Earth

Providing safe and clean water for all without damaging the environment is one of the biggest challenges of the SDGs. SDG6 is an ambitious goal which seeks to establish the framework through which environmentally responsible water resource management, sanitation and security can be achieved. Bridging academic discussion and real-world case studies, this book considers the challenge of balancing the provision of the basic human right of access to water whilst not eroding our capacity to live sustainably in a rapidly changing world. It considers the impact of climate change on the water cycle and discusses how this will increase the vulnerability of communities, including those in regions that already experience acute water challenges. The book also highlights the need for more urgent action on increasing the resilience and quality of freshwater ecosystems and how this links to sanitation practices. The book concludes with a discussion of some of the key challenges and possible solutions to meeting SDG6. Concise Guides to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals comprises 17 short books, each examining one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The series provides an integrated assessment of the SDGs from economic, legal, social, environmental and cultural perspectives.