WATER WARS

1
WATER WARS

• Barry Comprehensive School
• Easter 2007

2
WATER WARS

• Indeed water is already a catalyst for regional
  conflict
• Quote from the influential head of environmental
  research institute Worldwatch,Lester Brown.

3
Places where water wars occur
The world's supply of fresh water is running out.
Already one person in five has no access to safe
drinking water. This presentation is about some
of the many places effected by this.
4
MIDDLE EAST

• Oil has always been thought of as the traditional
  cause of conflict in the Middle East but now
  countries fight over water.

5
Map of the countries in the middle east fighting
over water supplies
6
WATER WARS Middle East

• The 10 countries with the least amount of water
  in cubic metres (m³)

7
MIDDLE EAST
Water is the most precious resource in the Middle
East, more important even than oil. Competition
for water from the River Jordan was a major cause
of the 1967 war. As populations increase, water
becomes more scarce.
8
Israel and Syria

• The Lebanese have long accused Israel of having
  designs on the waters of the River Litani, and
  Syria accuses it of being reluctant to withdraw
  from the banks of the Sea of Galilee, the source
  of up to 30 of Israel's water.
• Israelis in the West Bank use four times as much
  water as their Palestinian neighbours.

9
TURKEY
Turkey has been accused by Syria and Iraq of
depriving them of much-needed water, as it
continues to build a series of dams along the
Euphrates and Tigris. It is also embarking on an
ambitious project to sell water from its Manavgat
river across the Middle East.
10
THIS SHOWS THE LIST OF MIDDLE EAST COUNTRIES
WHICH WILL SUFFER FROM WATER SCARCITY IN THE NEXT
15 YEARS
11
THE BATTLE OF THE NILE
Population growth in Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia is
threatening conflict along the world's longest
river, The Nile, Ethiopia is pressing for a
greater share of the Blue Nile's water but that
would leave downstream Egypt as a loser.
12
War?
The Nile is the main source of water for most of
Egypt. Egypt worries about dams that might be
built in the Ethiopian highlands, which will
affect the flow of the Nile.
13

• Egypt borrows 60 percent of Sudan's water. It is
  only a matter of time before the ethnic
  minorities take up arms in a guerrilla war that
  could go on for years.

Egypt is regarded as the most moderate and
helpful of all Middle Eastern nations. But it is
as ready to use force to protect its vital
resources.
14
MAP OF NILE BASIN
15
THE NILE

• A United Nations report predicts that access to
  water may be the single biggest cause of conflict
  and war in Africa in the next 25 years. The
  likely causes of water wars are
• Countries where rivers or lakes are shared by
  more than one country.
• There is already fierce national competition
  over water for irrigation and power generation
  e.g. in the Nile river basin.
• If the populations of these countries continue to
  rise, competition for the water could be fierce.

16

• The amount of water available per person in cubic
  metres. (m³)

Egypt's population of 58 Million is expected to
reach 101 Million in 2025 and is already
approaching water scarcity.
17
WATER WARS Egypt
In 1979 the Egyptian president said Egypt will
never go to war,except to protect its water. The
next war in the area will be over water. Egypt
is expected to be added to the list of water
scarce countries by the year 2025.
18
Water Wars Sudan
19
Water warsEthiopia
This diagram shows where the water war is
happening between Ethiopia, Egypt and Sudan.
20
WATER WARS Africa

• The main conflicts in Africa during the next 25
  years could be over that most precious of
  commodities water,as countries fight for access
  to scarce resources.

21
WATER WARS Africa

• By 2025, 12 more African countries will join the
  13 that already suffer from water stress or water
  scarcity.
• Fresh water is also becoming increasingly
  unusable because of pollution.

22
WORLD WATER WARS

• Potential 'water wars' are likely in areas where
  rivers and lakes are shared by more than one
  country.
• Population growth and economic development will
  lead to nearly one in two people in Africa living
  in countries facing water scarcity or what is
  known as 'water stress' within 25 years so wars
  are more likely here.
• Water shortages will affect countries all over
  the world from California to Catalonia!