Opinion: Climate change: water scarcity is fuelling new crises across AsiaAs climate change depletes freshwater resources critical for human and...
Published on by Water Network Research, Official research team of The Water Network
As climate change depletes freshwater resources critical for human and ecological survival, the world faces an escalating water crisis. Droughts, heatwaves and glacial melt are exacerbating water scarcity globally. According to Unicef, more than 2 billion people already lack access to safe drinking water and 4 billion face severe water scarcity for at least one month per year. If this continues, half of the world’s population could live in areas experiencing water scarcity by 2025.
COP27, last year’s UN climate change conference, missed its chance to prioritise the urgent climate adaptation and mitigation policies needed to prevent worsening water security worldwide. This negligence leaves vulnerable regions at risk of humanitarian disaster.
With COP28 on the horizon, the interlinked challenges of climate change and global water scarcity must be made a priority before the crisis becomes irreversible. The future habitability of the planet hangs in the balance.
China faces an acute water crisis that could jeopardise the country’s economic and social stability. Major rivers such as the Yellow River are drying up, exposing riverbeds and disrupting agriculture. Melting glaciers, falling aquifers, pollution and rising demand are depleting China’s water resources. By 2050, China’s water deficit could reach 400 billion cubic metres.
Attached link
https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3242192/climate-change-water-scarcity-fuelling-new-crises-across-asiaTaxonomy
- Climate Change
- Climate Change