Mongolia's water resources are unevenly distributed. In mountainous regions, water resources are sufficient. But in the Gobi desert area, underground sources account for 80% of total water consumption. Around 30% of Mongolia's population has access to the water supply system. About 25% of the population receives water from the water transportation service, over 35% get water from water supply points and less than 10% use water from springs, rivers and snow water.
Water quality or water mineralization depends on the location of a particular basin in relation to the sea level. Water quality of high mountain rivers and streams in Mongolia is adequate. However in the Gobi water quality is substandard due to high mineralization.
Rapid urbanization along with the demographic and mining boom in the past 20 years have led to irreversible deterioration of the quality of surface and underground water resources. Poorly maintained treatment facilities built in the 1960s and 1970s are unable to cope with the growth in household and industrial activities. In general, wastewater treatment has been neglected.
The Comprehensive National Development Strategy of Mongolia based on the Millennium Development Goals includes environmental sustainability, protection of water resources and supply of safe drinking-water to the population.
Water safety plan implementation
The WHO/AusAID Partnership on Water Quality, established in 2012, aims to promote water safety plans (WSPs) as an increasingly recognized cost-effective, management-oriented, preventive approach to drinking-water safety. A pilot project for urban WSP was implemented at the Water Supply and Sewage Authority (USUG) and Water Supplier of Sainshand city of Dornogobi province. The USUG is a key stakeholder to ensure that safe drinking-water is
Field training sessions conducted in collaboration with WHO short term consultants were incorporated into all training programmes to enable identifying water safety hazards and assessing risks. USUG’s water resource point, 2012
supplied to about 1.2 million residents in Ulaanbaatar. WSPs for small communities were initiated in six soums in three provinces as pilot projects. With WHO technical assistance, the WSP team of USUG developed a three-year investment programme to ensure sustainability of the WSP initiative. Ulaanbaatar City Council officially approved the programme.
Water safety plan policy dialogue
Policy revision and particularly inclusion of WSPs into existing policies and standards is crucial to scale up the WSP initiative and develop a better system for ensuring drinking-water quality. The Mongolian National Standard on Drinking-Water Quality was revised in September 2014 and is in the process of approval. On 26 February 2015 a joint order for the Compulsory Establishment of Centralized Water Supplies, based on an urban WSP, was issued by the Minister for Health and Sports and the Minister of Construction and Urban Development. The Methodological Guidance on Water Safety Plans for Small Communities was approved by order of the Minister for Health and Sports on 28 December 2015.
Water safety plan skills development
National capacity-building, advocacy and awareness raising activities on urban and rural water safety planning were conducted in 2012 and 2013. Since July 2012, 72 national trainers and 20 national consultants on water safety have been trained in WSP. The study tour on urban WSP in Australia engaged policy-makers and implementers of the WSP initiative and resulted in obtaining decisive political support for development and implementation of the WSP. Mongolia has initiated WSP awareness raising with water-related government agencies including water suppliers, health facilities, academic institutions and inspection agencies.
To ensure distribution of quality drinking water to the population of ger districts (districts made up of traditional Mongolian felt dwellings, or gers) the Water Safety Plan highlights safety of Water Distribution Kiosks.
Water safety plan advocacy and partnerships
The WSP initiative is integrated with household water treatment and storage and other water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH)-related and climate change-related activities and works together with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and World Vision in 33 soums in four provinces of Mongolia.
The Water Safety Plan Initiative is extended to all provinces to ensure access to safe drinking water among rural populations. Hence each province has established their own Water Safety Plan Team and technical assistance has been provided by the national consultants in collaboration with WHO.