An interview with a specialist of droughts happening in cape Town
Answers
I think there is no single challenge facing global water security. We are dealing with multiple and interlinked issues and problems but let me put it this way. The greatest challenge facing global water security is global transformation. The world is changing as we look on and this is happening at a very fast pace and impacting heavily on available natural resources, including fresh water. Take population growth for example. Increasing demands for water, food and energy from growing populations is placing increasing pressures on the amount of readily available fresh water. The estimates vary but there is sufficient reason to believe that global population will reach 9 billion by 2050. This is expected to push water demand upward to anything above 55% in many part of the world.
Correspondingly, energy needs are projected to increase by 80%, and the world’s food demand will rise by as much as 60% according to some reliable estimates compiled by FAO. In addition, urbanisation, economic growth, poverty reduction and changing life styles towards more affluent and resource intensive societies will all impact water security in addition toy energy and food production, which as you know also depend on water supply. Water scarcity will be further exacerbated by increasing land degradation, water quality challenges and the growing influence of climate change, which will affect both demand and supply in way we have never experienced before. Already many parts of the world are becoming increasingly vulnerable to floods and droughts, with accompanying water shortages and constraints on fresh water resources. In addition, the evolution of production mechanisms towards more resource-intensive technologies is intensifying demands on natural resources, including freshwater systems