The latest World Meteorological Organization (WMO) research shows rivers drying up at their quickest rate in 30 years, jeopardizing global water supplies. The Amazon, Mississippi, Ganges, and Mekong suffered severe deficits in 2023, as did almost 50% of global river catchments.
Climate change is worsening intense droughts, floods, and unpredictable weather, according to the WMO. The shift from La Niña to El Niño in 2023 exacerbated extreme weather, including drought in the Amazon basin and floods in Africa and New Zealand.
Rising global temperatures accelerate the water cycle, creating a delicate balance of too much or too little water. Thus, 3.6 billion people confront water scarcity at least once a year, rising to 5 billion by 2050.
In 2023, glaciers lost almost 600 gigatonnes of water, the most in 50 years, worsening the issue. In two years, Switzerland’s Alps lost 10% of their ice volume.
WMO urges worldwide action to increase water monitoring, data exchange, and climate adaptation to confront this growing challenge, calling water the “canary in the coal mine” of climate change.
Image Credits: https://edition.cnn.com/2022/08/20/world/rivers-lakes-drying-up-drought-climate-cmd-intl/index.html
