Environment
The
Growing Water Crisis
Given the growing scarcity of water, it's time to change
water policies worldwide.
By Clifton Coles
he future of water and food is highly uncertain, say the authors of a new
International Food Policy Research Institute report. "In the coming decades, the
world's farmers will need to produce enough food to feed many millions more people, yet
there are virtually no untapped, cost-effective sources of water for them to draw on as
they face this challenge," write the authors of World Water and Food to 2025.
Continued complacency over the water situation is likely to lead to a
water crisis that will have the direst consequences for the world's poor, they say. The
cost of supplying water to domestic and industrial users will rise dramatically over the
coming decades. Greater food production will depend on increases in crop yield.
Management of river basins and irrigation water is expected to become
more efficient if current water-use trends continue, but only slowly. Economic incentives
to induce water management will face political challenges over concerns of high water
prices on farmers' incomes and interests in keeping existing water systems intact. Public
investment in expanding irrigation systems and reservoir storage will decline as
financial, environmental, and social costs escalate.
If current water trends and policies deteriorate, we can expect the
situation to become much worse, with total worldwide water consumption 13% higher by 2025
than it is today. Food prices can be expected to nearly double, and world cereal
production in 2025 will be 270 million metric tons less than if a sustainable water-use
policy is adopted.
Meeting the challenges of water scarcity will require time, political
commitment, and money. These challenges will also vary from region to region and must be
tailored to specific countries and basins. The authors of World Water and Food to 2025
point to three broad strategies that may result in sustainable water use in the coming
decades.
- Invest in infrastructure to increase water supply for irrigation,
industrial, and domestic purposes.
- Conserve water and improve the efficiency of water use in existing
systems through reforms in water management and policy, including raising water prices.
- Improve crop productivity per unit of water and land through integrated
water management and agricultural research and policy efforts, including crop breeding and
water management for rain-fed agriculture.
Under a sustainable water-use policy, total worldwide water consumption
would be lower by 20% by 2025 than under current policies. With improved water policies,
investments, management, and technology, food production could be maintained concurrently
with universal access to piped water.
Sources: World Water and Food to 2025: Dealing with Scarcity and Global
Water Outlook to 2025: Averting an Impending Crisis by Mark W. Rosegrant, Ximing Cai,
and Sarah A. Cline. International Food Policy Research Institute, 2033 K Street N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20006. Web site www.ifpri.org.
