Safe Water is the Clear Solution for World Water Week

World Chlorine Council global water programs highlight the public health value of chlorine

ARLINGTON, VA, August 21, 2005 - Can economic growth, sustainable development, improved
public health and reduced poverty levels of underprivileged communities all come from a glass
of clean drinking water? According to the annual gathering of the global water community at this
week's World Water Week events in Stockholm, Sweden (August 21-26), that glass of water is where the health and advancement of impoverished communities around the globe must beg
in. With nearly one person in five globally lacking access to safe drinking water, healthy water
practices and products are fundamental to the preservation, protection and improvement of both
individual and community well-being.

According to C. T. "Kip" Howlett, Jr., Secretariat of the World Chlorine Council (WCC) the
products of chlorine, whether in the form of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) piping for community water
transport or as a household water disinfectant, offer disadvantaged populations around the
world an opportunity for a healthier future.

"The presence of waterborne disease is an unmistakable sign of a community in distress,"
says Howlett. "The results of this daily public health disaster - poverty, disease, malnutrition,
environmental deterioration and high infant mortality - can be drastically reduced through simple
and direct interventions of chlorine-based products."

Under the banner of "Safe Water Delivered Safely", WCC supports humanitarian efforts to save
and improve lives around the world through development and investment in international clean
water projects and global relief efforts. These efforts include the following:

• Tsunami Relief Efforts
  
  In the wake of the tsunami that hit South Asia in December 2004, WHO advised that
  ensuring access to safe water was critical to preventing outbreaks of waterborne
  diseases such as cholera and typhoid. Within days, WCC member associations, Euro
  Chlor and the Chlorine Chemistry Council, coordinated an industry response, raising over
  $150,000 to aid water and sanitation efforts being carried out by the American Red Cross.

• Household Water Treatment and Safe Storage
  
  WCC is a partner of the International Network to Promote Household Water Treatment and Safe Storage, organized by the World Health Organization. Through this network, WCC supports the widespread adoption of simple, low-cost technologies that can dramatically improve the quality of water used in individual homes, and help reduce the global burden of waterborne disease. For example, in communities where safe water supplies are not available, specially packaged chlorine bleach used to disinfect household water has been shown to reduce diarrhea cases 25-50%.
  
  
• West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI)
  
  
  WCC actively supports the West Africa Water Initiative (WAWI), a multi-partner alliance working in some of the most arid regions of western Africa. WAWI projects are focused on providing sustainable water supplies, reducing disease, and improving water management in Ghana, Mali, and Niger. Unveiled at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development, WAWI is a leading example of the "partnership" model for achieving the United Nation's Millennium Development Goals. WCC will provide PVC pipe and other materials that will be used by World Vision, UNICEF and other WAWI partners to construct bore wells and sanitary latrines.

# # #

For more information about the World Chlorine Council, please visit www.worldchlorine.com.

Created in 1993, the World Chlorine Council (WCC) is a global network of national and regional trade associations and their member companies representing the chlorine and chlorinated products industries. The WCC coordinates international efforts to improve understanding and awareness of the benefits of chlorine chemistry; furthers the practice and understanding of responsible stewardship; and anticipates and responds to relevant health, environmental and public policy issues.