Dispatches from the Rio Olympics from Professor Victor Matheson - Environment
Monday, August 08, 2016
As has been widely reported in the US, Olympic sites such as Guanabara Bay, site of the sailing events, and Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, home to the rowing and canoeing competitions are badly polluted. Indeed, the World Health Organization has issued fairly severe recommendations to athletes advising them to avoid prolonged contact with the water, to take precautions to avoid inhaling water or allowing it to comes in contact with open wounds, and to rapidly clean up after events.
The Olympics were supposed to serve as a catalyst to improve Rio's municipal water and sewer services, and the city set a goal of treating 80% of all the city's sewage before releasing it into the waterways. Unfortunately, this is one of numerous areas where the city fell short, and of course, even if they had met their standard, one-fifth of all waste water would still have been left untreated.
Indeed, the sense among Brazilians that hosting the 2014 World Cup and this summer's Olympics has prioritized stadium and sports venue construction over the provision of basic public services has led to 3 years of massive street protests. And the issues with water pollution will remain long after the sailors, rowers, and international sports fans have gone home.
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