UN: The world is in the era of 'global water bankruptcy'

The world has entered an era of "global water bankruptcy" that is harming billions of people, says the UN report, quoted by Guardian. Overuse and pollution of water must be urgently addressed because no one knows when the entire system could collapse, which would have consequences for peace and social cohesion.

All life depends on water, but the report finds that many societies have long been using the precious resource faster than it can be replenished annually in rivers and soils, as well as overexploiting or destroying long-term water supplies in aquifers and wetlands.

This has led to water bankruptcy, with many water systems have passed the point at which they could be restored to previous levels. The climate crisis is exacerbating the problem by melting glaciers that store water and causing whiplash between extremely dry and wet weather, the report said.

Prof. Kaveh Madani, who led the study, points out that while not every basin and country is in water bankruptcy, the world is connected through trade and migration, and enough critical systems have crossed this threshold to fundamentally change global water risk.

Water conflicts have increased sharply since 2010, as major rivers such as the Colorado in the US and the Murray-Darling system in Australia fail to reach the sea, and "day zero" emergencies - when cities run out of water, such as in Chennai, India - have escalated. Half of the world's great lakes have shrunk since the early 90s. Even wet countries such as the UK have been put at risk by their reliance on imported food and other water-dependent products, the report said.

"This report tells an inconvenient truth: many critical water systems are already failing. This is extremely urgent because no one knows exactly when the entire system will collapse. About 70% of the freshwater extracted by humans is used for agriculture. Millions of farmers are trying to grow more food from shrinking, polluted or disappearing water sources. A water failure in India or Pakistan, for example, also means an impact on rice exports in many parts of the world. More than half of the world's food is grown in areas where water supplies are declining or unstable, the report says. Action to address water failure offers a chance to unite countries in an increasingly fragmented world. Water is a strategic, untapped opportunity for the world to create unity within and between nations. It is one of the very few issues on whose importance there is consensus on the left and the right, the north and the south," says Madani.

Excessive use of water resources

The UN report, which is based on a forthcoming publication in the peer-reviewed journal Water Resources Management, points out how population growth, urbanization and economic growth have increased the demand for water for agriculture, industry, energy and cities.

In some of the world's most densely populated river basins, including the Indus, Yellow River, and Tigris-Euphrates, rivers periodically dry up before reaching the ocean.

"In many basins, the 'normal' that crisis managers once hoped to return to has virtually disappeared," the report states.

"Lakes are also shrinking, from Lake Urmia in Iran to Lake Chad. Wildlife is suffering, as are people, as people 'steal' water from nature," Madani added.

Overexploitation of groundwater is causing cities around the world to sink, with Rafsanjan in Iran sinking by 30 cm per year; Tulare in the United States by about 28 cm per year; and Mexico City by about 21 cm per year. Jakarta, Manila, Lagos, and Kabul are other major cities affected. Among the most visible signs of this water bankruptcy are the 700 sinkholes scattered across the heavily cultivated Konya Plain in Turkey.

Cities such as Tehran, Cape Town, Sao Paulo and Chennai have faced "day zero" crises, while the number of water-related conflicts around the world has increased from 20 in 2010 to over 400 in 2024.

Humanity is also reducing the amount of water available by destroying natural resources such as wetlands and polluting waterways. Wetlands the size of the entire European Union have been wiped out in the last five decades.

The report calls for a fundamental rethink of how water is protected and used around the world. This would include reducing rights and claims to water extraction and transforming water-intensive sectors, such as agriculture and industry, through crop shifts, more efficient irrigation, and less wasteful urban systems. The analysis also emphasizes support for communities whose livelihoods need to change.