Easing the strains on water

Sustainable management of water resources raises difficult political questions, writes Jennifer Rankin.

Water is not yet a politically hot topic in the same way as oil and gas, but the debate is moving in that direction. Increasingly people recognise that the business of water raises many knotty environmental, economic and geopolitical problems.

The world's water resources are under pressure. Population growth, over-consumption, bad management, pollution and wasteful consumption are putting a strain on freshwater reserves. According to the European Environment Agency, around one-third of Europeans live in areas of "water stress", ie, where demand exceeds supply at certain times. This is a problem afflicting old and new member states, from the UK to Bulgaria. Despite this problem, Europe wastes around 20% of all the water taken from lakes and rivers.

Other water problems split on geographical lines: northern and central European countries are worst afflicted by floods, southern Europe hardest hit by droughts. In future this imbalance in Europe's freshwater supply and the corresponding problems of scarcity and excess will be exacerbated by climate change (see Page 26).

Traditionally EU water policy has focused on environmental protection. This emphasis remains and has become more ambitious with the passing of the water framework directive (see Page 27). But increasingly EU policymakers are broadening their focus to take account of the impact of extreme weather and climate change. One example of this new emphasis is the floods directive of 2007, which requires member states to take action to reduce the risk of flooding. Between 1998 and 2004, the Union's territories saw 100 serious floods, causing 700 deaths and Û25 billion worth of damage. But not everyone welcomes EU action. The Association of British Insurers has argued that there is no evidence that EU intervention would add any value to existing flood-prevention policy within countries.

The problems of scarcity and excess are serious in the EU, but are of a different magnitude in poor countries. Last year, Ban Ki-Moon, the UN secretary-general, said lack of safe drinking water was "the silent crisis" facing poor countries. Almost a fifth (18%) of the world's population lack access to safe drinking water and more than two-fifths (42%) have no basic sanitation according to the UN. This year's UN-sponsored world water day (22 March) will turn the spotlight on these problems. As one of the biggest donors to developing countries, the EU has a role to play. The bloc's sustainable development strategy includes a strand to help developing countries towards halving the number of people without access to safe water by 2015 (one of the Millennium Development Goals). The EU focuses on helping countries to improve political and technical management of water resources. Most regions are expected to meet the goal, with the exception of sub-Saharan Africa.

Increasingly water is seen as a geopolitical issue as well as development issue. Water shortages are fuelling the Darfur conflict, pitting black African farmers against Arab nomads for scarce water. Some see the seeds of a similar conflict in Ghana. Last year, the UN Security Council for the first time debated climate change as a security threat.

These political conflicts and the unfolding threat of climate change mean that the political debate on water resources is rapidly heating up.

Sustainable management of water resources raises difficult political questions, writes Jennifer Rankin.