Climate Change, an Exacerbating Factor Climate change is exacerbating this crisis. Over 30% of the global glacier mass has melted since 1970, and the amounts of water from seasonal snowmelt are constantly decreasing, affecting hundreds of millions of people who depend on these resources. „The consequences are visible on every inhabited continent, even if not all countries are individually affected by a water shortage,” explained Kaveh Madani, an environmental science specialist and author of the report, to AFP.„A Point of No Return” „But this warns us that many systems worldwide are in a bankruptcy situation” and that a policy review is necessary,” emphasized Kaveh Madani, the director of the institute that produced the report. „Let us acknowledge this harsh reality now, before causing irreversible damage,” he added. The report, based on existing data and statistics and a peer-reviewed version, „highlights a harsh reality: the global water crisis has reached a point of no return,” said Tim Wainwright, CEO of the non-governmental organization WaterAid. However, some scientists not involved in the report’s production caution that the situation varies considerably from region to region and that a too general global assessment could overshadow progress made at the local level.
Declining Aquifers and "Day Zero" Cities Another concerning indicator is the long-term decline of the main aquifers: about 70% of those used for drinking water and irrigation are constantly decreasing. At the same time, "Day Zero" crises – moments when water demand exceeds available resources, forcing authorities to drastically ration consumption – are becoming more frequent in major cities.Climate Change, an Exacerbating Factor Climate change is exacerbating this crisis. Over 30% of the global glacier mass has melted since 1970, and the amounts of water from seasonal snowmelt are constantly decreasing, affecting hundreds of millions of people who depend on these resources. "The consequences are visible on every inhabited continent, even if not all countries are individually affected by a water shortage," explained Kaveh Madani, an environmental science specialist and author of the report, to AFP."A Point of No Return" "But this warns us that many systems worldwide are in a bankruptcy situation" and that a policy review is necessary," emphasized Kaveh Madani, the director of the institute that produced the report. "Let us acknowledge this harsh reality now, before causing irreversible damage," he added. The report, based on existing data and statistics and a peer-reviewed version, "highlights a harsh reality: the global water crisis has reached a point of no return," said Tim Wainwright, CEO of the non-governmental organization WaterAid. However, some scientists not involved in the report's production caution that the situation varies considerably from region to region and that a too general global assessment could overshadow progress made at the local level.
"A Point of No Return" "But this warns us that many systems worldwide are in a bankruptcy situation" and that a policy review is necessary," emphasized Kaveh Madani, the director of the institute that produced the report. "Let us acknowledge this harsh reality now, before causing irreversible damage," he added. The report, based on existing data and statistics and a peer-reviewed version, "highlights a harsh reality: the global water crisis has reached a point of no return," said Tim Wainwright, CEO of the non-governmental organization WaterAid. However, some scientists not involved in the report's production caution that the situation varies considerably from region to region and that a too general global assessment could overshadow progress made at the local level.
What Does "Water Bankruptcy" Mean Water bankruptcy describes a situation in which long-term water consumption exceeds resource renewal and causes such severe damage to nature that previous levels cannot be reasonably restored. The consequences are already visible: the retreat of large lakes, the increase in the number of major rivers and streams that no longer reach the sea at certain times of the year, and the accelerated disappearance of wetlands. Approximately 410 million hectares – an area comparable to that of the European Union – have disappeared in the last 50 years.Declining Aquifers and "Day Zero" Cities Another concerning indicator is the long-term decline of the main aquifers: about 70% of those used for drinking water and irrigation are constantly decreasing. At the same time, "Day Zero" crises – moments when water demand exceeds available resources, forcing authorities to drastically ration consumption – are becoming more frequent in major cities.Climate Change, an Exacerbating Factor Climate change is exacerbating this crisis. Over 30% of the global glacier mass has melted since 1970, and the amounts of water from seasonal snowmelt are constantly decreasing, affecting hundreds of millions of people who depend on these resources. "The consequences are visible on every inhabited continent, even if not all countries are individually affected by a water shortage," explained Kaveh Madani, an environmental science specialist and author of the report, to AFP."A Point of No Return" "But this warns us that many systems worldwide are in a bankruptcy situation" and that a policy review is necessary," emphasized Kaveh Madani, the director of the institute that produced the report. "Let us acknowledge this harsh reality now, before causing irreversible damage," he added. The report, based on existing data and statistics and a peer-reviewed version, "highlights a harsh reality: the global water crisis has reached a point of no return," said Tim Wainwright, CEO of the non-governmental organization WaterAid. However, some scientists not involved in the report's production caution that the situation varies considerably from region to region and that a too general global assessment could overshadow progress made at the local level.
Climate Change, an Exacerbating Factor Climate change is exacerbating this crisis. Over 30% of the global glacier mass has melted since 1970, and the amounts of water from seasonal snowmelt are constantly decreasing, affecting hundreds of millions of people who depend on these resources. "The consequences are visible on every inhabited continent, even if not all countries are individually affected by a water shortage," explained Kaveh Madani, an environmental science specialist and author of the report, to AFP."A Point of No Return" "But this warns us that many systems worldwide are in a bankruptcy situation" and that a policy review is necessary," emphasized Kaveh Madani, the director of the institute that produced the report. "Let us acknowledge this harsh reality now, before causing irreversible damage," he added. The report, based on existing data and statistics and a peer-reviewed version, "highlights a harsh reality: the global water crisis has reached a point of no return," said Tim Wainwright, CEO of the non-governmental organization WaterAid. However, some scientists not involved in the report's production caution that the situation varies considerably from region to region and that a too general global assessment could overshadow progress made at the local level.
After decades of overexploitation, pollution, and increasingly intense climate pressures, the world has entered an era of "global water bankruptcy," warns a report by the United Nations. Water reserves in rivers, lakes, and aquifers are depleting at a much faster rate than nature's capacity to replenish them, the document shows. "The terms 'water stress' and 'water crisis' are no longer sufficient to describe the new global realities," the report from the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment, and Health, considered the UN's think tank on water issues, cited by AFP, states. According to researchers, these concepts were "formulated as warnings about a still avoidable future," but in the meantime, the world has entered a "new phase," in which numerous water systems have irreversibly degraded. For this reason, the report proposes a new term: "water bankruptcy."