A SCARCE OF WATER

Water scarcity has emerged as a major global concern. In this article, I will discuss everything there is to know about water scarcity, ranging from the definition, types, causes, impacts, and ways to manage it. 

WHAT IS WATER SCARCITY?

There are several definitions of water scarcity. United Nations (2018) refers to water scarcity as scarcity in availability of water due to physical shortage, or scarcity in access due to the failure of institutions to ensure a regular supply or due to a lack of adequate infrastructure. 

Also, the Water and Development Research Group (2020a) defines water scarcity as the presence of water that is not enough to meet the needs of everyone, including environmental flows. Therefore, water scarcity is simply a deficiency of water or a lack of safe water supplies.

TYPES/FORMS OF WATER SCARCITY

There are various forms of water scarcity. Risberman (2006) noted that when an individual does not have access to safe and affordable water to satisfy needs for drinking, washing, or livelihoods, the person can be called 'water insecure.' On the other hand, when a large number of people in an area are water insecure for a considerable time, we can name that area as water scarce. 

Furthermore, Dhanasekaran (2019) and Manungufala (2021) classified water scarcity into two types, namely, physical and economic water scarcity. 

Physical Scarcity

This type of water scarcity means some areas lack water. Here, physical access to water is limited. Physical water scarcity is most common in the dry part of the world or arid regions (UNDP 2006). Some symptoms of physical water scarcity can include severe environmental degradation and increasing occurrence of conflicts. However, physical water scarcity is characterized by water shortage and water stress. 

Let me give a brief information about water shortage and water stress.

Water shortage is simply the impact of low water availability per person. In crowded conditions, when a large population has to depend on limited resources, the capacity of the resource might become insufficient to satisfy otherwise small marginal demands, like the dilution of pollutants in a water body, and competition may result in disputes Kummu, Guillaume, Moel, Eisner, FlörkeM, Porkka, Siebert, Veldkamp, and Ward, 2016). Therefore, water shortage can be seen as population-driven scarcity (Water and Development Research Group 2020b).

Water Stress is the impact of high consumption (use) relative to water availability. In a general form, using a large portion of a resource might lead to difficulties in accessing the resource, like side effects, such as environmental and social impacts (Kummu et al. 2016). 

Hence, water stress can be seen as demand-driven scarcity, potentially occurring even if the population is not large enough to cause a shortage (Water and Development Research Group 2020b).

Economic Scarcity

This type of water scarcity is simply an unequal distribution of water resources for many reasons, including political and ethnic contradictions. 

Economic water scarcity is by far the most disturbing form of water scarcity. Why? This is because it is almost entirely a lack of consideration and good governance that allows the condition to continue. 

Economic water scarcity is caused by a lack of investment in water or a lack of human capacity to satisfy the water demand, even in places where water is abundant. However, the symptoms of economic water scarcity may include, inadequate infrastructure development (that is, people have trouble getting enough water for domestic and other purposes), high vulnerability to seasonal fluctuations (floods and drought), and inequitable distribution of water, even when water infrastructure exists (Manungufala, 2021). 

In most countries, economic water scarcity is more prevalent than physical, which is attributable to poor management of available supplies and over-exploitation of water in urban, agricultural, industrial, recreational, and other sectors (Ali, Ali, Quraishi, Kazi, Malik, Sher, and Mujeeb-Kazi, 2014).

THE ISSUE OF WATER SCARCITY

Water occupies 70% of the Earth, and it is easy to think that it will always be in abundance (WWF, 2023). However, freshwater (what we drink, bathe in, irrigate our farm fields) is incredibly rare. Only 3% of the world’s water is freshwater, and two-thirds of that is tucked away in frozen glaciers or unavailable for man's use (WWF, 2023). Hence, about 1.1 billion people worldwide lack access to water, and a total of 2.7 billion people find water scarce for at least one month of the year (WWF, 2023). Mekonnen and Hoekstra (2016) affirmed that two-thirds of the world’s population currently live in areas that experience water scarcity for at least one month a year. Also, nearly half the global population is already living in potential water-scarce areas at least one month per year which could increase to some 4.8–5.7 billion in 2050 (Burek, Satoh, Fischer, Kahil, Scherzer, Tramberend, Nava, and Wada, 2016). However, Burek et al., (2016) noted that about 73% of the affected people live in Asia (69% by 2050). In the same vein, a third of the world’s biggest groundwater systems are already in distress (Richey, Thomas, Lo, Reager, Famiglietti, Voss, Swenson, and Rodellal, 2015).

CAUSES OF WATER SCARCITY

The human population has successfully harnessed many of the world’s natural waterways, that includes, water wells, building dams, vast irrigation systems, and other structures that have allowed civilizations to grow and thrive. Yet, water systems are increasingly stressed, and some lakes, rivers, and aquifers are drying up.

Pollution

Water pollution is a huge problem, especially when you’re looking at areas that don’t necessarily have a good sewage system (Dhanasekaran, 2019). Water pollution comes from many sources like pesticides, oil, carcasses, chemicals, fecal matter, and fertilizers that wash away from untreated human wastewater, farms, and industrial waste. 

Numerous contaminants can drain into subsurface aquifers, so even groundwater is not exempted from pollution. Some effects of water pollution are sudden, as when harmful bacteria from human waste contaminate water and make it unfit to drink or swim in. In other instances, like toxic substances from industrial processes, it may take years to build up in the environment and food chain before their effects are fully recognized (WWF, 2023). Also, water pollution affects the entire biosphere plants, and organisms living in these bodies of water (Dhanasekaran, 2019).  

Agriculture

WWF (2023) records that agriculture makes use of 70% of the world’s accessible freshwater, however, 60% of this freshwater is usually misused as a result of inefficient application methods, leaky irrigation systems, as well as the cultivation of crops that are too thirsty for the environment in which they are grown (WWF, 2023). This wasteful use of water is drying out underground aquifers, lakes, and rivers. 

Many countries that produce large amounts of food, including Spain, India, Australia, China, and the United States, have reached or are close to reaching their water resource limits. In addition to these thirsty crops are the fact that agriculture also generates considerable freshwater pollution, that is, through fertilizers as well as pesticides, all of which affect both humans and other species.

Government policies

In some countries, specifically those with dictatorships, the use of water may be strictly controlled by those in power, thereby, causing a scarcity for those who may be located in those areas of the world. These governments use it as a source of control over those that they are governing, which can be a huge problem (Dhanasekaran, 2019). 

Population Growth

In the last 50 years, the human population has doubled. This rapid growth is usually accompanied by economic development and industrialization, which has transformed water ecosystems around the world and resulted in a massive loss of biodiversity. 

Today, 41% of the world’s population lives in river basins that are under water stress (WWF, 2023). Concern about water availability grows as freshwater use continues at unsustainable levels. Furthermore, these large populations also need food, shelter, and clothing, thus, resulting in additional pressure on freshwater through the production of commodities and energy.

Climate Change

As humans continue to pump more carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, patterns of weather and water continue to change around the world. Droughts become more common in some places, and floods in other places. Also, glaciers and snowpacks will disappear in some areas, hence, affecting the freshwater supplies to those downstream communities. These changes will combine to make less water available for agriculture, energy generation, cities, and ecosystems around the world (WWF, 2023). 

IMPACTS OF WATER SCARCITY

Below are the impacts of water scarcity:

Damaged Ecosystems

When water becomes scarce, natural landscapes frequently suffer. The Aral Sea in central Asia was once the world’s fourth-largest freshwater lake (WWF, 2023). However, in just three decades, the Aral Sea has lost an area of the size of Lake Michigan. It is now as salty as an ocean due to the excessive pollution and the diversion of water for power generation and irrigation. As the sea decreased, it left polluted land behind. This ecological disaster has caused food shortages, as well as an increase in infant mortality and a fall in life expectancy for the surrounding population.

Hunger

Non-availability of water can lead to low production, hence, hunger and poverty. As a result of a scarcity of water, animals will also die, which will result in a lack of meat as well. Water scarcity, in short, causes starvation to occur as a group for both people and animals that are located in the area (Dhanasekaran, 2019).  

Lack of Drinking Water

Clean freshwater is an essential ingredient for a healthy human life, but 1.1 billion people lack access to water, and 2.7 billion experience water scarcity at least one month a year (WWF, 2023). When waters run dry, people can’t get enough to drink, wash, or feed crops and economic decline will occur. Also, inadequate sanitation, which is a problem for 2.4 billion people can lead to deadly diarrheal diseases, including cholera and typhoid fever, and other water-borne illnesses (WWF, 2023).

Poverty

People who are dealing with water scarcity are often stuck in poverty (Dhanasekaran, 2019). Water is the biggest resource to enhance the growth and economy of every nation, hence, it is seen as a symptom of poverty. Inadequate water and sanitation are thus regarded as characteristics of less developed countries.

Disappearing Wetlands

Since 1900, over half of the world's wetlands have been lost. It is recorded that some of the most productive habitats on the planet, wetlands, support high concentrations of animals, including mammals, birds, fish, and invertebrates, and also serve as nurseries for many of these species (WWF, 2023). Wetlands promote rice agriculture, which is a staple in the diets of half of the world's population. Also, wetlands provide a variety of ecosystem services to humanity, such as water filtering, storm protection, flood management, and recreation. Other impacts of water scarcity may include sanitation issues and an increase in human conflicts.

REDUCING WATER SCARCITY

Here are some of the ways you can adopt to reduce water scarcity:

In the industrial sector, stir up recycling and the treatment of industrial wastewater. This recycling and treatment can be done through subsidies and regulations. Also, encourage the development of new technologies that consume less water. 

In the domestic sector, the introduction of compulsory rainwater harvesting in cities should be adopted. Also, making people aware of water scarcity and how to manage it (conserve water) should be adopted (Dhanasekaran, 2019).

Other ways of reducing water scarcity include:

1. Protection of water from pollution.
2. Redistribution of water.
3. Renovation of traditional water sources.
4. Effective use of soil water reserves.
5. Contour farming and contour plowing.
6. Increase forest cover.
7. Flood management (Balasubramanian, 2019).

CONCLUSION

Nothing is more important to life on Earth than water, likewise our ability to manage and deal with water scarcity. Water is scarce everywhere, from Central Australia to Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia's teeming megacities. People are battling to find clean water for drinking, cooking, bathing, hand-washing, and producing food. Hence, we must know about the scarcity of water and how to tackle it to ensure our survival.

REFERENCES

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