An analysis of 7,000 reservoirs on the planet shows that the world’s water reserves are decreasing
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Texas A&M researchers analyzed satellite data from more than seven thousand reservoirs on planet Earth. Thus, it was found that despite the increase in the total storage capacity, their filling speed is slower than expected.
Sci Tech Daily writes about this with reference to a study published in the journal Nature Communications.
Over the last 20 years, the world’s water reserves have been depleting. But the storage capacity has increased – mainly due to the construction of new reservoirs.
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Led by Dr. Huilin Gao, Texas A&M University’s Zahri Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, researchers used a new approach with satellite data to estimate storage variations in 7,245 global reservoirs from 1999 to 2018.
It turned out that the annual global storage in tanks increased by 28 cubic kilometers. But in the case of their filling, there was no growth.
“As the global population continues to grow in the 21st century, surface water bodies are increasingly being relied upon to meet increasing demands in the context of climate change. However, the amount of water available in water bodies and trends in water availability have not been well quantified at the global scale.”Gao said about the feasibility of the study.
The Global Reservoir Storage data set, freely available, helped to determine the real situation.
The research was intended to benefit water decision-makers and the wider scientific community. This is a significant advance in monitoring global reservoir storage conditions.
It is expected that the existing trend of diminishing returns from the construction of reservoirs will continue. Significant negative consequences await humanity in the future. And it will not be possible to meet the needs by building new reservoirs.
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Currently, the depletion of stocks is particularly evident in the global south, including South Asia, Africa and South America. Despite efforts to build new reservoirs, data shows that they are not reaching the expected level of filling.
The biggest declines were seen in South America and Africa, where growing populations are contributing to increased water demand.
But reservoirs in North America and Europe have a growing trend.
The analysis did not take into account the process of sedimentation – the process of settling of particles under the influence of gravity.
Earlier, UNESCO had already warned about the probable global water shortage in the world.
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