Audit of Water and Water issues Water is an essential thing for life. Without water life is impossible How much water is required per person per day? As per universal standards(Average) *For drinking 5 litres *sanitation 20 litres *Bathing 15 * Food preparation 10

Geography of water Major Stocks of Water Volume: %of (1000km) water Salt water: Oceans 1, saline/backish Gr. Water 12, salt water lakes

Fresh Water Glaciers, permt. Gr. Water 24, Fresh ground water 10, Ground ice, permafrost Fresh water lakes Soil moisture Atmosph. Water vapor Marshes wet lands Rivers Incorporated in biota

Some facts on fresh water  Only 2.5 % of the total water on earth is fresh water: the usable portion is only 1 %  About one third of the world’s population lives in countries where water stress persists  About 80 countries –40% of the world’s population suffering from water shortages  By 2025 two thirds of the world population may suffer from serious water problems  Still, I.I billion people lack access to safe drinking water and 2.4 billion lack access to proper sanitation  Agriculture accounts for more than 70% of the fresh water  In return they give back 40% of the world’s food production

Contd… Fewer than 35% of the cities in the developing world treat their waste water Many countries lack adequate legislation and policies for efficient water management Water is widely shared among nations, religions, groups and communities A total of 261 rivers are shared by 2 or more countries and which makes the management of trans boundary water resources one of the most important water issues to day

Water management problems There is sufficient water in the world. It is not managed well Water security was a subject to all the world countries during the World summit, 2002 Water policy is required by all the nations SAIs can play a pro active role in auditing the policy. But SAIs shy away from this because they do not want to comment on the water policy.

Water policy Salient features of water policy  Water pricing  Water legislation  Permits  Inspection and enforcement  Investment in infrastructure  Scientific research  Providing information to public  Monitoring and evaluation

Water-International issues No. of International Agreements— Subject No. Water Resources and Conservation Management 20 Desertification 6 Sea Water quality and Pollution 91 Marine resources conservation and management 32 Fishing management and the use of harvestable fish 54

Audit issues of water SAIs Audit Reports cover: Water quality Rivers & Lakes, Flooding, Drinking water &Sanitation, Water in relation to nature & biodiversity, Marine environment

Water Quality Related with financial issues as well as water issues. Absence of policy for clean water to the people Environmental programmes for implementation

Types of Audit Many laws are existing for water pollution Laws are made to comply with International accords Audit of such compliance will be one method Performance appraisal of water management programmes Regularity audit and Performance audit can be the methods of audits.

Absence of policy Absence of reliable and sufficient policy for water issues is another area of audit The type of audit would be compliance in nature The environmental degradation due to absence of proper policy will be highlighted

Rivers and lakes Rivers and lakes provide a wide variety of environmental problems Pollution of the rivers and the lakes poses risk to the lives of the fauna/flora in the lakes and the rivers It also gives risk to the area or the river banks due to contact of the polluted water. The plants and the agriculture on the rivers and river banks get affected by the polluted water that flows.

Floodings This is another environmental issue of water. Flood protection system, flood prevention etc are matters of financial concerns Programme evaluation of the flood control and emergency plans etc. will be a subject matter for Performance type off audit.

Drinking water and sanitation This is the most common factor and most important one. Lot of world population is devoid of access to clean drinking water Masses from the rural areas lack facility for potable water for household purposes. The massive amount required to be spent to bring water to the population is some times criticized by the SAIs

Sanitation Sanitation and environment are connected problems Un hygienic conditions in the environment create environmental problems Sanitation is also a matter which will require lot of funds for implementation. It is therefore, both performance audit as well as regularity Audit.

Marine environment More than one country is involved Marine issues are therefore, complex in nature and resolved through International co-operation Marine issues affect the flora and fauna of the seas. It affects the countries where the sea stretches

Marine water audits As the subject the audit is also complex. Therefore, more than 1 SAI is engaged in the audits of marine issues. Joint audits of water issues Audits relate to compliance, financial and Performance

Audit of water- Indian perspective The audit of water issues in India is done as per the provisions of various Acts and rules passed by the Legislatures and the Parliament Legislative compliance is itself an audit. The Water(Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 is the first Act to address the issues regarding water in India.

Section 3 of the Act Under Sn. 3 of the Act, Central Government to constitute a Central Pollution Control Board(CPCB) Under Sn. 4 of the Act, State Pollution Control Board to be set up. Sn. 18 of the Act, Central Govt. to get the work of the State done through Central Board in the event of failure of State Boards

Functions of the Central/State Boards Planning comprehensive programmes for prevention,control,abatement of pollution of streams and wells in the States Collection and dissemination of information relating to water pollution and prevention Inspection of sewage/trade effluents Laying down standards for treatment of sewage and trade effluents

Audit issues in water management SPCBs are required to issue consent letter to polluting industries for commencement and continuance of operations They are required to take effective action against the industries which do not install control mechanisms for prevention of pollution They are required to inspect the polluting industries regularly. Targets are fixed by the MOEF

Contd… Drinking water supply to have certain parameters: SPCBS are to check this. Proper sewage system in cities is an environmental issue. The boards to ensure this Untreated effluent not to mix with the water bodies. Domestic sewage from Municipal areas also not to mix

Funds for implementation of programmes Environmental programmes are budgeted and the funds are drawn by the Boards for implementation of various programmes Amounts unspent becomes less implementation of environmental programmes. Audit to verify the budget and actual expenditure for any gap

Monitoring Environmental activities have to be monitored by the Government for proper implementation. Such a monitoring is absent in many of the State Govts. Absence of MIS on Environmental issues will give thrust to the Audit coverage and conclusions.

Some facts about the Environmental Auditing in India. In the AR 2001 of the MOEF, audit reported that:  Only a meagre amount of Rs.3 crore was spent against a provision of Rs cr.  As of April 2000 Rs cr.was lying unspent with SPCBs  Absence of mechanism to ensure that Industrial units operate after getting consent letters from SPCBs  SPCBs failed to take action against faulting industries which did not install ETPs

Contd…  Non achieving of targets of inspection  Drinking water not meeting the requisite quality  Inadequate sewerage facilities resulted in pollution of water and discharge of untreated water in the water bodies posing health hazards  Dumping of Municipal waste resulted in polluting the area and air  Major failures in complying with the Water Act, 1974

Water –Audit Checks Audit of water issues to be conducted through PCBs PCBs are the regulating authorities. PCBs have to visit industries/factories to ascertain proper implementation of provisions of Water Act They have to issue consent to commence industries, They have to issue consent letter to continue

Water quality Water quality of the various uses has to be regularised Water has to be wholesome Drinking water has to be clear, free from contamination Industrial water has also be of certain quality

Contd… Depending up on the quality of water the uses have to be fixed Drinking water has to be of certain quality in terms of contamination and pH value Even the industrial water has to be of certain standard. If the water used in industries is not of the quality the plant and machinery may get affected.They may get corrosion

Contd.. This applies to the water pipe line that brings water to the plant and the house holds. If the water is having high or low pH value it may become acidic or alkaline. The water piping system therefore, gets corroded and water will be lost in transit causing losses.

How the quality is assured PCBs test the water quality frequently to ascertain the quality In industries, the water is tested at definite intervals The water that is being discharged to the water system is also tested. Water quality is maintained by constructing ETPs

Contd.. The PCBs check the quality of water that is discharged If the quality is not as per standard the water has to be treated before it is discharged into the water system so that no further epidemic like problems are not there. If chemicals are discharged before treating they affect the system and the land, flora/fuana of the river, lakes etc also get affected

Contd… Water from the factories are tested at the end to see if it is fit to be discharged Otherwise, the water has to be treated before it is discharged. ETPS are used to purify the mixed water so that treated water is recycled for either industrial use or for gardening use etc. SOP concept also helps reduce the wastage

Water recycle Water is drawn from water system for drinking Water is treated for drinking purposes Local bodies assures the quality The water is treated with disinfectants PCBs have to see whether the measurements of the chemicals used is as per standards fixed or not

Audit of quality Audit has to verify whether the required quality is maintained or not pH value is maintained or not Wholesome water pH is 5.5 Lesser than 5.5 acidic PCBs ascertain the pH value and grade Drinking water of acidic nature if allowed affects human health, corrosion of piping and the storage system

OTHER AUDIT ISSUES To ascertain whether the country has any obligation under the International Accords. Whether the PCB has fixed the toxic level of ground water/River water/Lakes etc. Whether the country/State has adequate arrangement for the supply of Drinking water, Industrial water, etc. Whether water recycling is resorted to or not

AUDIT ISSUES (Cont…) What is marine degradation of water? How does it affect the mankind and marine life? How are the water issues solved by the country? What are the Legislative measures to address the water issues? What are the methods to finance water projects in the country? How are they collected? How are they spent?

AUDIT ISSUES (Cont…) How is ground water protected/de-polluted? Water policy-whether existing in a particular state/Region or not? Whether the country has evolved a water policy for the country? If so, what are the key factors? What are the methods of water pricing? What are the pollution control rules in force in the country/region and local area level?

AUDIT ISSUES (Cont…) What are the problems associated with river pollution? Whether the entity/country has any disaster recovery programme for drought/flood? If so, have they been documented, declared? Who are the key players in the water issues ? Are they been regulated? What are the problems associated with marine water?

AUDIT ISSUES (Cont…) How water is shared among various states, and what are the policies? What are the policies for irrigation? How water distribution is regulated at the programme level?

AUDIT SPECIFIC ISSUES For the access of safe water and sanitation is necessary infrastructure in poison and efficiently working particularly in urban and rural areas? What are the machinery to ensure the efficient and equitable allocation of water resources? Do these machinery have a clear cut agenda and the time frame to implement the programmes? Have they been declared and documented

AUDIT SPECIFIC ISSUES(Cont…) What are the machinery in position to ensure protection of water resources from depletion, pollution and degradation by promoting low cost, upgradable technologies for sanitary waste; recycling and reuse of industrial and domestic waste water and solid waste; protection of existing watersheds?

AUDIT SPECIFIC ISSUES(Cont…) What are the agencies, their mechanisms and efficiency in the control of water associated diseases? What are the action plans for improving water supply for irrigation, livestock water supply, inland fisheries and agro forestry? Are these managed efficiently for conservation and scientific distribution and management?

AUDIT SPECIFIC ISSUES(Cont…) Have the water preservation techniques been perfected and the population educated? What are the plans in this regard and are these efficiently implemented? Have the problems involved in water pollution been studied in depth, systems and polluting agents identified for addressing them in various manners? Whether action like legal remedy, imposition of fine or cancellation of licenses, criminal action, social education, roping of social organizations or NGO’s etc. thought of and properly integrated in the policy paper?

AUDIT SPECIFIC ISSUES(Cont…) Is there any provision for the research in control, measures in various matters concerning water pollution control, how are the research agencies selected, funds provided, programmes monitored, results utilized, and patents obtained where feasible.

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS Collect the various policy declarations of the Government as to its strategy to deal with water pollution, sustenance of water resources, water sharing, water pricing etc, to frame the audit approach. Get the detailed actions plans and programmes prepared and proposed for implementation. Conduct the usual regularity, financial propriety and Performance audit of these programmes.

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS(Cont…) Examine the various statues to identify the objectives, responsibilities and mandates of the Governments, CPCB, SPCBs, etc particularly the following acts and programmes  River Boards Act, 1956  Inter State Water Disputes Act, 1956  Irrigation Commissions (1901, 1972)  Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (1972 – 73)  Drought Prone Area Programme (1973)

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS(Cont…)  The water (Prevention and Control of Pollution Act) 1974  Command Area Development Programme 1974 – 75  The Water Cess Act, 1977  Setting up of National Water Resources Council 1983  Centrally Sponsored Rural Sanitation Programme 1986  Environmental Protection Act 1986

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS(Cont…)  73 rd and 74 th amendments to the Constitution of India 1992, 1993  National Lake Conservation Plan 1993  Setting up of National River Conservation Directorate 1995  Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme 1996  National Water Policy 2002

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS(Cont…) Go though the various Audit Reports of Union Government as well as the State Governments to see the reviews as well as the Draft paras dealing with Environment issues, the PAC reports and recommendations and use them as guidelines for audit particularly for reviews. Collect the various publications of the Ministry of Environment and Forests to gather data useful for audit approach and audit analysis.

WATER AUDIT CHECKPOINTS(Cont…) See the cases of funding of specific projects or programmes, the conditions, monitoring mechanisms evaluation, analysis of results etc. See the commitments made as per the international Accords and see the various reports, data and progress reports to evaluate the impact as well as adherence to the commitments. See the research programmes undertaken, funding arrangements, mile stones of research, results of research, publications, scope for patents on certain techniques developed, commercialization of viable research out come, etc.

Thanks