Today more than a billion people live in water-scarce regions | Photo Credit: Indiatimes

The world runs, not on fuel but on water; but clean, reliable water supply that is vital for industry, agriculture, and energy production faces formidable threats. The world is spending a bomb on devising methods to clean water and have access to potable water.

Today, more than a billion people live in water-scarce regions, and as many as 3.5 billion could experience water scarcity by 2025. Climate change is poised to shift precipitation patterns and speed glacial melt, altering water supplies and intensifying floods and drought.

With long spells of drought plaguing many regions in the world, some countries are already beginning to face the brunt for human devastation of the most precious natural resource.

India

India is one of the most water-challenged countries in the world, from its deepest aquifers to its largest rivers. With 54 percent of India’s total area facing high to extremely high stress, almost 600 million people are at higher risk of surface-water supply disruptions.

Groundwater levels are falling and most of its water resources are often severely polluted.

The future may only be worse, with the national supply predicted to fall 50 percent below demand by 2030.

South Africa

Cape Town, once a haven of abundant natural water is faced with the prospect of becoming the world’s first major city to run out of water within the next three months. This comes after a three-year-long drought in the region, causing water supplies to drop dramatically.

The city’s water supplies are now so low that in late April it will declare “Day Zero”, the day when its reservoirs fall below a combined capacity of 13.5%.

Brazil

This comes as a surprise, since Brazil has nearly a fifth of the world’s water reserves. Sadly, the Cantareira water system that facilitated Brazil’s water supply is 75% empty, and may run dry very soon. Given the current rate of deforestation, forest degradation and changes in rainfall patterns, a major water crisis could hit the nation in the next four decades.

Cambodia

More than 4 million people in Cambodia lack access to safe water. In Cambodia, the main source of drinking water is from rain fall and water is collected in huge cement tanks during the monsoon. The lack of appropriate infrastructure to collect excess rain water has led to a scarcity. The nationals spend a staggering 108% of their income just to buy water.

Iran

Iran’s largest source of water, Lake Urmia, has dried up. Though the lake is being protected by the Iranian Department of Environment, and many other measures are in place to help facilitate water in the city, the area is still plagued by drought. This scarcity is now being termed a national issue and the president is promising people a better tomorrow.

Madagascar

In Madagascar, over 11 million people do not have access to safe water. Women and kids in the region spend more than 3 hours in a day trying to fetch water and even then, all they get is some yellow-looking liquid.

China

China is plagued by a growing water security crisis and its current solutions are far from sufficient. According to China's State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) in 2006, 60% of the country's rivers suffer from pollution to such an extent that they cannot be safely used as drinking water sources. Continuous emissions from manufacturing is the largest contributor to lowered drinking quality across the People’s Republic.

In China, the problem isn't just the pollution that has contaminated much of northern China's groundwater. An unimaginable amount of China’s wetlands were lost to their dramatic growth in infrastructure and the challenges of global warming. China has compromised on 340,000 sq km of its wetlands since 2003, leaving a lot of people confused about a reliable source of water. These wetland wipe-outs could mean deaths, disease, extreme poverty, light outs, and a lot more.

Singapore

Singapore has no direct source of water; the island uses recycled water through desalinization and artificial reservoirs to meet its water needs. Singapore maintains one of the world’s most successful water-supply strategies, but due to climate change the level at the reservoir has dropped to an unprecedented level.

Qatar

Qatar’s groundwater is totally unfit for drinking and crops, according to the government: more than two-thirds of the wells are saline and freshwater sources are overexploited. The authorities are constantly looking for ways to channelise wastewater, but they are nowhere close to bridging the gap.

UAE

Despite being one of the richest regions in the world, the Middle East is suffering from a massive water crisis. Water recourses in the country are increasingly scarce and are facing unique problem. Much of the land is being used to produce oil, making it incredibly vulnerable to increasing desertification. Last year, there were rumours they were planning to drag an iceberg from Antarctica and an elaborate plan to build an artificial mountain to bring rain so as to solve their water crisis.

Libya

Libya is a nation with an annual water shortage of 500 million cubic metres; the groundwater recharge is 250 million cubic metres, whereas the estimated consumption is 1 billion cubic meters. The water crisis in this nation is so severe that it is threatening the living conditions of people.

According to the United Nations, two out of three people will be living in a country that’s struggling to meet their demands for water, in the next 10 years. The need to save water has never been more imperative; let’s start today.