ArmInfo.Armenia was on the 34th place in the list of 164 countries of the world where there is a shortage of water. This is stated in the report of the World Resources Institute (WRI), published on Tuesday, August 6.
According to the study, Armenia is on the list of 27 countries that are experiencing high water shortages. Among them are Belgium, Uzbekistan, Spain, Turkey, Italy and other states, thus, being on the 17th line of the rating.
The study evaluated water shortages, as well as the risks of drought and river floods. The list of countries with extreme water shortages includes Qatar, Israel, Lebanon, Iran, Jordan, Libya, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, the United Arab Emirates, San Marino, Bahrain, India, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Oman and Botswana. In these states, according to the study, agriculture, industry and municipalities consume an average of 80% of the available surface and groundwater annually.
It is clarified that 12 of the 17 countries exposed to extreme water scarcity are in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). The region is hot and dry, so the water resources were not rich at first, and growing demand exacerbated the situation.
Due to climate change, the Middle East and North Africa will suffer even greater economic losses from water shortages in the future. The World Resources Institute notes that in a number of MENA countries there are unrealized opportunities to improve water security: about 82% of wastewater in this region is not reused. The introduction of their cleaning technologies will create a new source of clean water. A positive example is shown by Oman, which occupies the 16th place in the list of countries with extreme water shortages: this state on the Arabian Peninsula treats 100% of the collected wastewater and reuses 78%.
Among other methods that will help solve the problem of acute shortage of water, the researchers called improving the efficiency of agriculture, as well as investing in gray and green infrastructure.
At the same time, as the WRI report showed, even in countries with sufficient water resources there can be hot spots. While the overall water deficit level in the United States is labeled "medium-low," the US state of New Mexico is facing water shortages on a par with the UAE.
