With all the pressing issues facing the country for one congressman its World Toilet day?
Of all the pressing issues facing the country, I was surprised to read that time was taken out of the busy schedule of Congress to discuss “toilets” of all things? I sh*t you not! Apparently there is real issues facing the world without enough toilets.
Diseases, including cholera, which still affects some 3 million people each year, can be largely prevented when effectivesanitation and water treatment prevents fecal matter from contaminating waterways, groundwaterand drinking supplies. Infected water supplies can be treated to make the water safe for consumption and use. To this day, many people in developing countries have no toilets in their homes and are resorting to openly defecating out in the streets or woods instead.
What follows is Congressman Blumenauer entire 5 minute toilet speech before Congress:
“The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
Mr. BLUMENAUER.
Madam Speaker, today is World Toilet Day. The concept of a World Toilet Day can make children giggle, some adults blush, and others want to change the subject, but the title is designed to address this serious subject directly.
No one can afford to be squeamish, to make jokes, or change the subject about the fundamental issue of adequate sanitation because 2 and a half billion people live without it, causing about 700,000 premature deaths each year, and it is getting worse.
We have made some progress, but the number living without access has increased by 700 million people. There are now more people on Earth with a cell phone than a toilet.
The consequences of insufficient access to sanitation facilities and poor hygiene are severe. Countries where open defecation is more prevalent have found its way to the United States media recently, reporting on the horrific murder and rape of two young girls that could have been prevented in India if they didn’t need to sneak out into the night to relieve themselves in an open field, leaving them vulnerable to attack.
A heartbreaking study linked the root cause of India’s malnutrition crisis to a lack of adequate sanitation. It found that many of the 162 million children under the age of 5 who are malnourished in India are suffering less from a lack of food and more from poor sanitation. Those children who do survive are left with mental and physical burdens for their entire lives.
The lack of adequate sanitation is a human economic drain. The total global economic loss associated with inadequate water supply and sanitation is estimated to be over a quarter trillion dollars every year.
This crisis that leaves women vulnerable, needlessly ends lives early, and undermines economic growth does have solutions. Today, at noon, I will join my colleagues on implementation of the Water for the Poor Act we passed earlier to ensure that WASH programming helps leverage the impact of development assistance. It also ensures that our water, sanitation, and hygiene programs are targeted to help the world’s poorest, that they are more effective with long-term sustainable impacts.
This bipartisan legislation, with my friend Ted Poe, has well over 100 cosponsors and is scheduled for a markup in the House Foreign Affairs Committee tomorrow.
This significant progress would not have even been possible without the leadership of Chairman Royce, and I thank him for it, along with the many advocates who have demonstrated why the United States must play a greater role to increase sustainable access to clean water and sanitation.
If passed out of committee, which I certainly hope it will, I would urge the House leadership to bring this bill to the floor for a vote immediately when we come back in session in December. That is because we cannot wait, and it is one of those rare bills we can all unite to get water, often dirty water, for their families. That is enough work hours to build 28 Empire State Buildings every day. This is time not spent working on income-generating jobs, caring for family members, or securing an education.
Ted Poe, a Republican, and I, a Democrat who represents Portlandia, don’t often agree on a lot, but we are an example of how we can all come together because politics should stop at water.”
Source: Congressional Record
Note: Congressman Earl Blumenauer (OR-3) has devoted his entire career to public service.
Elected to the US House of Representatives in 1996, Mr. Blumenauer has created a unique role as Congress’ chief spokesperson for Livable Communities: places where people are safe, healthy and economically secure. From 1996 to 2007, he served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he was a strong advocate for federal policies that address transportation alternatives, provide housing choices, support sustainable economies and improve the environment. He was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee from 2001 to 2007, and vice-chair of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming from 2007 to 2010. He is currently a member of the Budget Committee and Ways and Means Committee and the subcommittees on Health and Trade.
Congressman Blumenauer’s academic training includes undergraduate and law degrees from Lewis and Clark College in Portland.