For many us, the simple act of brushing our teeth, taking a shower, or pouring a glass of water is something we take for granted.  Yet climate change, an accelerating global population, and melting glaciers are all indicators that water, already scare in many regions of the world, will grow even more so in the coming years.  Already the total mass left in the planet's glaciers is thought to be at the lowest level for thousands of years. 

Scientists say that glacier melting is one the worst threats to the world's water supply because it raises the risk of sudden avalanches of rocks and soil from the ice which can threaten the livelihoods of the billions of people who depend on melt water from glaciers to feed rivers.  And glacier melting will add to already rising sea levels.

Glacier melting is largely attributed to global warming; in 2007 the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change predicted that if current trends continue, 80 percent of Himalayan glaciers will have disappeared in 30 years, possibly earlier.  These glaciers feed the main river systems in Asia and are depended on by at least 40 percent of the population who live in northern India, Bhutan, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, China, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam. 

Scarcity, Safety, Climate, and Solutions

Even where there is water it is often not clean enough to drink.  In addition to melting glaciers climate scientists foresee fewer storms in a warmer world that can overload drainage systems and expose more people to unsafe water.

Water scarcity is most acute in arid climates affected by droughts, the population boom, and economic development.  It is estimated that by 2025, 1,800 million people will be living in areas with critical water scarcity, and two-thirds of the world population might well be suffering the effects of a growing lack of clean drinking water. 

According to Water Partners International, already each year more than five million people die from water-related illness, and 96 percent of those water-related deaths occur in developing nations.  Lack of sanitation is the world's largest cause of infection.

Environmentalists worldwide are urging politicians to invest the money it takes in clean energy to slow the pending global water shortage of water.  Measure would include curbing greenhouse gases, cutting emissions, and investing in better waste management. 

Specialists with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations are calling for solutions through integrated water resources management, water harvesting, use of non-conventional water, modernization of irrigation systems, on-farm water management, water-quality management, agriculture-wetlands interactions, drought-impact mitigation, national water strategies and policies, and river basin and other water management systems.

Israel and Solutions to Salinity

One arid country overcoming the obstacle of water scarcity is Israel.  Its ability to supply its citizens with fresh drinking water incorporates a wide variety of solutions, among them:

• Israel has a 75 percent water-recycling rate, making it the world's number one water recycler. The second-largest water recycler is Spain, with a rate of 12 percent.
• The Israeli-invented drip irrigation system has helped achieve one of the highest water efficiency rates in the world.
• The world's largest Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) desalination plant is in Israel, producing 100 million m3 at the cost of approximately $0.52 per m3 of water, making it also the most-cost efficient plant of its kind.
• Israel creates close to 25 percent of its consumed water.
• The country's total water consumption has remained the same since the 1960, despite a growing population, increasing water requirements, and growing agricultural production.

Israel has demonstrated the ability to adapt economically and socially to overcome many of water scarcity issues.

Nepal's Natural Water Treatment Plant

An excellent example of a community-supported water project is the water treatment plant was completed at Sunga in Madhyapur Thimi, Nepal in September 2006.  The plant was built with financial support from the United Nations Human Settlements Program, UN-Habitat's Water for Asian Cities Programme, the Asian Development Bank, Water Aid, and technical support from the Environment and Public Health Organization.  The municipal wastewater serves as the main source of irrigation for farmers in this region. 

One of the largest of its kind, the Sunga Wastewater Treatment Plant was constructed as a pilot program to demonstrate a completely community-managed municipal water treatment plant that treats sewage from 200 households.  The local municipality provided the land for the plant and contributes towards its operation and maintenance.  This operation, based on reed-bed constructed wetlands, demonstrates how wastewater can truly be managed at the local level. 

The plant operates simply and effectively and has shown to have remove more than 97 percent of the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) and chemical oxygen demand (CDO), and 98 percent of total suspended solids (TSS), meeting national standards for wastewater discharge into inland surface waters.

Maximizing Irrigation in Afghanistan

In Afghanistan, where the economy has always been based on agriculture, decades of war have destroyed much of the country's irrigation and other water supply systems.  Irrigated water is necessary for Afghanistan to continue to produce high-value crops including barley, maize, rice, corn, cotton, fruit, and vegetables.  The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has been working to help rebuild Afghanistan's irrigation systems.

A nationwide Emergency Irrigation Rehabilitation Project (EIRP) started in June 2004 with support from several agencies including the Ministry of Energy and Water and FAO, with funding from World Bank.  Today, 1174 hydrological stations are under installation across Afghanistan with a network of stations to measure rainfall, relative humidity, water level, water quality, temperature and sunshine.  In northern Afghanistan, the EIRP is completing a feasibility study for a Lower Kocha irrigation and Hydropower Project. 

Additionally, World Bank has agreed to provide additional funding for a follow-up phase that will target restoring uncompleted bulk water supply systems such as dams and reservoirs, the installation and operation of hydro-meteorological networks, and preparation of river basins water management.

Related Reading:
Oceans: The Key to Understanding Our Climate
Wastewater to Feed the World?

Image Credits:
Atmoz.org
UN Habitat
Geology News
Hope Afghanistan