A borehole construction project has been launched in Manyang-Ngok county in Tonj, hoping to bring an end to conflicts arising from water access, thanks to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), which has broken ground to drill two water points in the remote villages of Akot Madut and Atoong, located more than 40 kms from the Tonj area capital.
"Water is life.
I thank them, and I thank God for bringing UNMISS and water," he said, concluding his stream of gratitude.
"Now the distance walked in search of water is solved, but women dying during giving birth is not yet over," she noted.
The project will be implemented by the Community Initiative for Development Agency – CIDA, whose Executive Director, Gabriel Pap Nyok, asked community members to remain peaceful and support the drilling process.
"That commitment should not only be from UNMISS and CIDA but from you, too, [as the benefiting community].
UNMISS head of Kuajok field office Anastasie Nyirigira said that while serving to diminish water-related conflicts, the project would also ensure that all internally displaced persons in the area have a chance to access clean drinking water.
Tonj Governor Mathew Mathiang Magoordit thanked UNMISS and CIDA for their partnership and assistance to the community of Manyang-Ngok county.
"I am happy and grateful to UNMISS," he said, noting, "You have helped the community by providing water and my state administration will fully cooperate with you.
(With Inputs from APO)

Reuters / Carlos Barria The Environmental Protection Agency is setting a limit on the level of toxic cancer-causing chemicals allowed in drinking water.
The agency will announce a plan Thursday to control a group of manmade chemicals known as PFAs—found in non-stick cookware and stain-resistant carpeting—which are linked to cancer as well as liver and thyroid damage.
It’s not yet known what the specific permitted level for the toxic substances will be, but drinking water systems around the country will be tested for the chemicals to make sure they’re at lower levels than they were at a previous round of testing in 2012.
It was previously reported by Politico that the EPA had no intention to limit the chemicals, which are believed to be contaminating millions of Americans’ tap water.
Alex Jones—the Infowars conspiracy theorist who falsely claimed that the 2012 Sandy Hook school shooting, which left 27 people dead, was a false-flag operation—will be forced to submit to a sworn deposition as part of a defamation lawsuit the victims’ families filed against him.
Connecticut Judge Barbara Bellis made the ruling Wednesday that will see Jones answer questions during a five-hour deposition.
Bellis also ordered three other defendants to be deposed who are “critical to Infowars’ business operations,” according to the Sandy Hook families.
Bellis previously ruled that Jones must turn over Infowars’ internal financial, business, and marketing documents.
Mark Barden, whose son Daniel was one of 20 first-graders killed in the shooting, said: “It is far beyond time that [Jones] be held accountable for the pain his false narratives have caused so many and today’s ruling brings us one step closer to doing that.” Jones has repeatedly denied the defamation allegations.

From: Infrastructure Canada Selkirk, Manitoba, February 13, 2019—Modern reliable water and wastewater systems are crucial to protecting the health of Canadians, keeping Manitoba’s waterways clean and supporting economic growth.
Today, the Honourable Bernadette Jordan, Minister of Rural Economic Development, and the Honourable Jeff Wharton, Manitoba Minister of Municipal Relations, were in Selkirk to announce joint funding for important upgrades to water and wastewater systems in the City of Selkirk and the R.M.
of Ritchot.
of Ritchot, funding will support upgrades to the raw water supply system and increase the capacity of the reservoir to meet rising water use from rural residents in the R.M.
Agathe, St. Adolphe, Île des Chênes, as well as planned future expansion of the regional water system to the community of Grande Pointe and area.
Both projects will be funded through the Small Communities Fund, with each partner providing one third of the eligible project costs.
These important projects in the City of Selkirk and the R.M.
of Ritchot will not only improve services for residents, but protect the environment, keep communities healthy and livable, and pave the way for economic development and growth.” The Honourable Bernadette Jordan, Minister of Rural Economic Development “These projects will ensure that wastewater in the City of Selkirk and drinking water in Richot will be treated to a higher quality.
Improvements to our municipal infrastructure are a priority in Manitoba, and these projects are an important step towards making our municipalities’ infrastructure stronger and more efficient for all residents.” Jeff Wharton, Minister of Municipal Relations “Since 2011, the City of Selkirk, with the support of our funding partners, have made significant investments into our water and wastewater systems; improving our capacity to serve our growing community, our resiliency to climate change, and our environmental performance.
This project will support the future development of almost 750 acres and will reduce the current demands on our existing system.” Larry Johannson, Mayor of the City of Selkirk “I, along with all of Richot council, am excited for the infrastructure funding from the governments of Canada and Manitoba.

(MissionNewswire) Through a “Clean Water Initiative,” Salesian Missions has provided the funding for the construction of 10 water boreholes in communities in Nigeria.
As part of the second phase of the project, the construction of boreholes has begun at Salesian centers in the towns of Koko, Abuja and three others in the Benue State.
The new water supply will help ensure that poor youth, their families and Salesian missionaries living and working in the area have access to safe, clean water for drinking and cooking and for personal hygiene.
This project also ensures access to water for Salesian youth centers that are providing services for street children.
This reduces the number of waterborne illnesses that can affect those in our schools, keeping them away from important study time.” UN-Water estimates that worldwide 2.1 billion people lack access to safely managed drinking water services and by 2050, the world’s population will have grown by an estimated 2 billion people pushing global water demand up to 30 percent higher than today.
Women and children often bear the primary responsibility for water collection in the majority of households and globally, spend 140 million hours a day collecting water.
According to UNICEF, Nigeria is Africa’s most populous country and the ninth most populous country in the world.
By UN estimates, Nigeria will be one of the countries responsible for most of the world’s total population increase by 2050.
While Nigeria has the second strongest economy in Africa, it also has extreme rates of poverty with 100 million people living on less than $1 a day.
Poverty still remains one of the most critical challenges facing the country and population growth rates have meant a steady increase in the number of people living in conditions of poverty.

Gov.
Tony Evers called for more clean drinking water measures Wednesday, including funding to address contaminated wells and a new drinking-water study in three southwest Wisconsin counties where nearly half of wells recently were found to be contaminated.
Evers said in a statement his proposal for the next state budget will allocate $2 million in funding — a $1.6 million increase — for a state program that helps replace, rebuild or treat contaminated private wells.
The Well Compensation Grant Program gives funding to eligible landowners or renters to address wells that serve a residence or livestock.
It will provide a new option for families below an income threshold that permits the Department of Natural Resources to pay as much as 100 percent of costs as much as $16,000 to replace or treat contaminated wells.
Evers also said he directed the state Department of Natural Resources to spend $75,000 in the next budget cycle on a study to evaluate drinking water safety in Grant, Iowa and Lafayette counties.
A study released last month found 42 percent of randomly selected wells surveyed in those three counties were contaminated, failing to meet federal standards for bacteria that can come from animal or human waste, or for a toxic fertilizer residue.
The announcement came after Evers revealed earlier this week that he will propose in his budget allowing the state to borrow nearly $70 million more over the next two years to combat water pollution and replace lead pipes.

A borehole construction project has been launched in Manyang-Ngok county in Tonj, hoping to bring an end to conflicts arising from water access, thanks to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), which has broken ground to drill two water points in the remote villages of Akot Madut and Atoong, located more than 40kms from the Tonj area capital.
“Water is life.
I thank them, and I thank God for bringing UNMISS and water,” he said, concluding his stream of gratitude.
Another resident, Ajak Akot, thanked UNMISS for providing water, but took the opportunity to raise other matters of concern, especially those affecting women.
“Now the distance walked in search of water is solved, but women dying during giving birth is not yet over,” she noted.
The project will be implemented by the Community Initiative for Development Agency – CIDA, whose Executive Director, Gabriel Pap Nyok, asked community members to remain peaceful and support the drilling process.
“That commitment should not only be from UNMISS and CIDA, but from you, too, [as the benefitting community].
UNMISS head of Kuajok field office Anastasie Nyirigira said that while serving to diminish water-related conflicts, the project would also ensure that all internally displaced persons in the area have a chance to access clean drinking water.
Tonj Governor Mathew Mathiang Magoordit thanked UNMISS and CIDA for their partnership and assistance to the community of Manyang-Ngok county.
He vowed to cooperate with UNMISS during his tenure as governor.

Or maybe it came when the enormity of the project became clear: Crews from the little village of Mejote had been working on this pipeline to bring fresh water to their village for two years, and had about another year to go "We weren’t there to do the physical work as much as we were to witness what they were doing," Roche said.
The "we" in this case was a group of about two dozen volunteers brought to Honduras by the Sister Water Project of the Sisters of St. Francis of Dubuque, Iowa.
But project committee member Sr. Judy Sinnwell said the venture has been as much about changing those involved as it is about changing the lives of those given fresh water.
Franciscan Sr. Donalda Kehoe — then 91 — attended a bowling fundraiser last year for the trip and had so much fun she now bowls once a month to stay in shape.
He had read about the project in the local newspaper and heard about it several times at various community events, so when the project committee — made up of sisters, associates and volunteers — needed help with strategic planning, he volunteered.
"I feel like I need to go there when it’s done and drink that water," Roche said.
"And we chose two countries where we either had or still have sisters, Tanzania and Honduras."
But it also changed everyone on the team.
"It was just going to be this one time," Sinnwell said.
Project committee members have been to Tanzania to see the work, Goedken said, but work teams are not needed.

For years, Californians regarded access to safe drinking water as a Third World problem.
About 1 million Californians can’t safely drink their tap water.
It’s a disgrace that demands immediate state action.
Gov.
Gavin Newsom proposes taxing water across California to create a dedicated fund to solve the problem.
Water experts estimate the need to be about $150 million a year.
But in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta town of Isleton, just 90 miles from San Jose and 40 miles from Walnut Creek, residents’ tap water contains enough arsenic that it is unsafe to drink.
It’s inevitable that if the state continues draining the Delta to send water south it will eventually pose a serious, long-term threat to the quality of Bay Area residents’ drinking water.
For example, Californians last fall wisely rejected Proposition 3, which would have devoted $500 million of an $8.9 billion water bond package to cleaning up the state’s drinking water.
Monning has yet to re-introduce his legislation this year.

Re: California’s unfulfilled promise on access to safe water Supplying residents and businesses with clean, affordable, high quality water is priority one for water districts and cities throughout California.
In Riverside and San Bernardino counties, water agencies and regional planners work to ensure customers have access to safe, clean and reliable water.
Through state-of-the-art treatment plants, around-the-clock testing and innovative technologies, regional water suppliers such as Eastern Municipal Water District, Western Municipal Water District, Riverside Public Utilities, and San Bernardino Valley Municipal Water District provide our customers with the highest quality water available that exceeds all state standards.
As leaders in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, we have seen the issue of groundwater contamination firsthand.
Through long-term planning and investments, we have cleaned up local groundwater supplies where necessary, enhanced access to reliable groundwater and imported supplies, and continue to invest in the needs of our communities.
We will continue working together to deliver fresh, clean drinking water safely to you and your family, and plan for the needs of this growing region.
The solution will include governance reforms and consolidations of extremely small systems that are unable to achieve the economies of scale necessary to address contamination and treatment-related issues.
Water agencies, cities, and business organizations across the state have proposed a funding solution that does not impose a tax on urban water users and, when coupled with the governance reforms, establishes a sound process for repairing unusable drinking water systems.
This package of funds is an appropriate way to address this key social issue rather than taxing our water customers that have already invested in their local water systems.
These funds should be vetted as a viable solution along with a plan to help unusable drinking water systems become operational again.

Many, if not most, of the 62 First Nations reserves in this country that lack a safe water supply are found in isolated areas, far from where most Canadians live.
It is to the credit of the current Liberal government in Ottawa that in its quest for reconciliation with Canada’s Indigenous Peoples it is making real progress with its longstanding pledge to ensure every First Nation reserve has a safe supply of water for drinking, washing food and bathing.
But it is an indication of the enormity of the problem that the progress is both limited and halting.
It is a fact of life in far too many Indigenous communities that their tap water is unfit for consumption without first being boiled.
At that time, Trudeau’s promise to make these long-term drinking water advisories a thing of the past in every First Nations community by 2021 was greeted with disbelief.
Life is better in those communities, even if they still face challenges unimaginable to most Canadians.
Moreover, the integrity of First Nations water systems can’t be judged solely by the number of water boil advisories.
Other federal government data suggest the improvements to those water systems aren’t as significant or permanent as the end of all those drinking water advisories might lead us to conclude.
Even so, the government has a long way to go.
Yet this remains something Canada absolutely must do.