ABSTRACT
Climate change (CC) is severely affecting the availability of water and its quality. Therefore represents a direct challenge to health, where not only the water-borne, but also vector and temperature-related diseases are challenging the existing health system and safe water supply. Thus water and health security have progressively been defi ed primarily by pollution, waste, toxics and climate change related hazards and disasters. Southern countries and vulnerable people but also poor social people in industrialized countries have been the main victims and suffering the most from both climate-induced physical impacts (temperature and sea-level rise, precipitation change, increase in the number and intensity of natural hazards such as droughts, heat waves, storms and fl oods (Schellnhuber et al. 2006; IPCC 2007a) and societal effects (famine, food protests, diseases, migration; IPCC 2007b; WHO/FAO 2003; Oswald 2010; Arreola et al. 2011a). They are also affected by the coexistence of traditional and modern diseases linked to the pollution of water, air and soil and the transformation of the diet. Water, water-related and other health impacts are crucial for the analysis of future non-traditional security impacts for the survival of humankind and the recovery of ecosystems and associated services (MA 2005).
