World Meteorological Organization releases first report on the state of global water resources

Xinhua News Agency, Geneva, November 29 (Reporter Liu Qu) The World Meteorological Organization released the first "Global Water Resources Status Report" on the 29th, taking stock of the world's available freshwater resources under the background of climate change.

This report aims to assess the impact of climate, environmental and social changes on the Earth's water resources to support the monitoring and management of global freshwater resources in the context of increasing demand and limited supply.

The report provides an overview of global river flow and major floods and droughts, and analyzes changes in terrestrial water storage, while highlighting the critical role and vulnerability of the cryosphere.

The report pointed out that due to climate change and La Nina events, large areas of the world will be drier than normal in 2021; land water storage in some areas such as the San Francisco River Basin in Brazil and the Southwest of the United States will decline; changes in cryosphere water resources will have a negative impact on the economy. significant impact on social development.

The report also pointed out that 3.6 billion people in the world currently face insufficient water supply for at least one month every year, and this number is expected to increase to more than 5 billion people by 2050.

World Meteorological Organization Secretary-General Petry Taalas said that people often feel the impact of climate change through hydrology, such as more intense droughts, more extreme floods, more irregular seasonal rainfall, and accelerated melting of glaciers. However, changes in the distribution, quantity and quality of freshwater resources are still poorly understood. The State of Global Water Report aims to fill these knowledge gaps.

(Editors in charge: Ai Wen, Liu Yeting)

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