(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)Nearly half of 33 countries expected to face extremely high water stress by 2040 are in the Middle East where surface water is limited and demand is high said experts who ranked 167 nations.
Thirteen Middle Eastern countries plus the Palestinian Territories are projected to face extremely high water stress in 25 years' time and eight fell in the global Top 10: Bahrain Kuwait the Palestinian Territories Qatar the UAE Israel Saudi Arabia and Oman. The UAE is among countries with the highest per capita water consumption in the world. An average UAE resident consumes about 550 litres of water a day. This is more than three times the world average per capita consumption. The UAE's sources are desalinated water groundwater and treated waste water. However available groundwater in the UAE may fall significantly between 16 to 36 years. This means that by 2030 there could be less supply from groundwater resources. With a huge bulk of the UAE's groundwater being used for irrigation and landscaping purposes there is a need to opt for less water-intensive crops and landscaping without plants. Alternative ways of sourcing water with the help of technology must also be adopted. Researchers from the World Resources Institute (WRI) - who compiled the first index measuring competition for and depletion of surface water such as lakes and rivers each decade from 2010 to 2040 - said the Middle East is already probably the least water-secure region in the world. "The good news ... is countries can take actions to reduce that stress and the risk associated with how they manage water resources" said Betsy Otto director of the WRI's Global Water Programme. He cited Singapore as an example of a state that uses innovative methods . One measure likely to become more common in the Middle East and elsewhere is water reuse systems that recycle waste water. "It doesn't make a lot of sense to treat water to a potable standard allow it to be used by households and then essentially throw it away" Otto said. While political turmoil may be the top concern in the Middle East today drought and water shortages in Syria likely contributed to the social unrest that stoked its civil war the WRI experts said as some 1.5 million people - mainly farmers and herders - moved to urban areas unable to provide enough jobs and services. Water has also played a significant role in the decades-old conflict between the Palestinian Territories and Israel they noted.
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