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At the 8th World Water Forum 2018, which started in Brazil, today (March 19, 2018), UNESCO will advocate for the development of “nature-based solutions”. The protection of water collection areas and implementation of more vegetative roofs are discussed as viable solutions to preserve the water as a resource.
Titled “The Sharing Of Water”, this triennial meeting takes place just before two other crucial meetings on water resource issues, namely, a political forum scheduled for July, which will be held in New York, and the COP 24, which will be held in December, in Poland, and will discuss on the climate issues where water is a priority.
World water consumption increases by 1% per year
Men currently consume 4600 billion cubic meters of water a year. Domestic use accounts for 10%, while the agriculture accounts for 60%. On the other hand, the industry accounts for 30%.
This global consumption increases by 1% per year and should reach 6000 billion cubic meters per year by 2050. But access to the resource should undergo major upheavals.
First, the increase in the population will increase the needs of agriculture, particularly in groundwater, which is more difficult to renew. 800 billion cubic meters are now taken from the groundwater.
Also, excessive pumping could lead to severe shortages in already troublesome regions.
Even more, the management of domestic water will be impacted by the growth of cities because the number of people living in the urban areas will grow up from 54%, today, to 66% by 2050.
The solutions to preserve the water resource
Solutions such as rational irrigation, competent water distribution, and sustainable water consumption in the industry already exist and can be deployed quickly.
On the other hand, the preservation of the quality of the resource uses simple and inexpensive techniques and it is the very aspect UNESCO emphasizes with.
“There will always be a need to build dikes, sewage pipes, and sewage treatment plants. But, besides these ‘gray’ infrastructures, we have a panoply of “green” infrastructures focusing on ecological engineering and the use of the role played by ecosystems,” says Richard Connor, editor-in-chief of the UNESCO report.
In short, the 8th World Water Forum has just started in Brazil and will discuss the solutions on how to preserve the water resource.
