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articlehighlights

A global initiative to address water shortages is urgent because:

• about 1/3 of world’s population does not have enough drinking water
• almost half of world’s land is without water
• converting arid land to fertile land can reduce global warming
• better technology would give us greater access to freshwater

February 2001

Note: Because some of the information in this article may be outdated, it has been archived.

Editor’s Note: A major report, “Global Environment Outlook 3,” by the United Nations Environment Programme (May 2002), cautions that without action more than 70 per cent of the earth’s land surface could be affected by the impact of development within 30 years and more than half of all people could be living in severely water-stressed areas by 2032. The author’s call for action to address freshwater shortages is now even more urgent.

Science is not giving the issue of water technologies enough attention. I would like to make a plea for an international facility for research and technological development to increase our share of global waters.

Shortages of freshwater are truly a global problem, particularly felt today in the dryland regions but it will be felt tomorrow worldwide. At the present time, 76% of the world’s population has a specific water availability of less than 5,000 m³ per year per capita and 35% of that figure has very low, or catastrophically low water, supplies. This situation will deteriorate further in the beginning of the new century — by 2025 most of the Earth’s population will be living under the conditions of low or catastrophically low water supplies, at 1000 m³ per year per capita.¹

How much water is available?

A new appraisal shows that of the total 1386 million km³ of water (Earth’s hydrosphere)²:

• 97.5% is saltwater, e.g., oceans, seas
• 2.5% is freshwater (54.65 million km³)

Freshwater comes from different sources:

• The greater portion of the freshwater (68.7%: 37.4 million km³) is in the form of permanent ice (Arctic, Antarctic, alpine mountain ranges, etc.)
• 29.9 % of the freshwater (16.24 million km³) is ground water, mostly deep seated
• Only 0.26% (or, 64,000 km3)of the total freshwater is in lakes, river systems, etc. and it is accessible for our needs. In fact, the total water withdrawals worldwide is less than 5000 km³ or about one tenth of the total river discharge — a mere drop of Earth’s waters.²

How can we address freshwater shortages?

The gap between withdrawal (5,000 km³) and availability (64,000 km³) is the subject of schemes to address water shortage, river control and the like. National and international institutions are capable of designing and implementing such schemes to increase our very limited share of freshwater. Regional and intra-basin consultations, negotiations, conventions, and agreements all move within the space between withdrawal and possibly available. This possibly available is nearly 0.1% of global freshwater.

We need to extend the scope of our ambition so as to take a less austere bite of the millions of cubic kilometers of global waters. To do this, three areas of technological advancement need to be addressed with a view to make the tapping of additional portions of water economically acceptable. We must develop:

• Technologies for desalination of salt and brackish water. At present, there are technologies to provide freshwater for municipal use, especially in coastal areas. But we need technological breakthroughs, including non-conventional sources of energy, that would make the cost of desalinated water acceptable for agriculture and industry. For example, present desalination technologies do not allow the use of desalinated water in agriculture, so there is a need to explore options to make the water economically usable.

• Development of pumping technologies for hauling deeply seated groundwater that would make it cost-effective for use in agriculture and industry.³

• Development of means for transporting (towing) bodies of ice from northern and southern oceans to territories of water deficit.

A world facility, supported by an international centre for water technologies or an international programme with a network of regional centres, needs to be established. This facility must be provided with means and with generous resources that will enable it to deliver the required results.

The first step is for the international community to recognize water shortage as a global issue. The shortage is clearly evident today in arid zones of the world (some 40% of the land) and will, during the next century, be evident worldwide. If additional freshwater resources were available today, we would be able to:

• expand food-producing land, thus ensuring food security for some 3 billion people who lack this security.⁴
• expand the global sinks for greenhouse gases and thus delay the threat of global warming, a pending hazard in the second half of the next century.

Editor’s Note (11/02): According to 2002 USA data and estimates, the cost for desalinated water in coastal areas varies. One factor for lowering costs is to build a desalination facility next to a power plant, allowing it to share water intake and discharge pipes. For example, Tampa Bay Water’s desalinated water facility in Florida, to be launched in January 2003, will be the world’s cheapest at $1.88 per thousand gallons because of its proximity to a power plant. The cost in Tampa for traditional fresh water supplies now ranges from $1.50 to $1.75 per thousand gallons. In contrast, Marin County’s proposed facility in California would supply desalinated water at a higher cost, $5 per thousand gallons, because the county has no power plants. The estimated cost for desalinated water in some other coastal areas in California ranges from $2.63 to $3.37 per thousand gallons. (Source: Marin County Water District, Tampa Bay Water, and International Desalination Association in USA Today, 10/22/02.)

© 2001, American Institute of Biological Sciences. Educators have permission to reprint articles for classroom use; other users, please contact editor@actionbioscience.org for reprint permission. See reprint policy.

International Water Facility

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Safeguarding our water

An article in Scientific American (2001) provides a good summary of freshwater supply problems and examines the pros and cons of various solutions.
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?articleID=00029A3F-117A-1C71-84A9809EC588EF21

Population Reports “Solutions for a Water-Short World”

This publication provides a comprehensive discussion of water supply issues as they relate to the world’s increasing population. Seven chapters of information, including figures and tables, include highlights such as “how is water used?” and “water-short countries growing.” http://www.k4health.org/pr/m14edsum.shtml

Water Conserve

Water conservation portal and search engine. http://www.waterconserve.info/

Desalination

• » The Organization of American States provides an easy-to-read description of desalination and how it’s done using reverse osmosis. http://www.oas.org/usde/publications/Unit/oea59e/ch20.htm#TopOfPage
• » An explanation of current desalination technologies for advanced readers.
  http://www.brighthub.com/engineering/mechanical/articles/78300.aspx

Global Environment Outlook 3

The UN Environment Programme released this major report in May 2002. The report collated the thoughts of more than 1,000 contributors to assess the environmental impact of the last 30 years and outline policy ideas for the next three decades. It concluded that without action, the world may experience severe environmental problems within 30 years. The entire report can be read online (or purchased) and “Chapter 2: Freshwater” focuses on potential drinking water shortages.
http://www.unep.org/geo/geo3/index.htm

World’s water

This site is “dedicated to providing up-to-date water information, data, and web connections to organizations, institutions, and individuals working on a wide range of global freshwater problems and solutions.” http://www.worldwater.org

Fresh Water

Everything you want to know about fresh water in an easy-to-read format, from Environment Canada. The second link shows you the many steps you can take to help clean the air, save energy, conserve water and prevent pollution.
http://www.ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=65EAA3F5-1
http://www.ec.gc.ca/default.asp?lang=En&n=8B2F9F48-1

Desertification of Arid Lands

This in-depth report (1986) covers the history, extent, and magnitude of desertification in Africa, Asia, Australia, and North and South America.
http://www.ciesin.org/docs/002-193/002-193.html

Give Water A Hand

Program for youth groups or classes to help kids take action to improve local water quality. Young people team up with educators, natural resource experts, and committed community members to study water issues and take action.
http://www.uwex.edu/erc/gwah/

Water Saver Home

The site describes itself as a virtual encyclopedia of water saving tips particularly useful if there is a drought affecting customers in your local service area. This website was developed for home residents anywhere in the nation by the California Urban Water Conservation Council.
http://www.h2ouse.org

The Groundwater Foundation

This nonprofit organization is “dedicated to educating and motivating people to care for and about groundwater.” Check out the community service project ideas, learn how to organize a water festival or educational summer camp, and get lots of tips on groundwater protection. http://www.groundwater.org/ta/ta.html

Water: Use it wisely

Water saving tips, 100 ways to save water, and links to your local conservationist.
http://www.wateruseitwisely.com/

Become a FIELD partner

Financial Information Engine on Land Degradation (FIELD) collects information to help combat global desertification. FIELD-partners (organizations, professional groups, or countries) can help “by providing information, thematic expertise, technical collaboration, and/or co-funding.” http://www.global-mechanism.org/partners