Major cities across the world are standing on the verge of losing their access to clean water by 2050. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in their recent scenario analysis shows that around 100 cities will fall prey to the rising water risk.
Major cities across the world are standing on the verge of losing their access to clean water by 2050. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in their recent scenario analysis shows that around 100 cities will fall prey to the rising water risk. According to the WWF report, the majority of these cities are from some of the economically significant continents of the world like South America, the Middle East, and Africa. The list also constitutes the majority of the vital cities of China.
This recent revelation has brought in a new set of unsettling challenges for India as well. India posses 30 cities, among the 100 cities listed by the WWF. Major cities like Kolkata, Mumbai, Bangalore, Pune are also a part of this list of vulnerable cities. According to the Program Director of WWF, Dr. Sejal Worah, the cities of India needs urgent measures to combat the predicted water crisis as cities of the country can be the leader of its sustainability.
The findings suggest that the major effects caused by this water crisis can be held as an acute effect and chronic effect. The acute effect is said to be the rise in the calamities like floods whereas the decreasing levels of groundwater can be held as a chronic effect.
While cities in Bangalore has already started to act, India’s smart cities maneuver is also providing a silver lining in this critical environment. The WWF suggests the undertaking of aggressive water management measures like maintenance of watersheds, wetland restorations, etc. The collective awareness about reducing the wastage of water also needs to be instilled among individuals.
The number of the population residing in high-water risk areas is expected to rise by a percentage of 34 in the next 30 years. According to WWF, the financial markets also need to work aligned with the recommendations of the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) to avoid the threats posed to the global economy. The measures need to be undertaken with an insistent and vigorous approach to alleviate the risk that the water crisis is posing to around 350 million people, globally.
Written by: Soumi Dey