Water is vital for life, and while 70% of the Earth’s surface is covered in water, 97% of this water is not suitable for human consumption because it is contained in the world’s oceans, making it too salty for growing crops or drinking. Of the 3% of Earth’s fresh water, the vast majority is locked in glaciers and ice caps.
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This leaves a small percentage of water that must meet all the agricultural and potable drinking water needs of a planet with a rapidly growing population.
Water scarcity is a growing concern worldwide, impacting every continent. It may result from a physical water shortage, a lack of infrastructure to distribute water, or the failure of institutions to ensure a regular supply.
This whitepaper from ABB examines the challenges faced in water distribution and how measurement techniques can help address these challenges.
Water Scarcity in Numbers
Around four billion people — almost half of the global population — experience severe water scarcity for at least one month every year, while more than two billion people live in countries with a consistently inadequate water supply.
This lack of water has significant potential social consequences, with 700 million people at risk of displacement due to intense water scarcity by 2030. By 2040, it is estimated that around 25% of children worldwide will be living in areas suffering from high water stress.
Lack of water also disproportionately impacts women and children because collecting water from long distances reduces the time available to improve their education or employment prospects, for instance.
Types of Water Scarcity
Water scarcity takes two forms: physical and economic. Physical scarcity can be understood as a lack of sufficient water to meet demand, while economic scarcity can be understood as being due to poor investment in infrastructure and systems required to transport water from rivers and other sources to the people who need it.
Physical water scarcity particularly affects North Africa, Central and West Asia, while economic scarcity is a significant issue in sub-Saharan Africa.
Countries worldwide must ensure that clean water reaches customers while keeping distribution costs as low as possible and significantly reducing the amount of water wasted.
Leakages account for more than 45 million cubic meters of lost water every day. For example, pipeline water losses in India’s distribution system are higher than 45%, highlighting the need to make water supplies cost-effective and sustainable to reduce unaccounted for water (UFW).
Addressing the global water crisis also has economic benefits. According to water.org, $260bn is lost every year due to a lack of basic water and sanitation in 11 countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Addressing Water Scarcity
Measuring water flows and producing accurate data is key to addressing these issues, allowing water companies to manage supply and demand more effectively.
Leveraging the latest high-performance, accurate technologies and deploying them as widely as possible throughout water distribution networks affords water utilities the opportunity to transform water sustainability through significantly improved control and management of water supplies.
Acknowledgments
Produced from materials originally authored by ABB Measurement & Analytics.
This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by ABB.
For more information on this source, please visit ABB.