2023 Declared the Driest Year for Global Rivers in Three Decades, UN Reports
The World Meteorological Organization declared 2023 the driest year for global rivers in over thirty years, attributing the crisis to record-high temperatures and significant drought conditions. Secretary-General Celeste Saulo warned of the risks associated with glacier mass loss and highlighted the projected increase in water scarcity, affecting billions. The report emphasizes the urgent need for improved water resource management in light of climate change-induced challenges.
In 2023, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) reported that the global rivers experienced their most severe drought in over thirty years. This unprecedented condition was attributed to record-high temperatures that contributed to diminishing water flows and prolonged droughts in various regions. Celeste Saulo, Secretary-General of WMO, highlighted the alarming rates at which glaciers are melting, noting that they experienced the largest loss of mass in the past fifty years. This situation poses a significant risk to long-term water security for millions of individuals across the globe. “Water is the canary in the coalmine of climate change. We receive distress signals in the form of increasingly extreme rainfall, floods, and droughts which wreak a heavy toll on lives, ecosystems, and economies,” asserted Celeste Saulo during the report’s release. She indicated that the effects of rising temperatures have led to a more erratic and unpredictable hydrological cycle, producing both excessive rainfall in some instances and severe water shortages in others. The WMO’s report, titled State of Global Water Resources 2023, examined various water sources, including rivers, lakes, reservoirs, groundwater, and glaciers, alongside the evaporation from land and plants. Data compiled by UN Water revealed that approximately 3.6 billion individuals lack sufficient access to water for at least one month each year, a figure projected to increase to five billion by the year 2050. It was noted that agriculture accounts for approximately 70% of global water consumption. The year 2023 was not only marked by significant drought conditions, particularly in regions such as the southern United States and several countries in South America—namely Argentina, Brazil, Peru, and Uruguay—but also registered as the hottest year on record, exacerbating concerns regarding future water availability. Stefan Uhlenbrook, the director of Hydrology, Water and Cryosphere at WMO, commented on the alarming conditions observed, stating, “In the (last) 33 years of data, we had never had such a large area around the world which was under such dry conditions.” The Mississippi River basin and critical water bodies in the Amazon and Lake Titicaca experienced notably low water levels, further indicating widespread environmental distress. Although data for 2024 is still being gathered, Uhlenbrook articulated that the exceedingly hot previous summer is likely to contribute to sustained low river flows and increased water scarcity in numerous parts of the world, which has already affected navigation and has contributed to food crises in regions such as Zimbabwe. In response, the WMO has called for enhanced data collection and sharing to better inform water resource management and facilitate effective responses from nations and communities.
The report by the World Meteorological Organization serves as a crucial alert concerning global water resources, indicating severe drought conditions affecting waterways worldwide. The rising temperatures due to climate change have led to significant ecological shifts that impact both human and natural systems. The relationship between water availability and agricultural needs is underscored, revealing a pressing need for sustainable water management practices as millions face water scarcity in the coming decades. Understanding the scale and implications of these changes is essential for developing strategies to mitigate the adverse effects of such climate-related challenges.
In summary, the report from the World Meteorological Organization highlights the troubling trend of diminishing river flows worldwide, marking 2023 as the driest year in three decades. The impact of climate change, evident through record heat and erratic precipitation patterns, poses a grave threat to global water security. As millions face inadequate access to water, appropriate measures must be implemented to better manage this critical resource in the face of ongoing environmental changes. Immediate action is necessary to address the repercussions of these drought conditions and to support affected communities.
Original Source: apnews.com
