Water Shortage & Pollution
 
DROUGHT & DESERTIFICATION
  • Within 50 years, there could be irreversible drought (permanent desertification) in the southwestern US, Southeast Asia, Eastern South America, Western Australia, Southern Europe, Southern Africa, and northern Africa. 1(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA), 2009)
  • The percentage of Earth's land area gripped by severe drought more than doubled from the 1970s to the early 2000s.2 (Dai, 2004)
  • Examples of recent regional droughts:
    • China’s northern region, where 10-meter deep cracks began to appear in fields. Without drastic changes in water use, there could be tens of millions of environmental refugees from China appearing within the next ten years.3 (Sept 2010)
    • Having just faced historic floods in 2009 due to a record rise in Amazon River water levels, several communities in Brazil’s Amazonas state have been isolated by drought and can no longer be accessed by boat, only by foot through the forest. 4,5(Sept 2010)
    • Iraq, China, Chad, Australia, Mongolia, Africa’s Sahel region, among others, have been suffering drought conditions in 2010.6,7,8,9,10,11

SHORTAGE: WATER
  • The world's rivers are in a “crisis state” on a global scale. Water supplies for nearly 80% of the world’s populations are highly threatened. Nearly a third of sources studied are also highly jeopardized by biodiversity loss.22,23 (US researchers Professor Peter McIntyre of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and City College of New York modeler Charles Vörösmarty)
  • Recent regional reports on water shortage:
    • The Middle East’s water supply has shrunk to a quarter of its 1960 level.24 (Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED), 2010)
    • The Tigris and Euphrates rivers dropped to less than a third of their normal levels due to drought.25 (UN Inter-Agency Information and Analysis Unit (IAU))
    • UK’s increasingly hotter, drier summers could cause extreme water shortages as river flows are reduced by 80%.26,27 (Britain’s Government Office for Science, 2010)
  • Sources of groundwater for wells, which support half our world’s population, are running dry.28 (Lance Endersbee, Monasy University, Australia)
  • 1.1 billion people lack access to safe drinking water.29 (World Health Organization, 2005)
Latest News
Brazilian scientists discover that banana peels help to purify water. - 18 Apr 2011
Dwindling fresh water supplies in California, USA. - 20 Mar 2011
Ancient mega-drought parched Africa and Asia. - 17 Mar 2011
Flood and water catastrophes loom ahead. - 16 Mar 2011
Climate change linked to harmful water-borne diseases. - 15 Mar 2011
Arsenic and other toxins in Âu Lạc's (Vietnam) groundwater. - 24 Feb 2011
Relentless drought puts Chinese at risk. - 20 Feb 2011
China experiences severe drought. - 28 Jan 2011
Somalia's drought results in fatalities and forced migration. - 26 Jan 2011
Syria launches model water scarcity park. - 24 Jan 2011
China's Shandong province suffers drought. - 9 Jan 2011
Experts warn of widespread desertification threat. - 30 Dec 2010
Thousands endangered by Somali drought. - 22 Dec 2010
Water shortage taking toll in Egypt. - 6 Dec 2010
Central China water levels near record lows due to drought. - 5 Dec 2010
more  
76
Experts warn of severe water shortages by 2080 - 27 Nov 2008
75
Freshwater pollution by nitrogen, phosphorous costs U.S. $4.3 bln annually - 19 Nov 2008
74
Himalayan glaciers may disappear by 2035. - 15 Nov 2008
73
20,000-40,000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of beef
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72
Are we short of water,food?
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71
Chilean glacier will vanish in 50 years, says study - 5 Nov 2008
70
Bolivia Declares Drought Emergency - 4 Nov 2008
69
Report warns of future environmental challenges for Arab countries - 1 Nov 2008
68
Canadian province struggles with disappearing water sources. - 31 Oct 2008
67
Sindh faces 35% water shortage - 25 Oct 2008
66
'Water Footprint' Promotes Sustainable And Fair Use Of Water Resources - 25 Oct 2008
65
Global warming heightens water disparities. - 24 Oct 2008
64
Australia faces its hottest drought. - 17 Oct 2008
63
Climate change may dry Britain’s rivers. - 13 Oct 2008
62
Weather experts say "choose veggies over meat to save water".- 30 Sep 2008
61
One factory farm creates more water pollution than the city of Houston, Texas.- 30 Sep 2008
60
Argentina endures its worst drought of the century. - 29 Sep 2008
59
Global water supplies are running dry. - 25 Sep 2008
58
Thousands leave central Somalia seeking water. - 23 Sep 2008
57
New Zealand glaciers set record low in total ice mass. - 18 Sep 2008
56
Over-exploitation of underground water is harming the environment. - 4 Sep 2008
55
Crops may be lost to drought in West Java. - 29 Aug 2008
54
Himalayan glaciers drastically affected by warming climate. - 27 Aug 2008
53
Drought emergency issued in Argentina. - 25 Aug 2008
52
Drought in Western United States potentially catastrophic. - 22 Aug 2008
51
Freshwater fish among most endangered. - 19 Aug 2008
50
The world’s second largest fresh water lake under threat. - 6 Aug 2008
49
Global warming threatens to destroy the Thames River system. - 4 Aug 2008
48
Arctic communities’ water supplies affected by global warming.- 28 July 2008
47
Global warming in Australia affecting over a million people. - 22 July 2008
First  1  2  3  4  5  6  Last
 
The 2009 World Water Week Conference: Preserve Our Precious Water Resources
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The World City Water Forum 2009
Part 1
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Part 2
 
Make Every Drop Count: The Water Footprint Network (In Dutch)
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Drying Rivers, Lakes and Reservoirs
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20,000-40,000 liters of water to produce 1 kg of beef
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Are we short of water,food?
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