The UN World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on Tuesday said large areas of the globe recorded drier than normal conditions in 2021, with cascading effects on economies, ecosystems and daily lives, reported The Africa News.
In its first annual State of Global Water Resources report, the WMO said all regions of the world experienced water extremes, both floods and droughts, and billions of people had insufficient access to freshwater.
The report published on Tuesday assesses the effects of changes in the climate, environment, and society on the Earth’s freshwater resources, so that they can be managed better. Its aim is to support the monitoring and management of global freshwater resources in conditions of growing demand and limited supplies.
“The impacts of climate change are often felt through water — more intense and frequent droughts, more extreme flooding, more erratic seasonal rainfall and accelerated melting of glaciers — with cascading effects on economies, ecosystems and all aspects of our daily lives,” said WMO head Petteri Taalas.
Taalas said understanding of changes in the quality, quantity and distribution of freshwater resources across the globe is very crucial. He added that the WMO report aims to fill that knowledge gap and provide a concise overview of water availability in different parts of the world in the next five years.
The information will help in climate adaptation and mitigation investments as well as the United Nations campaign to give early warnings of hazards such as floods and droughts.
The report said that terrestrial water storage depleted more than it grew. Patagonia, the Ganges and Indus headwaters, and the southwestern part of the United States are some of the negative hotspots.
As per the report, some 3.6 billion people face insufficient access to fresh water for at least one month per year. The number if expected to rise to more than five billion by 2050.
The UN claims that 74 percent of all-natural disasters that took place between 2001 and 2018 were water-related.
