Published: 17 August 2006
Water Crisis Hits Rich Countries
Water crises, long seen as a problem of only the poorest, are increasingly affecting some of the world’s wealthiest nations, warns WWF.
The report, Rich countries, poor water is the most up-to-date overview of water issues in the developed world.
It shows that a combination of climate change, drought & loss of wetlands, along with poorly thought out water infrastructure and resource mismanagement, is creating a truly global crisis.
It documents water problems beyond the situation in the UK, in other countries such as Australia, Spain, USA and Japan.
Jamie Pittock, Director of WWF’s Global Freshwater Programme, said:
“Economic riches don’t translate to plentiful water.
Water must be used more efficiently throughout the world - scarcity & pollution are becoming more common and responsibility for finding solutions rests with both rich and poor nations”.
Fresh water can no longer be considered to be a limitless resource.
The critical freshwater situation in England has become only too apparent this summer as was highlighted in the RSPB report Dry Rot: Is England’s Countryside Dying of Thirst?, supported by WWF and other partners.
In Europe, countries along the Atlantic are suffering recurring droughts, while water-intensive tourism and irrigated agriculture are endangering water resources in the Mediterranean.
In Australia, the world’s driest continent, salinity is a major threat to a large proportion of its key agricultural areas.
While, despite high rainfall in Japan, contamination of water supplies is a serious issue in many areas.
In the United States, large areas are already using substantially more water than can be naturally replenished.
This situation will only be exacerbated as climate change is predicted to bring lower rainfall, increased evaporation and changed snowmelt patterns.
Some of the world’s thirstiest cities such as Houston and Sydney are using more water than can be replenished.
It is notable that large cities with less severe water issues such as New York, with a population of eight million, tend to have a longer tradition of conserving areas important for water management such as catchment areas and expansive green areas within their boundaries.
Pittock continued:
“Regrettably, it appears that the next group of rapidly developing economies have already been seduced by major infrastructure plans, such as large dams, with inadequate consideration of whether such projects will meet water needs or inflict human and natural costs.”
In Brazil, despite leading the world with its national water resources plan, concerns remain over some existing dam proposals.
In India much of its agriculture is under threat from rampant overexploitation of water resources.
Elsewhere, China has raised international concerns over the scale and possible ecological & human costs of some of its massive water infrastructure plans.
Pittock added:
“The crisis in rich nations is proof that wealth and infrastructure are no substitute for protecting rivers and wetlands, and restoring floodplain areas”.
The water problems affecting rich and poor alike are a wake-up call to return to protecting nature as the source of water.
As we approach World Water Week (which runs from Sunday 20 to Saturday 26 August) governments must find solutions for both rich and poor, which include repairing ageing infrastructure, reducing contaminants, and changing irrigation practices in the way we grow crops.
Further information
Rich countries, poor water
WWF : Drought and water shortages
RSPB report: Dry Rot: Is England’s Countryside Dying of Thirst?
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