Global Water Shortage

Introduction

A key societal problem that needs to be addressed is the escalating global water shortage. The magnitude of the global water shortage as highlighted by the UNICEF and World Health Organization indicate that, as at 2011, about 1.1 billion people did not have access to clean water supply (Tarass & Benjelloun, 2011). The factors accelerating the problem of global water shortage include rapid population growth, economic progress, and an increase in water demand. This has subsequently led to increased pressure on the existing water resources. Different parts of the globe have experienced water scarcity, a situation where the current water supply cannot meet the overall demand for water (Liu et al., 2017). This scenario has led to over-exploitation of the surface water and over-reliance on the non-renewable groundwater source. The issue of global water shortage is experienced despite the fact that two-thirds of the surface of the earth is covered by water. However, the situation is not better since 97% of this water is salty leaving only approximately 3% to meet the water demand. In the growing wake of the global water shortage as a societal problem, desalination of seawater holds a promising and viable solution that can offer a sustainable source of water.

Annotated Bibliography

Kummu, M., Guillaume, J. H. A., De Moel, H., Eisner, S., Flörke, M., Porkka, M., … & Ward, P. J. (2016). The world’s road to water scarcity: shortage and stress in the 20th century and pathways towards sustainability. Scientific reports, 6(38495), 1-16.

In their article, Kummu et al., (2016)note that water scarcity has become a rapidly growing concern all over the world. This article represents an attempt to make an initial assessment of continuous sub-national trajectories of blue water consumption, renewable freshwater availability, and water scarcity across the 20^th century. The article analysis water scarcity in reference to the concepts of water shortage and stress, and makes a differentiation between the two terms. Water shortage is analyzed in terms of the impacts caused by the low availability of water per capita while water stress involves the impacts that originate from high consumption in reference to the consideration. The article makes an interesting revelation by indicating that the consumption of water has increased fourfold in the scope of the study period, the general population facing water shortage increased from 14% of the entire population to 58% of the overall global population. This article will be essential in providing key statistics on the magnitude of the global water shortage as a societal issue. It will offer vital information on the historical trends in water scarcity. It also offers some possible solutions that can be put in place to deal with the issue of water scarcity.

Cosgrove, W. J., & Loucks, D. P. (2015). Water management: Current and future challenges and research directions. Water Resources Research, 51(6), 4823-4839.

In their article, Cosgrove and Loucks (2015) make an important observation that the global supply of fresh water is more than enough to meet the present and foreseeable water demands. However, the article indicates that the spatial and temporal distributions cause disparity. This is noted to be among the main reasons why water shortage is a societal problem despite the overall amount being deemed as adequate to meet the entire demand of the water. Various places across the globe have been indicated to have freshwater resources that are not sufficient to cater to the domestic, economic development, and environmental needs. These places are characterized by inadequate clean water to meet the demand for human drinking water and sanitation. This becomes an obstacle to human health and productivity, which ends up affecting economic development. This article will inform the current research by providing details of freshwater stress. This will provide a picture of the issue of water scarcity that is population-driven and influenced by water demand and therefore outlines its consequences on the energy and food production.

Liu, J., Yang, H., Gosling, S. N., Kummu, M., Flörke, M., Pfister, S., … & Alcamo, J. (2017). Water scarcity assessments in the past, present, and future. Earth’s Future, 5(6), 545-559.

This article highlights that water scarcity is a major constraint facing socio-economic development and therefore a major threat to livelihood in most parts of the world. The article observes that the issue of water scarcity has garnered interest as a major research topic since the 1980s. The article carries out the analysis of water scarcity using different indicators that measure the characteristics of water scarcity. The indicators are mainly comprised of the population, water availability, and water consumption as the main elements. The article observes the progress in the quest for quantification of water availability. However, the models face challenges in the attempts to ensure the inclusion of green water, water quality, environmental flow requirements, globalization, and impacts of virtual water trade in the process of carrying out water shortage assessment. It is noted that efforts to deal with water shortage require the development of policies at global, regional, national, and local levels. The article will be relevant to the current study dealing with global water shortage as it provides indicators that help in understanding the magnitude of the problem.

McDonald, R. I., Weber, K., Padowski, J., Flörke, M., Schneider, C., Green, P. A., … & Boucher, T. (2014). Water on an urban planet: Urbanization and the reach of urban water infrastructure. Global Environmental Change, 27, 96-105.

McDonald et al., (2014) highlights how urban growth has led to the escalation of the issue of global water shortage. Urban growth is noted to cause an increase in demand for freshwater sources. The article sought to carry out the first ever survey made across the globe to assess the large cities’ water sources. This reflects an aspect that has for long been left out in the hydrologic models. The article indicated that most large cities acquire approximately 78% of the water for consumption from surface sources. One in every four cities is noted to be water stressed, caused by geographical and financial limitations. The article points out to the need to carry out strategic management of the water sources in large cities in an effort to achieve a sustainable global economy. The article will be relevant to the current research where it will offer a different perspective on the issue of global water shortage.

Tarrass, F., & Benjelloun, M. (2012). The effects of water shortages on health and human development. Perspectives in public health, 132(5), 240-244.

In their article, Tarrass and Benjelloun (2014) provided an analysis of the effects of water shortages on health and human development. The article indicates that water shortage is a critical barrier to the public health and development. This article will, therefore, be important in offering a different perspective on the societal issue of global water shortage. The article reveals the statistics of people facing the water shortage as well as those with no access to adequate sanitation. The health implication of this situation is estimated to cause 1.6 million deaths from resulting diseases. This article is thereby relevant and informative on the current research issue.

References

Cosgrove, W. J., & Loucks, D. P. (2015). Water management: Current and future challenges and research directions. Water Resources Research, 51(6), 4823-4839.

Kummu, M., Guillaume, J. H. A., De Moel, H., Eisner, S., Flörke, M., Porkka, M., … & Ward, P. J. (2016). The world’s road to water scarcity: shortage and stress in the 20th century and pathways towards sustainability. Scientific reports, 6(38495), 1-16.

Liu, J., Yang, H., Gosling, S. N., Kummu, M., Flörke, M., Pfister, S., … & Alcamo, J. (2017). Water scarcity assessments in the past, present, and future. Earth’s Future, 5(6), 545-559.

McDonald, R. I., Weber, K., Padowski, J., Flörke, M., Schneider, C., Green, P. A., … & Boucher, T. (2014). Water on an urban planet: Urbanization and the reach of urban water infrastructure. Global Environmental Change, 27, 96-105.

Tarrass, F., & Benjelloun, M. (2012). The effects of water shortages on health and human development. Perspectives in public health, 132(5), 240-244.