Water is indispensable for living. Indeed water is most
important component whose presence is now detected to confirm existence of life
during space explorations too. While 70% of the earth is covered with water
only 2.5% of it is fresh water rest of it is saline water. Just 1% of water is
accessible and the rest of it is trapped in glaciers and the huge snow fields
at the poles. To sum up, just 0.007% of planet’s water is available to cater
for the needs of 7 billion. While the amount of fresh water remained nearly
constant over centuries population has exploded. Water use has been increasing
at more than twice the rate of increase of the population in the last century. By
2025 1.8 billion people will be living in countries or regions with absolute
water scarcity and two-thirds of the population could live under water stress
conditions.
There has been a surge in water related crises across the
World and countries started experiencing worst forms of drought. A billion of
people don’t have access to safe drinking water. Over the past hundred years while
the population has increased three times there has been six-fold surge in water
consumption. If the present trend continues there could be 40% gap between
water availability and demand by 2030. Demographic changes and unsustainable
economic practices are taking a toll on the quality and quantity of water
available.
Data from Grace Satellites of NASA indicated that California
is on the verge of epic drought and that ground water resources have depleted
enormously. It indicated that countries in the North latitudes and tropics are
becoming increasingly wetter and those in the middle latitudes are running low
on water. Middle latitudes includes countries which are arid and semi-arid are
more likely to become dry. Middle East, North Africa and South Asia are
projected to experience severe shortages due to bad management and overuse.
Further water intensive cropping systems, rapid urbanisation, cooling power
plants, fracking oil and gas wells, besides intensified dry might spell have
aggravated the water crisis. Overuse of ground water has become staggering in
the stretch extending from Eastern Pakistan, northern plains of India and into
Bangladesh. Almost 75% farmers in this region depend on pumped ground water for
farming. Other critical water basins identified are the Nile, Tigris-Euphrates,
Mekong, Jordan, Indus, Brahmaputra and Amu Darya.
Water shortages would greatly impact food production, energy
supply and might put extra pressure on governments struggling with poverty and
social conflicts. The Pacific Institute which studies issues of water and
global security has indicated that violent confrontations over water has
increased by four fold in the last decade. While chances of nations waging war
over water is slim sub-national conflicts like those between farmers and
cities, upstream and downstream users of river water is on rise. There are
legal tools to resolve the disputes between nations internationally but there are
fewer tools at sub-national level.
According to the research studies of the US centre of Naval
Analyses and Aarhus University of Denmark, by the year 2040 there will not be
enough water in the world to quench thirst of the World population if we
continue with the water-intensive energy production. It recommended that power
production from nuclear power and coal that use excessive amounts of water for
cooling should be replaced by solar and wind energy which virtually needs no
water for power generation. Energy production is by far is the biggest source
of water consumption bigger than agriculture.
Most recently ISIS in Iraq has exploited access to water to
expand its control over territory and to subjugate the population. It has
deliberately cut off water supply to the villages which resisted their advances
and substantially flooded regions to displace thousands of people. In a
chilling prospect it has now gained control over the Mosul Dam which indirectly
sustains lives of 500,000 people in Bagdad. Water has been issue of conflict between
nations. The proposal for construction of Rogun Dam and hydroelectric power
plants in Tajikistan raised tensions in Uzbekistan over the impact of the dam
on its cotton field’s irrigation systems. But in reality as the fresh water
shortages becomes increasingly acute, the threat of violence also increases. In
classical case of Indus water treaty between India and Pakistan, water has
become a source of cooperation.
More than 90% of World’s population lives in countries that share
river and lake basins and 148 countries share at least one trans boundary river
basin. Almost 420 international water agreements were signed between1820 to
2007. Reduced access to water increases social tension, political conflicts and
rapid refugee flow. Lack of access to water can augur conflict and even
threaten peace and stability hence the new mantra seems to be hydro-diplomacy.
It has potential to focus on water as a source of cooperation rather than as a
source of conflict. Hence the immediate challenge for every nation is to reduce
water foot print and to involve in global water conservation practices to avert
the impending global water crisis.
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