Water scarcity

About: Water scarcity is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 11579 publications have been published within this topic receiving 228756 citations. The topic is also known as: water shortage.

Understanding and managing new risks on the Nile with the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.

Abstract: When construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) is completed, the Nile will have two of the world’s largest dams—the High Aswan Dam (HAD) and the GERD—in two different countries (Egypt and Ethiopia). There is not yet agreement on how these dams will operate to manage scarce water resources. We elucidate the potential risks and opportunities to Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia by simulating the filling period of the reservoir; a new normal period after the reservoir fills; and a severe multi-year drought after the filling. Our analysis illustrates how during filling the HAD reservoir could fall to levels not seen in recent decades, although the risk of water shortage in Egypt is relatively low. The new normal will benefit Ethiopia and Sudan without significantly affecting water users in Egypt. Management of multi-year droughts will require careful coordination if risks of harmful impacts are to be minimized. Several dams and reservoirs exist along the Nile, most notably the HAD (Egypt) and GERD (Ethiopia) dams. Due to the lack of strategies, the authors here explore potential risks and solutions how to use both dams simultaneously.

Stomatal Responses to Drought Stress and Air Humidity

Abstract: Water is one of the most important substances for both plant and animal survival Plants require water for photosynthesis, nutrient uptake and transportation as well as cooling (Farooq et al, 2009) Plants are sessile organisms and in contrast to most animals they are unable to move when the environment becomes unfavorable Accordingly, plants have to be able to respond and adapt to the local environmental changes Since water is essential for plant survival, the ability to tolerate water stress is crucial To be able to grow plants need to take up water from the soil and CO2 from the atmosphere and use it in photosynthesis This is done by CO2 uptake through the stomatal pore, where water is simultaneously transpired Water transpiration drives the water uptake by the roots and transport through the xylem When the stomata are open CO2 is taken up while water is transpired When the stomata are closed little CO2 is taken up and the transpiration is lowered By opening and closing the stomata plants can regulate the amount of water lost, by sacrificing CO2 uptake, when the environmental conditions are unfavorable Water stress can be defined as reduced water availability; either by water scarcity (drought) or osmotic stress (high salt concentrations) or water logging; too much water Water stress may reduce photosynthesis, respiration and ion uptake, change the metabolic and growth patterns in the plant and in severe cases result in plant death (Jaleel et al, 2009a) In nature water stress is common either for long or short periods of time, depending on the local climate Most plants therefore have some adaptation or response to enhance the growth and survival rate during water stress and subsequent recovery In agriculture and horticulture drought stress is one of the major problems, causing major crop losses every year as well as loss of aesthetic value in ornamentals In agriculture crop loss is due to reduced numbers of tillers, spikes and grains per plant and reduced grain weight (Farooq et al, 2009) With the global human population rapidly increasing, simultaneously as water scarcity increases, the loss of crop will be even more serious than before The discovery and development of stress tolerant crops to avoid yield loss during water stress is therefore very important In the greenhouse industry, energy saving for economic profit is important to be able, but it also affects the plants To reduce the amount of energy needed for CO2 and heating in the greenhouses, energy-efficient semi-closed

Water Allocation in Transboundary River Basins under Water Scarcity: a Cooperative Bargaining Approach

Abstract: Transboundary river basins are one of the main sources of fresh water which are facing water scarcity. When transboundary water is contested not only the allocation outcomes matter but also the allocation process should possess a certain desirable properties such as flexibility and sustainability. Therefore designing a mechanism that possesses these desirable characteristics and allocates the contested water resource is important as well. This article proposed a water allocation framework by combining the bankruptcy theory with asymmetric Nash bargaining solution concept for solving the water sharing problem in transboundary river basins under scarcity. Furthermore, the allocation framework was applied to the Nile river basin and to a hypothetical water scarce transboundary river basin. The results obtained were then compared with the allocation outcomes from classical bankruptcy allocation rules. The results showed that the proposed method can provide insights which could be useful for obtaining water allocation outcomes which are easier to implement and enforce under water scarce conditions.

Peaceful Management of International River Claims

Abstract: As global water scarcity increases, both scholars and leaders have suggested that water will be a leading cause of future armed conflict. Yet other scholars argue that states typically cooperate rather than fight to manage their shared water resources. We address these arguments by examining the management of internationally shared rivers in the Americas, Western Europe, and the Middle East from 1900–2001. We propose hypotheses on the factors that lead states to become involved in disagreements over shared rivers as well as the factors that lead them to negotiate over these disagreements. Heckman probit analysis suggests that water scarcity – found by past work to be an important influence on armed conflict over rivers – is also an important influence on peaceful efforts to settle river problems; river claims are more likely where water supply is lower and demand is greater, but negotiations are also generally more likely in these same situations. Furthermore, while the existence of river treaties does not prevent the emergence of river claims, the presence of at least one treaty over the specific subject of the claim provides an important starting point that greatly increases the likelihood of negotiations over such claims. We conclude that the more pessimistic views of water management are missing an important part of the story. States are much more likely to negotiate in the most dangerous situations, and institutionalization of river resources can make an important contribution to negotiations over any disagreements that do emerge.

Isotope studies in large river basins: A new global research focus

Abstract: Rivers are an important linkage in the global hydrological cycle, returning about 35%of continental precipitation to the oceans. Rivers are also the most important source of water for human use. Much of the world's population lives along large rivers, relying on them for trade, transportation, industry, agriculture, and domestic water supplies. The resulting pressure has led to the extreme regulation of some river systems, and often a degradation of water quantity and quality For sustainable management of water supply agriculture, flood-drought cycles, and ecosystem and human health, there is a basic need for improving the scientific understanding of water cycling processes in river basins, and the ability to detect and predict impacts of climate change and water resources development.