Water key facts and case studies

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How much of the Earth’s surface does water cover?

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1

How much of the Earth’s surface does water cover?

71%

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2

What % of water is undrinkable saltwater?

96.5%+

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3

What % of freshwater is in ice caps and glaciers?

70%

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4

What % of freshwater is in groundwater?

29%

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5

Reservoir turnover time of oceans

3,600 years

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6

Reservoir turnover time of ice caps

15,000 years

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7

Reservoir turnover time of rivers and lakes

2 weeks to 10 years

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8

How much of the hydrological cycle is the ocean?

>90%

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9

How many days a year does it rain for in the UK on average?

156.2

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10

Average UK annual rainfall

1,154mm

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11

Mississippi drainage basin

World’s 3rd largest watershed

Drainage basin for 41% of the USA

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12

Fossil water in the Sahara

  • Extends across an area double the size of mainland France

  • Holds more than 30,000km2 water

  • Water has accumulated over the last 1,000,000 years

  • Supports Tunisia, Algeria, Libya etc

  • Estimated recharge is 40% of withdrawals

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13

Amazon river regime

  • 6,308km long and has a drainage basin of 6 million km2

  • Major influences are rainforest climate, seasonal precipitation and high EVT

  • Peak discharge in April, May and the lowest discharge is September

  • Linked to wet and dry seasons and snowmelt from the Andes

  • Human influences - large dams for cities and HEP

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14

Yukon river regime

  • 3,540km long and drainage basin of 850,000km2

  • Tundra climate and flows through a mountain range

  • Peak discharge May, June with a dramatic increase due to snowmelt

  • Low from December to May due to frozen precipitation - very large seasonal variability

  • Few human influences but a little HEP

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15

Nile river regime

  • Regime changed significantly by the construction of the Aswan Dam in 1970

  • River flow reduced by 65% and became regulated between seasons so flood peaks in September were greatly reduced

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16

Austwick Beck

  • Flashy hydrograph - short lag time with a high peak discharge - flash flood

  • Shale rock - less permeable

  • Many tributaries mean at Austwick - high drainage basin

  • Circular drainage basin

  • Small amount of woodland - less interception

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17

Clapham Beck

  • Subdued hydrograph

  • No tributaries

  • Elongated drainage basin

  • Large woodland around the stream just before Clapham - interception, absorption, slows down

  • Gritstone and sandstone and limestone - more permeable

  • Artificial lake - more surface storage

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18

What % of the Amazon has been deforested?

20% in the last 50 years

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19

How much intercepted water in a forest is returned to the atmosphere by EVT?

75% which is reduced to 25% when forest is cleared

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20

By how much has the volume of the Aral Sea shrunk by?

80%

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21

What % of global food production depends on the depletion of groundwater?

10%

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22

How many people in the lower Mekong river basin depend on agriculture for their livelihood?

65 million+

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23

Which areas of the UK are very vulnerable in extreme weather?

York, Manchester, Leeds due to dense populations and a high, quick peak discharge

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24

Area of Amazon drainage basin

6.1 million km2

Largest drainage basin in the world

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25

What countries is the Amazon located in?

7: Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guyana

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26

What % of fresh water entering the oceans each day comes from the Amazon?

15%

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27

Treaty for Amazonian Cooperation

  • Example of an agreement between countries to protect the Amazon

  • Signed by the 7 drainage basin countries and Suriname

  • Emphasise the need to improve the QoL of Amazonian people and preserve the natural environment as economic development takes place

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28

Role of the Amazon basin for global hydrology

Acts as a vapour sink for moisture coming in from the Atlantic - humid air produces precipitation and convective clouds

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29

By how much is deforestation delaying the onset of the rainy season in a region of the Amazon?

6 days per decade

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30

Soil infiltration rates

Sandy - 3-12 mm/hr

Less permeable clay - 0-4 mm/hr

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31

Vegetation infiltration rates

Forests - 50 mm/hr

Pasture 13-23 mm/hr

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32

Economic loss of 1992 El Nino

$290 million on the Pacific coast of South America in fisheries

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33

What % of all health facilities in Peru were damaged in the 1997 El Nino?

10%

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34

Economic impact of the 1982 El Nino in Eastern Australia

$2000 million loss in agricultural production

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35

After how many years does deforested soil become infertile?

5 to 8 years

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36

Amazon dam building

  • Manaus

  • HEP - Baseload compliancy helps industry

  • Reduces natural variability in the river regime

  • No flooding

  • Destroys wetlands

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37

2024 January Nottingham flooding

80% of average January rainfall fell in 4 days

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38

Specific drough definition

3+ months with less than 50% of average rain

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39

What % of the planet has drought exposure?

38%

This land area has 70% of the global population

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40

When was the strongest ever El Nino?

1997

1998 was the strongest ever La Nina

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41

What % of Earth’s surface do wetlands cover?

10%

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42

Human contributors to and impacts of desertification in the Sahel

  • Poverty and civil war drove people onto marginal land

  • Increased rural population increased pressure for food

  • Acts as a positive feedback loop enhancing impacts of drought

  • Obstructions to pastoral migration and encroachment of farmlands on grazing areas impacted the socio-economic conditions of nomadic communities

  • Development of cotton growing on farms reduced grazing areas

  • 1999/2000 Ethiopia and Eritrean famine/drought

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43

How many people needed assistance for food in the 1999/2000 Ethiopian/Eritrean famine?

10 million

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44

What % of water falls in the summer in the Sahel?

85%

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45

Australia Big Dry

  • 2006

  • Affected more than 50% farmlands, including an area that provides 50% of agriculture

  • River Murray had been overextracted

  • High per capita consumption of water

  • Many farms rely on irrigation

  • Low, highly variable rain

  • Droughts vary massively

  • Many droughts link to El Nino

  • Since 1970s, the East has become drier

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46

How much of Australia is affected by drought in any given year?

30%

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47

Human factors contributing to 2022 Pakistan flood risk

  • Anthropogenic climate change

  • Lack of resources for aid organisations

  • Not enough medical camps

  • Government slow to act

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48

Human factors contributing to 2010 Pakistan floods

  • Nearly 70% of Pakistan’s population worked in the agricultural sector and so lived close to the rivers for irrigation

  • Rural communities flooded so people lost homes and livelihoods

  • Urban population poorer than rural so Karachi was highly affected as water pooled and could not freely flow

  • Poverty reduced people’s ability to evacuate

  • 2010 floods surpassed any preventative measures which meant these measures were weakened already before floods in 2011

  • Deforestation and illegal logging

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49

Social and economic impacts of 2022 Pakistan floods

  • Affected 33 million people

  • More than 1,700 died

  • 28,000 schools and health clinics damaged

  • Economic loss of $30bn

  • 4 million hectares of agricultural land damaged

  • 800,000 cattle and livestock died

  • 40% of children in affected areas had stunted growth

  • 25% of children in affected areas were underweight

  • Malaria, dengue fever, diarrhoea

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50

Social and economic impacts of 2010 Pakistan floods

  • More than 20 million people affected

  • 1.2 million homes damaged

  • 1,600 deaths

  • 11,000 schools closed

  • Losses of $1bn+ in the agricultural sector

  • 3.6 million hectares of agricultural land destroyed

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51

Causes of 2007 UK flooding

  • Rain in June and July was 20% higher than ever seen before

  • On 25th June, the month’s rainfall fell in 1 day

  • Jet stream did not move as normal (La Nina) so bad weather stayed over Britain

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52

Causes of 2015 flooding

December 2015 was the wettest month and second wettest winter since 1910 in the UK

Record maximum peak flows in North England

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53

Socioeconomic impacts of the 2007 flooding

  • Estimated £3bn of flood damage covered by insurance and £3bn not covered by insurance

  • 500,000 homes affected nationwide

  • In Hull, 10,000 homes were damaged

  • 340,000 people left without running water for a week in Gloucestershire

  • Cost of repairing roads in Gloucestershire was £25 million

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54

Socioeconomic impacts of 2015 flooding

  • 5,200 homes across Cumbria and Lancashire flooded

  • 43,000 homes in North-East England had no power

  • 2 people killed

  • £500m damage across Cumbria

  • 1,000 evacuated in Cumbria

  • 40 schools in Cumbria closed

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55

What % of rising sea levels is ice melt and thermal expansion?

Ice melt - 40%

Thermal expansion - 60%

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56

Major water-related events 2022 examples

  • China - heatwave led to flash floods and low levels in the Yangtze

  • Australia - high rainfall caused flood events

  • Brazil - Intense rainfall, causing flash floods and landslides

  • Europe - hot summer led to flash droughts and low river levels

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57

How much more water does warm air store?

7% per degree C of warming

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58

How many is La Ninas in a row by 2022?

2022 was the third La Nina in a row

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59

What % of the water cycle happens over the ocean?

90%

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60

What % of the severity of Western USA and North Mexico droughts is due to global warming?

46%

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61

When did most global temperature and climate records begin?

1700s and 1800s

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62

What % of wetlands have been lost?

85%

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63

How many people live in water stress?

733 million+

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64

What % of countries have trans-boundary water agreements?

25% e.g. Nile

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65

Global freshwater usage

22% industrial

6% household

2% drinking water

70% agricultural

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66

Places with water availability issues

Mexico - pesticides and fertilisers

Arizona - irrigation increases salinity

Bangladesh - aquifers overdrawn

Mexico City - ground subsidence

Pakistan - excessive pumping, wells drying out

NE China - industrial pollution

California - saltwater incursion

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67

How many illegal wells in Pakistan and India?

3 million

  • Leading to a falling water table

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68

Why does Japan use a lot of water?

Developing high tech products e.g. laptops

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69

Cost of water variations

50L costs 0.1% of typical daily salary in the UK

50L costs 108% of typical daily salary in Cambodia

50L costs 45% of typical daily salary in India

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70

What % of its available blue water supplies does Saudi Arabia use?

104%

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71

What % of Egypt’s population live within 1 mile of the Nile?

80%

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72

How many people had to move to allow the construction of the Three Gorges Dam?

1.3 million

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73

How many people use contaminated water daily in China?

300 million

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74

What % of major lakes and coastal zones in China are highly polluted?

75% major lakes

25% coastal zones

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75

Chinese cancer cluster villages

Liver + digestive cancers cause up to 80% of deaths - water pollution

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76

How many people worldwide have some signs of arsenic poisoning from drinking water?

137 million in 70 countries

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77

What % of tube wells in Bangladesh are unsafe due to arsenic poisoning?

20%

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78

How much water do we each need to meet basic human needs?

1000m3 per year

This can be met by 60% of global accessible freshwater supplies

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79

How much of the global population will be water vulnerable by 2025?

50%

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80

What % of the world’s water supplies is in 10 countries?

60%

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81

What % of the world’s population live in areas receiving 25% of annual rainfall?

66%

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82

How many people will be experiencing water stress by 2050?

4 billion

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83

How much water does the average Californian use per day?

181 gallons

More water than any other US state - US average is 80-100 gallons

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84

California water usage

60.7% irrigation

16.6% public supply

1.0% industrial

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85

How wide is the coastal zone in which most of California’s water falls?

250km wide

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86

How much water does South and Far-East California receive?

Under 100mm rainfall due to the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains

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87

How much of the annual rainfall in California falls between November and March?

3.5% - seasonal shortages

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88

California population growth

2 million in 1900s to 39.54 million in 2020

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89

Spatial imbalance of water in California

75% of demand from south of Sacramento but 75% of rainfall in the North

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90

Losses to the agricultural sector because of severe drought in California in 2021

Sector decreased by $1.2 billion and lost 8700 farm jobs

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91

How many acres of farmland in California may need to be taken out of cultivation by 2040?

0.5 million acres in order to stabilise aquifers

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92

Which species of salmon have been impacted by overextraction of the Shasta and Scott rivers?

Chinook and Coho

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93

Solutions for California’s water shortages

  • Individuals and companies reduce their water use

  • More efficient irrigation methods

  • Irrigate less land e.g. gardens, golf courses, parks

  • Recycling wasterwater

  • Storm water capture

  • Desalination

  • Changes to water rights and usage laws

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94

How many people live without access to clean water?

1 billion

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95

How many people live without sanitation?

2.5 billion

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96

New York water cost

80 cents per 1000L

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97

Baranquilla water cost

$5.6 per 1000L

  • Lack of infrastructure

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98

When was water privatised in the UK?

  • 70s and 80s

  • Due to the neo-liberal view popularised by Thatcher

  • Water would be best managed by private companies as there would be a profit motive for efficiency, investment and conservation

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99

Role of World Bank and the IMF in water privatisation

  • Structural Adjustment Programmes to help developing countries overcome debt

  • Part of this included the privatisation of utilities including water

  • TNCs from western powers often take over these utilities - fair?

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100

Cochabamba privatisation (Bolivia)

  • In 1999 water supply was privatised but in 2000 this was undone

  • Prior to the privatisation, only 57% of the population was covered by gov. water

  • There was 50% leakage, rationing and a lack of investment

  • Dependency on private wells, vendors and carriers

  • The privatisation increased water price by 35% but the service quality didn’t improve

  • There were riots, protests and violence in response - 12+ people died

  • 80,000 people occupied the main square

  • The privatisation gave the water company a monopoly over all water infrastructure, including the informal supplies

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