MAJOR WATER RESERVIOR SOURCES ON EARTH

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Water Security emerging global issues of 21st
century and challenges for water professionals
Ramesh Kanwar Professor and Chair Department of
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Iowa
State University, Ames, Iowa 50011, USA
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Humanity's Top Ten Problems for the Next 50 Years

• Energy
• Water
• Food
• Environment
• Poverty
• Terrorism War
• Disease
• Education
• Democracy
• Population
• Compiled by Dr. R. E. Smalley
• University Professor, Rice University
• 1996 Nobel Prize winner in chemistry
• Discoverer of the C60 buckyball molecule
• Developer of carbon nanotubes

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Millennium Development Goals

• Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger
• Achieve universal primary education
• Promote gender equality and empower women
• Reduce child mortality
• Improve maternal health
• Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases
• Ensure environmental sustainability
• Develop a global partnership for development

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Millennium Development Goals
How many of the Millennium Development Goals are
related to water?
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SOCIAL JUSTICE Challenge between haves and
have-nots
Can we apply this philosophy to water???
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Major Challenges and Issues for the 21st Century

• Challenges of 2050 Water Availability and Water
  Quality
• Key Questions for Water Professionals/Society?
• Can we provide clean drinking water to 9 billion
  people in 2050?
• Will we be able to produce enough food to feed 9
  billion people in 2050? Currently 80 of all
  global water use is in agriculture. What will be
  the use of water in agriculture in 2050?

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Major Challenges and Issues for the 21st Century

• Challenges of 2050 Water Availability and Water
  Quality
• Can we meet all water needs of developed and
  developing economies of the world in 2050
  (including energy and industry)?
• Are we training water engineers and other water
  professionals to solve the problems of 2050? Very
  few students taking courses on water economics,
  water policies, water law, and water conflicts.
• CONSERVATION!! CONSERVATION!!
• SOUND WATER POLICIES NEED TO BE IMPLEMENTED!!

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Major Challenges/Issues for the 21st Century Cont

• Climate Change/Global Warming More than 200
  million people could be permanently displaced by
  2050 due to rising sea levels shift in cropping
  systems over landscape.
• Overuse of Rivers and Groundwater Aquifers Major
  rivers are drying up and do not deliver water to
  oceans Dead Sea, Aral Sea, Yellow River, Ganges
  River, Colorado River etc. are good examples.
  Groundwater aquifers are being pumped dry.
• Water Quality Going to be the major issue by
  2050 if something is not done. More people will
  die from poor quality water than lack of food.
  About 1.2 billion people become sick every year
  due to poor quality drinking water and several
  million die.

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Major Challenges/Issues for the 21st Century Cont

• Water Conflicts/Trans-boundary Issues Future
  wars could be over water.
• Water Policies for Freshwater Scarcity Could
  lead to reduction of agricultural capacity in
  some regions. Must grow 'more crop per drop.
  Subsidies, local politics, and policies leading
  to inefficiencies. Water can not be free for all.
  Marketing forces need a place.
• Access to Safe and Sufficient water for Basic
  Human Needs Will effect human health and
  economic development. Today nearly 3 billion
  people live without basic sanitation

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Major Challenges/Issues for the 21st Century Cont

• Ecosystems Provide food chain of many birds and
  fish, and other aquatic life and must be
  supported
• Water Cities By 2030, over 60 of the world's
  population will be living in urban areas. The
  urban water crisis can only be met by good water
  conservation practices and avoiding wasteful use
  of water.
• Water and Energy Even now, some 2 billion people
  do not have access to a reliable supply of
  electricity and what will happen in 2050.

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21st Century Water Challenges
Climate Change/Global Warming Rising sea
levels Change in evapotranspiration? Change
in cropping patterns Others?
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Supplies Not enough available water for
human use Not enough water to meet demands of
growing economies (irrigation, industry, drinking
water) Depletion of groundwater and lowering of
water table
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Supplies Wasteful use of already developed
water supplies Increasing costs of developing
new water supplies Non-uniform distribution of
water resources among and within countries
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Quality Single largest threat to human
health and food security Water pollution from
industrial, municipal and agriculture Majority
of drinking water supplies in the developing
world are contaminated
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Quality Water borne disease increasing
pesticides, heavy metals, and pathogens Food
safety fresh vegetables, fresh meat washed
with poor quality water In 2025, more people
will die from drinking contaminated water rather
than lack of food if some thing not done
soon???
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Quality Degradation of water-related
ecosystems human sustainability at
risk Degradation of soils in irrigated areas
salinity level increasing
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Quality and Livestock
Drinking water quality Nitrate/nitrite causes
blue baby disease Newborn babies essentially
suffocate
Surface water Ammonia gt 2 mg/L Kills
Fish Phosphate gt 0.05 mg/L promotes excess algae
growth which leads to fish Kills
Eutophication BOD depletes oxygen which causes
fish kills Hypoxia
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Major Water Quality Issue WORLD HYPOXIC ZONES
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Quality and Agriculture in General
60 N and 25 P from European agiculture to North
Sea Significant levels flowing into the Adriatic
Sea Hypoxia in Gulf of Mexico due to nutrient
pollution from agriculture Eutrophication
problems in Lake Erie
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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Conflicts/Trans-boundary Issues Population
growth Demand for water already increased by
900 and will continue to increase Good drinking
water supplies limited Water supply/rainfall
inadequate in many areas
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Trans-boundary basins
In 2002, there were 263 trans-boundary basins
compared to 214 in 1978. - Africa 59    -
Asia 58    - Europe 73    - Latin America and
the Caribbean 61   - North America 17    -
Oceania 1
19 basins involve five or more different
countries The Danube River basin is shared by
18 riparian nations. Five basins are shared
between 9 and 11 countries. Thirteen basins
have between 5 and 8 riparian nations.
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Trans-boundary basins cont.
Selected Examples of Rivers Lakes with five or
more nations - Danube 18 nations
- Congo 11 - Nile 10
- Amazon 8 - Aral sea 6 -
Ganges 6 - Jordan 6 -
Mekong 6 - Tigris 6 -
Will require good water policies and water
treaties between countries
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Water Conflicts

• The Texas Panhandle
• Alabama and Florida VS Georgia in the USA
• India/Pakistan India/Bangladesh
• Within India between states (serious situation)
• China/India China/Nepal China/Vietnam
• South Africa
• The middle east
• Israel/Syria
• Egypt/Sudan

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Water Conflicts

• Main Example for this Course

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21st Century Water Challenges
Water Policies for Freshwater Scarcity Urban
population growth Increased income Political
pressure from farmers Political pressure from
industry Water pricing
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21st Century Water Challenges
Safe Sufficient water for Basic Human
Needs Groundwater pollution Disease
control Urban population growth Increased
sanitary needs
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21st Century Water Challenges

• Ecosystems and Sustainability
• Ecosystems services
• Carbon sequestration
• Pollination
• Flood control
• Prevention of soil erosion
• Biodiversity
• Natural amenities

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21st Century Water Challenges

• Water and Cities
• Supply of fresh water
• Competition for water input
• Treatment options
• Waste from treatment
• Delivery/mangement/pricing
• Sewage disposal
• Storm water run-off
• Other run-off
• Use of waste water

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21st Century Water Challenges
Water and Energy Pumping (electricity) Water
treatment/desalinization Hydroelectric
plants Med-Dead --- Red-Dead
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation
Conserving water in existing systems through
water management, incentives and policy reforms
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation More efficient use
Improving crop productivity per unit of water and
land through integrated water management and
agricultural research and policy efforts for
rainfed and irrigated agriculture (agriculture
uses 70-80 of water)
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation More efficient use Improved
infrastructure
Increasing the supply of water for irrigation,
domestic, and industrial purposes through
investment in infrastructure
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation More efficient use Improved
infrastructure Enlightened policies Water
pricing Use quotas Energy pricing Water law
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation More efficient use Improved
infrastructure Enlightened policies Research
(Science and Technology)
Water conservation/water management
practices Water harvesting --- reservoirs,
groundwater recharge, watershed
management Better and efficient irrigation
systems Recycling of waste water Protection
of water quality
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21st Century Water Solutions
Conservation More efficient use Improved
infrastructure Enlightened policies Research
(Science and Technology) Education
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Opportunities for Agricultural and Biological
Engineers

• Design innovative sustainable irrigation systems
  of 21st century
• Redesign of landscape water management systems to
  protect the health of diverse ecosystems
• Develop water conservation technologies
• Develop technologies and systems to protect and
  clean degraded water supplies
• Develop hydrologic models for water resources
  management and help develop effective water
  policies
• Engagement of agricultural and biological
  engineers in policy
• Develop innovative curricula to address 21st
  water issues
• Develop global partnerships to solve global water
  problems
• Take the social agenda to educate people on water
  conservation and eliminate wasteful use of water

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