Extreme rains, droughts and lack of access: this is the water crisis that is hitting the world (and how it affects Peru)

It is not the floods, the droughts or the melting of glaciers due to global warming. The lack of access to basic services related to the water – like the absence of potable water and sanitation infrastructure – kills more people in the world than natural disasters linked to this resource.

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The finding is part of a report released this week on the occasion of the UN Water Conference held in New York, the first event of its kind in almost 50 years, where alarming statistics and data rained down that prove that the water crisis that lived globally has only gotten worse.

It’s hard to find the most worrying conclusion. According to the report, three out of every four inhabitants of the planet live in countries with some level of water insecurity and the international community is quite far from reaching the goals it has in the face of the water crisis.

The most affected live in the Asia-Pacific region, followed by Africa, the Americas and, lastly, Europe.

The increase in natural disasters linked to water as a consequence of global warming is also inescapable. On the one hand, the floods are becoming more extreme and claiming more lives. On the other hand, droughts can devastate everything in their path and slow down human development.

An aerial view of a Vaal River in South Africa flooding its banks as it passes through Parys on February 19, 2023, after heavy rains wreaked havoc on the Vaal Dam by exceeding its maximum capacity. (Photo: AFP) (SHIRAAZ MOHAMED/)

In this June 02, 2019 file photo, a general view of a lake drying up on a hot summer day near Ajmer, India is seen. (Photo: AFP) (HIMANSHU SHARMA /)

The experts are clear on this point: floods and droughts represent 75% of climate catastrophes and will increase due to global warming.

eyes in the neighborhood

When analyzing the water crisis in Latin America and the Caribbean, experts emphasize that the abundance of water in a country does not necessarily equate to water security. It is useless to have too much of the resource if citizens have poor quality water or zero or deficient access to sanitation.

At this point, contamination cannot be ignored. Juan Carlos Castro, former director of the National Water Authority (ANA) and the Environmental Evaluation and Control Agency (OEFA), points out that in Peru 63% of organic water contamination is from cities that contaminate rivers, the 6% corresponds to industries and 1.8% to mining activity.

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Is there anything left to do?

The situation invites pessimism, but progress is possible. “There are countries that have come a long way in their efforts on water, especially in Europe, where they have early warning prevention systems and technology that can help prevent disasters. In Peru we don’t have that technology,” laments Castro.

Therefore, he believes that what our country should do is establish systems to adapt to the problems of climate change.

“We have a false feeling that we are going to have a lot of water because our mountain ranges are melting, but the forecasts of climate change scenarios for the coming decades put us in a critical situation regarding access to water.”

In this line, he emphasizes that we need to start making reservoirs to regulate the basin and that a culture of prevention at the country level that is executed in a comprehensive manner and with greater planning is essential.

Also remember that we are already dealing with the effects of climate change and this is going to be repetitive. “We cannot forget that Peru is the third most vulnerable country to climate change in South America.”

Source: Elcomercio