November 01

“ WATER is the canary in the coal mine of climate change. We receive distress signals in the form of increasingly extreme rainfall, floods and droughts, which wreak a heavy toll on lives, ecosystems and economies. Melting ice and glaciers threaten longterm water security for many millions of people. And yet we are not taking the necessary urgent action,” said World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Secretary-General Celeste Saulo.

The report stated that Glaciers lost more than 600 gigatonnes of water, the worst in 50 years of observations, according to preliminary data for September 2022-August 2023. This severe loss is mainly due to extreme melting in western North America and the European Alps, where Switzerland’s glaciers have lost about 10% of their remaining volume over the past two years. Snow cover in the northern hemisphere has been decreasing in late spring and summer: in May 2023, the snow cover extent was the eighth lowest on record (1967–2023). For North America, the May snow cover was the lowest in the same period.

Currently, the entire world is facing challenges in forecasting the global water cycle due to atmospheric warming. As a result, predicting both excessive and insufficient water volumes has become increasingly difficult. Consequently, many regions around the globe are experiencing issues related to flooding and water shortages.

Although more than 70 per cent of the world is covered by water, only about 2.5 per cent of it is usable freshwater available for the global population. Usable water sources are declining year by year due to several factors, including population growth, increased water consumption driven by social development, and rising waste in countries with weak management practices. Additionally, excessive water extraction for industrial use and the impacts of climate change further exacerbate the situation.

Flooding and storms accounted for 44 per cent and 28 per cent of all disasters over the past two decades. Although improvements in early warning systems have reduced the fatality rate, disasters have increasingly impacted the business sector. As a result, ensuring the availability of safe drinking water for public consumption has become challenging.

Everyone is aware that the decline of water sources is a pressing concern, exacerbated by environmental degradation, including global warming, reduced greening initiatives, and the depletion of trees and forests. If people around the world do not prioritize sustainability, we will witness the devastating consequences of lost water sources. Therefore, all countries need to emphasize environmental conservation as a national responsibility.