The world is facing a looming global water crisis that threatens to “get out of control” as rising demand for water and intensified impacts of the climate crisis put enormous pressure on water resources, a global warming body has warned. UN report.
Water use has increased by about 1% a year over the past 40 years, driven by population growth and changing consumption patterns, according to the United Nations’ World Water Development Report, published on Tuesday. (21), on the eve of an important water summit, held by the UN itself in New York.
The number of people in cities facing water shortages is projected to nearly double from 930 million people in 2016 to 2.4 billion by 2050, according to the report. Urban water demand is expected to increase by 80% by 2050.
Without action to address the problem of water scarcity, “there will definitely be a global crisis,” Richard Connor, the report’s lead author, said at a news conference during the document’s launch.
“Horrible consequences”
Access to water is already a big problem. Two billion people currently lack safe drinking water and 3.6 billion lack access to safely managed sanitation, according to the report.
About 10% of the global population already lives in countries with high or critical water stress.
Urban and industrial growth and agriculture are compounding existing shortages, with agriculture alone consuming 70% of the world’s water supply, Connor said.
Seasonal water shortages are expected to increase in areas where water is currently plentiful, including Central Africa, East Asia and parts of South America, according to the report. Meanwhile, the shortages will worsen in the Middle East and the Sahel region of Africa, where water is already scarce.
Extreme and prolonged droughts, made more frequent and severe by the climate crisis, are also putting pressure on ecosystems, which could have “terrible consequences” for plant and animal species, the report’s authors said.
Solutions include better international cooperation to avoid water conflicts, Connor said.
Flood and pollution control, data sharing and efforts to reduce planet-warming pollution levels should “open the door to greater collaboration and increased access to funding for water,” he said.
“There is an urgent need to establish strong international mechanisms to prevent the global water crisis from getting out of hand,” said Audrey Azoulay, director-general of UNESCO, the cultural arm of the UN.
“Water is our common future and it is essential that we act together to share it equitably and manage it sustainably.”
Source: CNN Brasil
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