ISSN 1993-8616
2009 - Number 3
Troubled water
© Rodney Dekker
Laanecoorie reservoir, Bendigo (Australia)
Increased demand, waste and insufficient investment: water shortage may come sooner than we think. Although water covers three-quarters of the world’s surface, only 0.0075% of this immense volume is available for humanity’s use. Some countries have already reached the limits of their resources.
We must act now, warns the just-launched United Nations World Water Development Report, “Water in a changing world”, which assesses the global water situation. The UNESCO Courier examines some strategies for better management. Read the editorial
The water we eat
The water we drink is less of a problem than the water we eat. Agriculture absorbs 70% of this resource, which is both omnipresent and scarce. Growing plants that are resistant to drought and salt, desalination and storage are among the solutions recommended by experts to deal with water shortages. More
Blue Scorpions against water corruption
Zero tolerance is the motto of the “Blue Scorpions”, a special unit created within the South African Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (DWAF) to fight water related crimes. With severe water shortages, South Africa is susceptible to water corruption, but is tackling it more effectively than most of its neighbours. More
The Yangtze or a journey through time
On the banks of Asia’s longest river, the Yangtze, which winds some 6000 km across China, yaks and yurts cohabit with cars and high-rise buildings. Source of life to six million Chinese, it is undoubtedly also a source of development - as long as the means are there to make use of it. More
Australia’s water revolution
Returning an over-allocated system to sustainability while combating the harmful effects of climate change and drought – these are the challenges taken on by the new Murray-Darling Basin Authority, founded in 2008. In seven years the annual inflow of one of Australia’s largest river basins has dropped nearly 80%. More
Water in a Changing World
We are not experiencing a global water crisis, says Olcay Ünver, coordinator of the World Water Assessment Programme (WWAP). But while water crises remain local, climate change is global, and we have to find global solutions for a problem that threatens the future of the planet. More
