Prof. Kaveh Madani, architect of the ‘water bankruptcy’ framing of today’s acute global predicament, wins world’s highest water honor for his courageous and peerless ability to transform groundbreaking research into global policy, diplomacy and outreach under extreme personal risk and political complexity

Paris – March 18, 2026 — In a special ceremony at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris to mark World Water Day, Professor Kaveh Madani of Iran, Director of the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), was named the 2026 Stockholm Water Prize recipient, to be officially presented by H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in August 2026, during World Water Week in Stockholm.

The Stockholm Water Prize is the ultimate global recognition for extraordinary achievements in water-related activities. Often described as the “Nobel Prize of Water,” it is the most prestigious water award given annually to an individual or organization for outstanding contributions to the sustainable use and protection of water resources. This year’s selection stands out not only for the scientific achievements of the laureate, but for the extraordinary journey behind them.

Professor Madani’s selection is a historic milestone for the global water community: at 44, he is the youngest laureate in the prize’s 35-year history, the first UN official, and the first former politician to receive the honor.

What makes this selection truly inspiring and unique is the resilience behind it. While many past laureates reached this pinnacle through steady institutional support, Madani reached it after being branded an enemy of the state in his own homeland.

Known to many as “Iran’s expat eco-warrior,” his journey—from a celebrated scientist to an accused “spy”, and finally to a global leader in water science and education at the United Nations—represents a triumph of scientific truth over political persecution.

A destiny in water: The academic journey of a native son

For Kaveh Madani, water was a calling long before it was a career. Born in Tehran in 1981, he was the son of two professionals who both worked in Iran’s water sector. Growing up in a country facing severe water challenges helped shape his academic path. He earned his BSc in Civil Engineering from the University of Tabriz before moving to Sweden—the future home of his prize—to complete a MSc in Water Resources at Lund University. He later earned a PhD from the University of California, Davis, and conducted post-doctoral research at University of California, Riverside, before becoming an assistant professor at the University of Central Florida.

A few years later, by his early 30s, Madani was a faculty member at Imperial College London, established as a world-class systems analyst with expertise in mathematical modeling of complex human-water systems to support policy making. His interdisciplinary and innovative work at the interface of hydrology, decision sciences, and economics earned him some of the most prestigious awards of his field at an early age. Yet, the pull of his homeland remained.

In 2017, at the invitation of Iran’s government, he made the perilous decision to leave his prestigious job in London to serve as the Deputy Vice President of Iran and the Deputy Head of Iran’s Department of Environment. His move was seen as a “symbol of hope” for the return of the Iranian diaspora and the rise of a patriotic scientist dedicated to saving his country’s environment.

The scientist they called a terrorist

Madani’s tenure in government was as impactful as it was brief. He fought for bold reforms to improve water governance and transparency. He engaged the general public in the national environmental campaigns that he designed using his game theory skills. However, his reforms and courage to speak openly about the country’s growing water crisis threatened entrenched interests.

The backlash was brutal. He was targeted by hardline security forces and subjected to a surreal smear campaign. State-aligned media labeled him a “water terrorist” and a “bioterrorist,” accusing him of using water and environmental projects as a cover for espionage for the CIA, Mossad, and MI6. Some went further, spreading conspiracy theories that he was involved in weather manipulation and “cloud theft” in collaboration with Western powers. They challenged his motives for encouraging the Parliament to ratify the Paris Agreement, a treaty that they believed was a serious threat to national security and the capacity for development.

In early 2018, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) started an active crackdown on Iranian environmental experts. Despite having a senior governmental role, Madani was a target. He was arrested and interrogated multiple times. His conservationist friends were jailed and one of them, Dr. Kavous Seyed-Emami, an Iranian-Canadian university professor, died in custody under suspicious circumstances.

A few weeks later, Madani was forced into exile. He left behind a country he loved. After living in hiding for months, he accepted an academic position at Yale University, continuing to raise awareness about Iran’s water problem and advocating for his imprisoned friends to make the world hear their plight.

But he believed that a scientist who has experienced high-level decision-making firsthand can contribute far beyond the traditional role of academia. So, he took his mission to the global stage, eventually rising to lead UNU-INWEH, known as the “UN’s Think Tank on Water.” Today, the scientist whose warnings were once dismissed in his homeland shares his expertise with governments around the world.

Revolutionizing human behavior modeling

Kaveh Madani, who also serves as Research Professor of the City College of New York, is globally recognized for his fundamental contributions to integrating game theory and decision analysis into conventional water resources management models. Early in his career, his scholarly work questioned the implicit assumption of “cooperation” in conventional mathematical human-water models.

Madani argued that in the real world individual incentives often make the optimal solution infeasible. By applying game theory frameworks to human behavior, he showed why traditional engineering models often fail to capture real-world complexities. His research provided a new toolkit for understanding the “non-cooperative” nature of water resources governance, offering pathways for resolving transboundary disputes and fostering cooperation in regions where trust is scarce. This not only impacted behavior modeling in his field but also helped him develop a skillset that was a unique asset to him when he served as Iran’s lead environmental diplomat during his political tenure.

Beyond the crisis: The era of global water bankruptcy

Millions of people around the world have heard the term ‘water bankruptcy’. Many journalists have used it to refer to local water problems. But few people beyond Madani’s compatriots know that this powerful framing is the product of two decades of his work in academia, politics, and public outreach.

Water bankruptcy is not just an influential metaphor. Madani developed this concept after challenging frequently used terms such as “water crisis.” His reasoning was simple but philosophically powerful. A crisis is supposed to be a temporary shock and deviation from normal. When water shortage becomes chronic and lasts forever, using the term “water crisis” becomes misleading to societies, he argued. By formally introducing “water bankruptcy” as a post-crisis state of failure in water management, he called for a fundamental change in global water discourse to spark different policy solutions.

Madani is the author of the landmark UN report that declared that the planet entered the era of ‘Global Water Bankruptcy’ as of January 2026 with many river basins and aquifer systems around the world having lost their ability to bounce back to their historical conditions. The report sparked intense international debate by declaring that the global water problem is no longer a temporary shock, but a state of systemic insolvency and irreversibility. By shifting the discourse to “bankruptcy management,” he has forced many policymakers to confront the reality that for many regions, the old hydrological “normal” is gone forever.

He uses simple financial language to make a complex ecological reality clear: humanity is no longer living off the “interest” of the water cycle that was being deposited into its “chequing” account; it is liquidating the “principal” and “savings” accounts by draining aquifers beyond the point of return. This simplicity is what has made the term so popular. Yet, even Madani’s colleagues in science do not know how the rising adoption of the term in Iran led to conspiracy theories by the Iranian hardliners, claiming that he created this concept to discourage farming in Iran and compromise food and national security.

The people’s scientist: A global voice for water justice

Madani has shattered the traditional mold of the “cloistered academic.” With nearly one million social media followers, he is ‘the most followed water scientist in the world’. He has pioneered a new form of scientific communication, using documentaries, viral digital campaigns, and accessible storytelling to turn complex hydrological data into public knowledge.

By stripping away the jargon, he has empowered a generation of “citizen scientists” and Gen Z activists to hold their own leaders accountable for resource mismanagement. This commitment to transparency is what earned him the reputation of a tireless global influencer for the planet for the digital age; he has proven that when people understand the science of their own survival, they become the most powerful force for environmental change.

A global diplomat: Elevating water in the global agenda

Kaveh Madani’s diplomatic roles are another highlight of his career. During his political tenure, he served as Iran’s lead environmental diplomat and the official in charge of the Department of Environment’s International Affairs and Conventions Center. In 2017, he was elected Vice President of the UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) Bureau, overseeing the world’s highest-level decision-making body on the environment, comprising all 193 UN member states.

Madani’s speech at COP23 in Bonn makes him the first national delegation leader to publicly criticize the limited attention given to water in the Paris Agreement. He called for making water a central pillar of global climate negotiations. Today, as Director of the UN’s Water Think Tank, he remains a fierce champion for the Global South, bridging the gap between scientific evidence and political action, while advocating for the elevation of water in the global policy agenda as the backbone of peace, security, and sustainability.

At a time when the Middle East is once again overshadowed by war, Kaveh Madani’s life journey serves as a poignant reminder that despite the noise of politics, our shared vulnerability is what unites us; water scarcity is a common threat that transcends all political and military boundaries.

Official Stockholm Water Prize 2026 Citation, The Prize Committee of the Stockholm Water Prize at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences

Professor Kaveh Madani is awarded the 2026 Stockholm Water Prize “based on his unique combination of groundbreaking research on water resources management with policy, diplomacy and global outreach, often under personal risk and political complexity.”

Comments

Prof. Madani:

“In the Persian tradition of Nowruz, water is a symbol of light and purity on our New Year table. To be named the Stockholm Water Prize Laureate at this specific moment is a vindication I share with all Iranians who believed in me when I was labeled a ‘threat’ for simply speaking the truth. I accept this honor with profound humility, and I am deeply grateful to my nominators, the selection committee, and the mentors, colleagues, and students who have been my intellectual family throughout this journey.
“I share this award with the millions of compatriots who stood by me, with my friends in the conservation community, who were imprisoned and killed for their love of nature, and with the brave and innocent Iranian lives taken from us in January 2026, and those lost before and since.”
“It is a profound coincidence that this news arrives as my country and the region whose sustainability I have fought for have been burning in the fires of conflicts and a war being conducted in defiance of international law. I hope that in the midst of this fragmented world, this Prize and World Water Day serve as a reminder that water does not wait for politics. Water bankruptcy is a common threat that transcends every military line. We must recognize our shared vulnerability if we are ever to find our shared peace.”

Tshilidzi Marwala, UN Under Secretary-General and Rector, United Nations University

“Professor Kaveh Madani exemplifies the mandate of the United Nations University: turning rigorous scientific insight into practical solutions for the world’s most urgent challenges.

His work has transformed how governments and societies understand water scarcity, bringing clarity and urgency to one of the defining issues of our time. Beyond his outstanding scholarship and policy impact, Professor Madani has demonstrated exceptional strategic leadership within the UNU system, revitalizing UNU-INWEH’s global footprint and forging innovative partnerships that bridge the United Nations and academia to accelerate solutions for Member States.

The United Nations family is immensely proud to see his leadership and scholarship recognized with the Stockholm Water Prize.”

Anette Scheibe Lorentzi, Chair of Stockholm Water Foundation

“Through his work and outstanding achievements, Professor Madani has made invaluable contributions to our understanding of cross-cutting and complex water issues. In the face of a changing climate, this knowledge is more important than ever, and I congratulate Professor Madani on being awarded the Stockholm Water Prize 2026”.

Vincent Boudreau, President, City College of New York

“Only a small number of scientists succeed in bridging the worlds of research, policy, and public understanding. Professor Madani belongs to that rare group.”

“His pioneering work on water governance and the concept of ‘water bankruptcy,’ along with his dedication to policy and societal outreach, has helped elevate water to the center of global sustainability discussions.”

“This recognition reflects both his extraordinary scholarship and the vital role of science in shaping a more secure future. The City College has been a proud home to many Nobel laureates and now celebrates the well-deserved awarding of the first ‘Nobel Prize of Water’ to one of its own.”

The Stockholm Water Prize

Known as the ‘Nobel Prize of Water’, the Stockholm Water Prize is the world’s most prestigious water award. Since its inception in 1991, it has been awarded annually to individuals and organizations who have made substantial contributions to the sustainable use and protection of the world’s water resources, thereby leading to improved health and well-being of humans as well as ecosystems.

The Stockholm Water Foundation presents the Prize in collaboration with the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, with H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden serving as official patron and presenter.

Each year’s Laureate is announced around World Water Day in March, then formally honored at a royal ceremony during World Water Week in August, where they play a central role in the Week’s celebrations.

stockholmwaterfoundation.org/stockholm-water-prize

UNU-INWEH

The United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH) is one of 13 institutions that make up the United Nations University (UNU), the academic arm of the UN. Known as ‘The UN’s Think Tank on Water’, UNU-INWEH addresses critical water, environmental, and health challenges around the world. Through research, training, capacity development, and knowledge dissemination, the institute contributes to solving pressing global sustainability and human security issues of concern to the UN and its Member States.

Headquartered in Richmond Hill, Ontario, UNU-INWEH has been hosted and supported by the Government of Canada since 1996. With a global mandate and extensive partnerships across UN entities, international organizations, and governments, UNU-INWEH operates through its UNU Hubs in Calgary, Hamburg, New York, Lund, and Pretoria, and an international network of affiliates.

unu.edu/inweh

Coverage highlights

The Guardian, United Kingdom (86,302,986) ‘They called me a water terrorist’: exiled Iranian scientist wins global prize

Reuters, United States (40,705,191) Climate Focus: World Water Day Special

El País, Spain (31,938,258) Kaveh Madani, from being accused of bioterrorism to winning the ‘Nobel’ of water: “I watch the destruction of Iran with deep anxiety”

The New York Times, United States (146,388,433)The planet’s warning signs are flashing red

Euronews, France (17,112,138)‘ Nobel Prize of Water’ awarded to Iranian scientist who was exiled from his homeland

Deutsche Welle, Germany (12,722,183) “Nobel of Water”: Kaveh Madani receives Stockholm World Water Prize

Dawn.com, Pakistan (4,192,219) Controversial Iranian scientist selected for ‘Nobel prize of water’

Yahoo! Actualités, France (4,132,067) The “Nobel Prize for Water” awarded to an exiled Iranian scientist

Yahoo! Finance, United States (42,208,246) CCNY Research Professor Kaveh Madani wins ‘Nobel Prize of Water’

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

Amid deepening inequalities and escalating crises, including climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution, a new United Nations report presents a bold approach for change. 

The 2025 Interconnected Disaster Risks report, Turning Over a New Leaf, issued by the UN University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), shifts focus from diagnosing problems to mapping out solutions. It establishes that many of today’s solutions are surface-level fixes, and that to create lasting change, we need to question the societal structures and mindsets that perpetuate these challenges.

 “Society is at a crossroads,” says Prof. Shen Xiaomeng, Director of UNU-EHS. “For years, scientists have warned us about the damage we’re doing to our planet, and how to stop it. But we aren’t taking meaningful actions. We know climate change is worsening, yet fossil fuel consumption keeps hitting record highs. We already have a waste crisis, yet household waste is projected to double by 2050. Time and again, we see the danger ahead, yet we keep moving towards it. In many cases, we see the abyss, we know how to turn around, and yet we confidently keep walking towards it. Why?” 

To answer this question, the report offers a more holistic analysis of what lies at the heart of human actions, and how true change can be achieved, and it also gives real-world examples of positive changes that have been made around the world and can serve as a model and source of inspiration.

The Theory of Deep Change

The previous edition of Interconnected Disaster Risks had warned about irreversible risk tipping points, and this year the authors picked up where the last report left off by developing a path forward: The Theory of Deep Change (ToDC).

This theory dives down to root causes of global problems, identifying structures and assumptions in society that allow them to persist. For example, when a river is so clogged with plastic waste that it creates disastrous floods, people might criticize the waste management system and call for more recycling. However, the Theory of Deep Change goes deeper: it first identifies the structures that allow waste to accumulate to begin with, such as single-use items or mass production systems, and then dives deeper into the assumptions that led to the creation of those systems, and that incentivize people to keep them going, such as believing that ‘new is better’ or that material production and consumption is a sign of progress. 

Change starts at the roots

The scientists relate their model to a tree, where the visible outcomes are the fruits, but the real issues lie at the roots: Rotten roots produce rotten fruits.

True change, the report emphasizes, starts at the roots. Without rethinking the values and mindsets underpinning these systems, the systems themselves will never change. Interventions such as recycling or conservation will remain inadequate because they are superficial fixes that do not address the root causes of waste and biodiversity loss. Society cannot recycle its way out of the plastic crisis without questioning why so much plastic waste is produced in the first place.

Caitlyn Eberle, a lead author of the report, remarks: “There are many people who are trying to change the world for the better. But trying to do the right thing can seem like an impossible challenge, and when we feel as though things aren’t moving in the right direction, it is easy to feel defeated. Our report shows that many of the actions we take, as well-intentioned as they are, won’t work as long as there is a whole system working against us. We need to go deeper, envision the world that we want to live in, and change the structures to match that vision.”

Recognizing and going beyond superficial fixes

Solar geoengineering is one example cited in the report of how not addressing the deep roots of a problem can cause even further risks. Currently, there is growing interest in research and deployment of solar geoengineering technologies, such as spraying aerosols into the Earth’s stratosphere to reflect sunlight back to space and lower average global temperatures. Hailed as a solution for climate change, this approach could have unpredictable impacts on weather patterns all across the globe. 

But additionally, seen through the lens of the Theory of Deep Change, solar geoengineering is also an attempt to leave the current system in place rather than committing to the real solution. By addressing the negative consequences of human actions (global warming), instead of the actions themselves (burning fossil fuels), it is a superficial fix. Moreover, when executed by individual governments or companies, it is also an example of a unilateral decision being made in one part of the world that could have far-reaching consequences for others.

Five deep changes

The report outlines five areas where deep systemic changes are urgently needed:

• Rethink waste: From trash to treasure
• Realign with nature: From separation to harmony
• Reconsider responsibility: From me to we
• Reimagine the future: From seconds to centuries
• Redefine value: From economic wealth to planetary health.

Levers: How to make change happen

To create truly deep change, the Theory of Deep Change recognizes two types of levers that can be used to affect change: inner and outer levers. While it is possible to start with one lever, both are needed to create lasting change.

• Inner levers: Inner levers are the ways we can change the current assumptions of our systems. They include paradigm or mindset shifts that allow people to redefine the boundaries of what is possible.
• Outer levers: Outer levers translate the new goals of a system into practical structures to produce more positive outcomes. They involve changes to policy, institutions or education, for instance.

In respect to the previously mentioned example of solar geoengineering, an inner lever would shift assumptions from prioritizing self-interest to viewing ourselves as responsible people caring about the global community. Outer levers can also be pulled to create structures for international governance and commitments to work together to solve global problems. Both of these are needed in combination to create a deep change that will last and result in a better future. 

Overcoming barriers to change

The report acknowledges major challenges to change, such as the “Delta of Doom” – even when solutions are clear and change is already underway, implementation can be stalled by conflicts of interest, fear and systemic inertia. This may aptly describe the strong headwinds against meaningful action we see today.   

The key to overcoming them lies in recognizing that positive change can and does happen every day, and that systems can change because they are human-made.

“Change can be uncomfortable, but going backwards won’t solve the challenges of a rapidly evolving world,” says Dr. Zita Sebesvari, another lead author of the report. “This report is not just about avoiding disaster – it’s about breaking free from the mindset of merely mitigating harm. We limit ourselves when we focus only on preventing the worst, rather than striving for the best. By addressing the root causes of the problems, fostering global cooperation and believing in our collective power, we can shape a world where future generations do not just survive but thrive. It’s time for fresh thinking, and ultimately, turning over a new leaf.”

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Further information on the five broad changes

1. Rethink waste: The world’s “take-make-waste” model is unsustainable, generating 2 billion tonnes of household waste annually – enough to fill a line of shipping containers wrapped around the equator 25 times. The report calls for a rethinking of the concept of “waste” and for shifting to a circular economy that prioritizes durability, repair and reuse. Kamikatsu, Japan is highlighted as a model of success, a town that has embraced circular strategies such as composting, upcycling, clothing exchanges, and waste separation, and that has achieved a recycling rate four times the average in Japan. The report warns that failure to keep resources in use can also affect their availability in the future. Lithium, which is used in batteries for rechargeable items like phones, is taken in great quantities, but rarely reused. Lithium reserves are currently estimated to be depleted by around 2050. At the same time, it is projected that over 75 per cent of lithium mined by 2050 will end up in the garbage. We are depleting lithium reserves while letting the lithium that has been used go to waste. 
2. Realign with nature: Humanity must stop seeing itself as separate from, and superior to, nature. Humans have attempted to control natural processes instead of coexisting with them, but centuries of exploitation have led to deforestation, species extinction and ecosystem collapse. Destroying nature destroys some of the most precious resources needed for human survival, such as clean air and water, food or the materials used for shelter. One example in the report is river channelization, a process that alters rivers to flow in straight lines, to improve navigability, create more agricultural land or to protect cities from flooding. In the 1960s, the Kissimmee River in Florida, USA, was channelized, drying out around 160 square kilometres of wetlands and leading to a massive decline in species. Furthermore, while channelization is often done to reduce flooding in one area, it frequently makes flooding worse for downstream communities. But the Kissimmee River is also a positive example: having recently been restored, wetland species have returned, corridors for panthers and bears to cross the state reinstated, and the wetlands are again serving as a sponge, storing billions of gallons of water to help prevent flooding during storms, especially important as hurricanes become more frequent and severe.
3. Reconsider responsibility: The world is a shared home to more than 8 billion people, but resources and opportunities are unevenly distributed. This disparity also extends to greenhouse gas emissions and how the impacts of climate change are felt. The wealthiest nations and individuals contribute disproportionately to emissions, while the poorest bear the brunt of climate-related disasters. One example highlighted in the report is carbon offsetting, where rich countries avoid ambitious climate goals by balancing out their own emissions through tree planting in another part of the world, thereby also shifting negative effects to these other countries (“carbon colonialism”). The report calls for a shift from individualism and unilateralism to collective global accountability, advocating for a multilateral vision for the future.
4. Reimagine the future: Short-term thinking – the problem of “presentism” – dominates decision-making. Because society tends to focus on the here and now, we often shift responsibility to future generations. The people alive today determine the conditions for the trillions of people yet to be born, and in many respects, we will be leaving future generations a world with more challenges rather than setting them up for success. One example highlighted in the report is nuclear waste. While some view nuclear energy as a clean and sustainable alternative to fossil fuels, it also produces radioactive waste with a lifespan of over 100,000 years. At present, humanity has found no way to properly dispose of this toxic waste, so it is most often deposited in temporary storage sites, which pose containment risks, in the hopes that future generations will solve the problem. The report urges for more long-term thinking, for example by institutionalizing future visioning in policymaking.
5. Redefine value: The world is becoming richer, with world GDP rising, but more global wealth does not equate more global prosperity and well-being. Benefits are not shared equally, and planetary health is declining. The report reveals an imbalance in values where economic value is usually put before other values. One example cited are forests, which support biodiversity, as well as human health and well-being. However, in some places, deforested land is valued up to 7.5 times more than forested land, leading to strong economic pressure on forests and to deforestation. A narrow focus on monetary value fuels inequality and environmental degradation and strains planetary boundaries. The report cites alternative models like Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness Index, which prioritizes well-being and ecological balance over economic growth.

By the Numbers

Rethink waste:

• 2 billion: Tonnes of household waste produced annually 
• 95% less: Energy required to produce recycled aluminum compared to primary production
• 7.4 million: Tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions saved annually in the UK by keeping organic waste out of landfills
• 80%: Recycling rate achieved by Kamikatsu, Japan (4x the national average)

Realign with nature:

• 1 million: Species of plants and animals at risk of extinction 
• 95%: Land altered by human activities
• 25,000: Kilometres of rivers planned for restoration to free-flowing conditions in Europe by 2030

Reconsider responsibility:

• 75%: of relative income losses due to climate change felt by the poorest half of the population, despite being responsible for just 12% of greenhouse gas emissions
• 98%: Decrease in ozone-depleting substances since the Montreal Protocol was enacted
• 8.2 billion: People who share planet Earth as a home
• 30%: Of the reserves of minerals essential to global manufacturing and technology are located in Sub-Saharan Africa, yet over 30% of the local population experiences severe poverty
• 1.3 million: Deaths from COVID-19 around the world that could have been prevented with equitable vaccine coverage

Reimagine the future:

• 6.75 trillion: Predicted number of births over the next 50,000 years
• 7 generations: The minimum impact window considered in the Haudenosaunee Confederacy’s decision-making principle
• $659 billion: Global investment in renewable energy in 2023, a record high

Redefine value:

• $100 trillion: Global GDP in 2022, up from $4.5 trillion in 1973
• 10%: Proportion of the global population that owns 76% of all wealth

Some examples of proven success stories: change is possible

In addition to the examples noted earlier, the report highlights many global and national initiatives where society has managed to make deep positive changes, including:

• USB-C law: In 2022 the EU passed a law requiring all portable electronics to use USB-C charging ports to reduce e-waste
• Kamikatsu Zero Waste Center: a hub for zero-waste activities in the town of Kamikatsu, Japan that allowed it to achieve an 80 per cent recycling rate
• UK Peatland Conservation: A nature-based solution benefiting both ecosystems and communities 
• Earth jurisprudence: In 2008, Ecuador’s constitution established enforceable rights of Pachamama, or Mother Earth. Under this framework, one court ruled that flooding caused by dumping construction debris into the Vilcabamba River violated rights of nature, ordering the removal of the debris to restore the right of the river to flow.
• Montreal Protocol: Successfully reversed ozone layer depletion through coordinated global action
• The Aboriginal Carbon Foundation: Indigenous-led framework to supply carbon credits
• Finland’s Committee for the Future advises on policies with multi-generational impacts
• Svalbard Global Seed Vault: Protecting biodiversity for future generations
• Green prescriptions: In countries like Canada, New Zealand and Japan, doctors give out “green prescriptions” to promote health by spending time in nature – recognizing the diverse values that nature provides.
• Bhutan’s Gross National Happiness Index prioritizes well-being and ecological balance over economic growth
• Smoking: Example of a big societal shift where a mindset shift and regulations have come together to drastically reduce an unhealthy behaviour

About the Interconnected Disaster Risks Report (#InterconnectedRisks)

Interconnected Disaster Risks is a science-based report designed to be accessible to the general public. First released in 2021, it has a different topical focus for each edition, with the aim to shed light on the interconnections that are at the root of today’s global challenges, as well as solutions. Based on thorough scientific analysis, it includes technical background reports for each of the cases it discusses in the main report, this year for each of the five changes that are highlighted.

The main report, technical reports, executive summary, along with additional multimedia resources, are available post embargo at interconnectedrisks.org

About the United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS)

The United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) was established in 2003 in Bonn, Germany. The institute conducts research work focusing on advancing human security and well-being by addressing present and future risks arising from environmental hazards and climate change. Its main areas of work are risk & adaptation and transformation. In addition to its research work, UNU-EHS offers education opportunities at the master’s level and hosts a number of international PhD projects and capacity-development courses on global issues of environmental risks and sustainable development. More information: https://unu.edu/ehs

@UNUEHS

News release in full, click here

Example media coverage (with headline translations):

Deutsche Presse Agentur (DPA):

1. UN: We have to get to the root of problems,
2. Coping with environmental crises: does a changed mindset help humanity?
3. Thinking differently: is this the salvation of humanity?

Correio Braziliense, Brazil (12,940,904): Humanity must change the way it relates to planet Earth, warns UN

Agencia EFE, Spain via Infobae, Argentina (9,304,035): New UN report proposes a profound change in structures and mentality

Anadolu Ajansı, Turkey (7,713,511): UN University urges addressing root causes of environmental challenges

ORF Online, Austria (6,546,203): Deep change necessary in five areas

El Periódico Diario Informacion, Spain (3,292,443): “Five profound changes to save the planet”: UN identifies urgent actions to address the climate crisis

Frankfurter Rundschau, via MSN Deutschland (Germany, 2,021,232): UN: We have to get to the root of problems

The Times of India (India, 30,569,186) UN University finds five deep changes urgently needed for a safer world, how to achieve them

Full coverage summary, click here

A United Nations University report finds that drastic changes are approaching if risks to our fundamental socioecological systems are not addressed.

The Interconnected Disaster Risks Report 2023 published by the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) warns of six risk tipping points ahead of us:

• Accelerating extinctions
• Groundwater depletion
• Mountain glaciers melting
• Space debris
• Unbearable heat
• Uninsurable future

Systems are all around us and closely connected to us: ecosystems, food systems, water systems and more. When they deteriorate, it is typically not a simple and predictable process. Rather, instability slowly builds until suddenly a tipping point is reached and the system changes fundamentally or even collapses, with potentially catastrophic impacts.

A risk tipping point is defined in the report as the moment at which a given socioecological system is no longer able to buffer risks and provide its expected functions, after which the risk of catastrophic impacts to these systems increases substantially. These diverse cases illustrate that risk tipping points extend beyond the single domains of climate, ecosystems, society or technology. Instead, they are inherently interconnected, and they are also closely linked to human activities and livelihoods.

Many new risks emerge when and where our physical and natural worlds interconnect with human society. One example of a risk tipping point that the report explains is groundwater depletion. Underground water reservoirs called aquifers are an essential freshwater resource around the world, and they supply drinking water to over 2 billion people. Around 70 per cent of groundwater withdrawals are used for agriculture, oftentimes when there is not sufficient water from above-ground sources available. Today, aquifers help to mitigate half of the losses in agriculture caused by drought, a phenomenon which is only expected to increase in the future due to climate change. But the report warns that now it’s the aquifers themselves that are approaching a tipping point:

More than half of the world’s major aquifers are being depleted faster than they can be naturally replenished. If the water table falls below a level that existing wells can access, farmers can suddenly find themselves without the ability to access water, which puts entire food production systems at risk of failure. Some countries, such as Saudi Arabia, have already surpassed this groundwater risk tipping point, others, like India, are not far from it.

“As we indiscriminately extract our water resources, damage nature and biodiversity, and pollute both Earth and space, we are moving dangerously close to the brink of multiple risk tipping points that could destroy the very systems that our life depends on,” said Dr. Zita Sebesvari, Lead Author of the Interconnected Disaster Risks Report and Deputy Director of UNU-EHS. “Additionally, we also lose some of our tools and options to deal with future disaster risk.”

The analysis reveals the cases share similar root causes and drivers which are embedded in our actions and behaviours that increasingly put pressure on our systems until they are pushed to the brink of collapse. Reaching these points means new risks will be introduced, many of which we do not yet know of.

“As we approach these tipping points, we will already begin to experience the impacts. Once, crossed it will be difficult to go back,” warned Dr. Jack O’Connor, Lead Author and Senior Expert at UNU-EHS. “Our report can help us see risks ahead of us, the causes behind them, and the urgent changes required to avoid them.”

The report does not just define and identify risk tipping points, but it also proposes a new framework to avoid or mitigate the consequences. Solutions fall into two categories: Avoid solutions, which target root causes and drivers of risk to avoid risk tipping points altogether and Adapt solutions, which help prepare or better address the negative impacts of risk tipping points if they cannot be avoided.

For both Avoid and Adapt solutions, there are two type of actions. Delay actions work within the existing “business as usual” system and aim to slow down the progression toward risk tipping points or the worst impacts. But the ideal action is to Transform, which involves a fundamental reimagining of a system into something stronger and more sustainable than before.

In the case of the “Unbearable heat” risk tipping point described in the report, it is human-induced climate change that is causing a global rise in temperatures, leading to more frequent and intense heat- waves that will in some areas reach temperatures in which the human body can no longer survive. An Adapt-Delay solution would aim to counteract this risk by installing air conditioners, for example. The air conditioners will delay when the risk tipping point is reached for the people in the area, but will not address the heat itself. An Avoid-Transform solution, on the other hand, would aim to halt the emissions of greenhouse gasses and at the same time drive societal change toward low-carbon ways of living so the tipping point can ultimately be avoided.

The report finds that solutions being implemented today tend to focus on Delay rather than Transform, although increasing focus is being put on transformative change to achieve global goals on transitioning to a more sustainable future. It will require more game-changing solutions to move us away from a future of multiplying risk tipping points.

Transformative solutions will also require considerable societal and personal effort, and the report highlights overall changes we can each make to our behaviours and values.

“Real transformative change involves everyone,” said Sebesvari. “The report serves as a timely reminder before the UN Climate Conference that we must all be part of the solution.”

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Brief summaries of the 6 risk tipping points included in the report

Accelerating extinctions:

Intense human activities – including land use change, overexploitation, climate change, pollution and introduction of invasive alien species – have created a rate of species extinction at least 10 to 100 times Earth’s natural rate.

Ecosystems are built on intricate connections between species. If one species goes extinct, it can have knock-on effects on many others. The risk tipping point in this context is when an ecosystem loses key species that are strongly connected, triggering cascading extinctions of dependent species, which can eventually lead to the collapse of an entire ecosystem.

An example is the gopher tortoise, which digs burrows that are used by more than 350 other species for breeding, feeding, protection from predators and avoiding extreme temperatures. One of these species is the endangered dusky gopher frog. If the gopher tortoise goes extinct, as foreseen, the dusky gopher frog is one species that will likely follow. But because the dusky gopher frog helps control insect populations and prevent pest outbreaks in longleaf pine forest ponds, its extinction would again trigger a number of negative effects that may become unstoppable.

Groundwater depletion

The risk tipping point in this context is the loss of access to freshwater resources in underground reservoirs known as aquifers.

Aquifers supply drinking water to over 2 billion people, and around 70 per cent of withdrawals are used for agriculture. More than half of the world’s major aquifers are being depleted faster than they can be naturally replenished. The tipping point in this case is reached when the water table falls below a level that existing wells can access, putting entire food production systems at risk of failure.

Some countries have already experienced the effects. Saudi Arabia was the world’s 6th-largest wheat exporter in the mid-1990s based on large-scale groundwater extraction for irrigation, but wells ran dry and the nation had to turn to wheat imports. India and other countries are currently nearing this risk tipping point, with global impacts expected to ripple through the world’s food systems, economy and environment. Also affected are the very structure of society, the well-being of future generations, and the ability to manage future agricultural losses due to climate change-driven drought.

Mountain glaciers melting

Glaciers retreat when the ice mass that formed many years ago melts faster than it is replaced by snow. Due to global warming, the world’s glaciers are now melting twice as fast than they did in the past two decades. Between 2000 and 2019, glaciers lost 267 gigatons of ice per year, which is roughly equivalent to the mass of 46,500 Great Pyramids of Giza.

Glaciers store large amounts of freshwater. Meltwater from glaciers and snow supplies water for drinking, irrigation, hydropower and ecosystems to entire regions. The risk tipping point in this context is “peak water” – the point when a glacier produces the maximum volume of water run-off due to melting. After this point, freshwater availability will steadily decline.

Peak water has been reached or is expected to occur within the next 10 years for many small glaciers in Central Europe, Western Canada and South America. In the Andes, where peak water has already passed for many glaciers, communities are grappling with unreliable water sources for drinking and irrigation. For example, Peru’s Quelccaya glacier, once the world’s largest tropical ice cap, has shrunk by 31 per cent in the last 30 years contributing to periodic dry season water scarcity and widespread impacts.

An estimated 90,000+ glaciers of the Himalayas, Karakorum and Hindu Kush mountains are currently at risk of reaching the tipping point, threatening the nearly 870 million people that rely on them.

Space debris

Space has a garbage problem. This is because when satellites become defunct, they are left in the Earth’s orbit as space debris. Out of 34,260 objects tracked in orbit today, only around 25 per cent are working satellites. The rest are junk – broken satellites or discarded rocket stages. Additionally, there are likely around 130 million pieces of debris too small to be tracked, measuring between 1 mm and 1 cm.

Space debris travels at over 25,000 km per hour, and even the smallest debris can cause significant damage if it collides with something, creating even more debris. This is why other objects, such as the International Space Station or satellites, need to regularly conduct maneuvers to avoid it. The problem worsens as more and more objects are launched into space and debris accumulates.

The risk tipping point in this context is the point at which the Earth’s orbit becomes so full of debris that
one collision sets off a chain reaction of collisions. If that were to happen, the orbit could become unusable, which would threaten our ability to operate satellites, for example to monitor the weather and environmental changes, and to receive early disaster warnings.

More than 100,000 new spacecraft could be launched into orbit by 2030, greatly increasing the risk of this tipping point.

Unbearable heat

Human-induced climate change is causing a global rise in temperatures, leading to more frequent and intense heatwaves, and this is only expected to become more severe. Extreme heat was responsible for an average of 500,000 excess deaths annually in the last two decades, disproportionally affecting those who are particularly vulnerable due to their age, health conditions or profession, for example. There are weather stations in the world that have already recorded temperatures beyond the tipping point for what a human body can survive in. If this threshold is crossed for more than six hours, even a young and healthy body will suffer extreme consequences.

The tipping point in this context is a so-called “wet-bulb temperature” above 35°C. A wet-bulb temperature is a measurement which combines temperature and humidity, relevant because high humidity worsens the effects of heat as it hinders the evaporation of sweat, which is needed to maintain a stable core body temperature and avoid organ failure and brain damage.

Wet-bulb temperatures have crossed this critical threshold in at least two weather stations, one in the Persian Gulf and one in the Indus River Basin. Research indicates that by 2070, parts of South Asia and the Middle East will regularly surpass this threshold. By 2100 more than 70 per cent of the global population may be exposed to deadly climate conditions for at least 20 days per year.

Uninsurable future:

Since the 1970s, damages as a result of weather-related disasters have increased sevenfold, with 2022 alone seeing $313 billion in global economic losses and severe disasters forecast to double globally by 2040. Additionally, the number and size of at-risk areas are predicted to expand as climate change shifts the range of hazards like wildfires and storms into new areas.

These changes also affect the insurance industry. Where extreme weather events increasingly wreak havoc, insurance premiums have climbed as much as 57 per cent since 2015, and some insurance companies in at-risk areas have decided to limit the amount or type of damages they can cover, cancel policies or leave the market altogether. For instance, it is predicted that more than half a million Australian homes will be uninsurable by 2030, primarily due to increasing flood risk.

The risk tipping point in this context is reached when insurance becomes unavailable or unaffordable, leaving people without an economic safety net when disasters strike, which opens the door to increasing socioeconomic consequences, particularly when it is the most vulnerable parts of the population that cannot afford to move to safer areas.

* * * * * 

About the Interconnected Disaster Risks report (#InterconnectedRisks)

Interconnected Disaster Risks is an annual science-based report designed to be accessible for the general public. It is published by the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security, and was first released in 2021. The idea for the report was developed based on the recognition that disasters are occurring at an ever-faster rate and, despite progress being made in how we prepare and respond to them, we are continuously being caught out by new extremes and new emerging threats. The report analyses several concrete examples of disasters each year and explains how they are inter- connected with each other and with human actions. It seeks to shed light on the interconnections that might otherwise be missed, and describes how we can develop solutions to use these connections to our advantage. The report is based on thorough scientific analysis and includes technical background reports for each of the cases, which together with the main report and executive summary are made available on interconnectedrisks.org.

About the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS)

Based in Bonn, Germany, UNU-EHS conducts research on risks and adaptation related to environmental hazards and global change. The institute’s research promotes policies and programmes to reduce these risks, while taking into account the interplay between environmental and societal factors. Research areas include climate change adaptation by incorporating insurance-related approaches, environmentally- induced migration and social vulnerability, ecosystem-based solutions to adaptation and disaster risk reduction, and models and tools to analyse vulnerability and risks linked to natural hazards, with a focus on urban space and rural-urban interfaces.

* * * * *

Media coverage highlights:

Agence France Presse, France, via Daily Mail, United Kingdom (87,359,497) UN report warns of catastrophic risks to Earth systems https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/afp/article-12670145/UN-report-warns-catastrophic-risks-Earth-systems.html

AFP French, via Sud Ouest, France (8,145,308) Débris spatiaux, chaleur insupportable… Un rapport de l’ONU alerte sur six risques catastrophiques pour la planète Space debris, unbearable heat … a UN alert report on six catastrophic risks for the planet  https://www.sudouest.fr/environnement/climat/debris-spatiaux-chaleur-insupportable-un-rapport-de-l-onu-alerte-sur-six-risques-catastrophiques-pour-la-planete-17207629.php

Reuters, via Daily Mail, United Kingdom (87,359,497) World on brink of environmental tipping points, UN says https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-12670117/World-brink-environmental-tipping-points-UN-says.html

Agenia EFE, via Infobae, Argentina (60,708,789)Informe de la ONU alerta de “calor insoportable” y agotamiento de las aguas subterráneas UN Report Alert of “Unbearable Heat” and Underground Waters Exhaustion https://www.infobae.com/america/agencias/2023/10/25/informe-de-la-onu-alerta-de-calor-insoportable-y-agotamiento-de-las-aguas-subterraneas/

CBS News,Online and national TV report, United States (37,446,105) Otis batters Mexico as U.N. climate report warns Earth close to multiple “risk tipping points” https://www.cbsnews.com/video/how-climate-change-leaks-into-hurricane-season/

Forbes United States 69,090,272 Here Are 6 Tipping Points The UN Warns Could Soon Spell Disaster For Humanity—From Space Junk To Disappearing Water https://www.forbes.com/sites/roberthart/2023/10/25/here-are-6-tipping-points-the-un-warns-could-soon-spell-disaster-for-humanity-from-space-junk-to-disappearing-water/

Le Monde France 25,370,042Un rapport de l’ONU alerte sur six risques catastrophiques pour la planèteA UN report alert on six catastrophic risks for the planet https://www.lemonde.fr/planete/article/2023/10/25/un-rapport-de-l-onu-alerte-sur-six-risques-catastrophiques-pour-la-planete_6196405_3244.html

O Globo Brazil 18,416,024Derretimento no Polo Norte, calor insuportável e detritos espaciais: ONU aponta seis riscos catastróficos para o planetaMelting in the north pole, unbearable heat and spatial debris: UN points to six catastrophic risks to the planethttps://oglobo.globo.com/mundo/clima-e-ciencia/noticia/2023/10/25/derretimento-no-polo-norte-calor-insuportavel-e-detritos-espaciais-onu-aponta-seis-riscos-catastroficos-para-o-planeta.ghtml

Le Parisien France 17,476,308Fonte des glaciers, débris spatiaux, eaux souterraines… l’ONU alerte sur six risques catastrophiques pour la TerreMelting glaciers, spatial debris, groundwater … The UN alert on six catastrophic risks for the earthhttps://www.leparisien.fr/environnement/climat/fonte-des-glaciers-debris-spatiaux-eaux-souterraines-lonu-alerte-sur-six-risques-catastrophiques-pour-la-terre-25-10-2023-PNRFJO6XYRCUTBVW4OETFY5Y5I.php

Los Angeles Times, via Yahoo! News, United States 58,017,212U.N. report warns of catastrophic climate tipping points. California is nearing severalhttps://news.yahoo.com/u-n-report-warns-catastrophic-100035185.html

Times of India India 29,331,020UN Report: Planet moving towards irreversible ‘Tipping Points’ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/un-report-planet-earth-moving-towards-irreversible-tipping-points/photostory/104704023.cms

Scientific American United States 5,796,435We Are Racing Toward Earth’s Catastrophic Tipping Pointshttps://www.scientificamerican.com/article/we-are-racing-toward-earths-catastrophic-tipping-points/

La Presse Canada 4,010,657Nouveau rapport des Nations unies Le monde se rapproche de nombreux « points de basculement »New United Nations Report Le Monde approaches many “shift points”https://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/environnement/2023-10-25/nouveau-rapport-des-nations-unies/le-monde-se-rapproche-de-nombreux-points-de-basculement.php

ICI Radio-Canada, Canada (4,486,869)Voici 6 points de bascule dont l’humanité se rapproche Here are 6 tipping points that humanity is getting closer https://ici.radio-canada.ca/recit-numerique/7216/rapport-onu-risques-points-bascule-glaciers-aquiferes-chaleur

Le Figaro, France (29,235,065) Chaleur insupportable, fonte des glaciers… Un rapport de l’ONU alerte sur les risques catastrophiques pour la planète Unbearable heat, casting of glaciers … A UN alert report on catastrophic risks for the planet https://www.lefigaro.fr/sciences/chaleur-insupportable-fonte-des-glaciers-un-rapport-de-l-onu-alerte-sur-les-risques-catastrophiques-pour-la-planete-20231025

Deutsche Welle Germany 16,594,754Klima-Kipppunkte: Sind Katastrophen noch abzuwenden?Climate tipping points: Are disasters still to be averted?https://www.dw.com/de/klima-kipppunkte-sind-katastrophen-noch-abzuwenden/a-67209113

Рамблер (Rambler), Russia (22,371,230) В Университете ООН назвали шесть переломных моментов, которые изменят мир The University of the UN called six turning points that will change the world  https://news.rambler.ru/tech/51655297-v-universitete-oon-nazvali-shest-perelomnyh-momentov-kotorye-izmenyat-mir/

Deutsche Presse Agentur, via t-online, Germany (21,513,343) Klima | Von Artensterben bis Hitze – Report zeigt Risiko-Kipppunkte Climate | From species death to heat – report shows risk tipping points https://www.t-online.de/nachrichten/panorama/wissen/id_100266750/von-artensterben-bis-hitze-report-zeigt-risiko-kipppunkte-.html

The Guardian, United Kingdom (3,254,937) Climate crisis threatens ‘tipping point’ of uninsurable homes, says UN  https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/oct/25/climate-crisis-threatens-tipping-point-of-uninsurable-homes-says-un

UK Press Association, via London Evening Standard, United Kingdom (17,051,522) Earth ‘approaching cliff edge’ of six tipping points, says UN  https://www.standard.co.uk/news/science/earth-united-states-india-saudi-arabia-b1115844.html

Radio France International (RFI) France 6,780,245 World on brink of tipping points that could be catastrophic for humanity   https://www.rfi.fr/en/environment/20231025-world-on-brink-of-tipping-points-that-could-be-catastrophic-for-humanity

CGTN China 5,297,573UN report warns of catastrophic risks to Earth systems UN report warns of catastrophic risks to Earth systems https://news.cgtn.com/news/2023-10-26/UN-report-warns-of-catastrophic-risks-to-Earth-systems-1oddj42dGk8/index.html

Press Trust of India India 125,708 UN report warns India heading towards groundwater depletion tipping pointhttps://www.ptinews.com/news/national/677045.html

IndoAsia News Service, via ProKerala.com India 8,126,852 UN University report warns about risk tipping points https://www.prokerala.com/news/articles/a1472334.html

Pravda – Правда.ру (RUS) Russia 4,252,827 Доклад организации объединенных наций перечислил 6 ключевых угроз для человечества The United Nations report transferred 6 key threats to humanity  https://www.pravda.ru/news/science/1899938-doklad_organizacii_obedinennykh_nacii_preduprezhdaet_ob_ugrozakh/

ANSA.it Italy 17,228,184 Da estinzioni al caldo, sei pericoli per il futuro secondo l’Onu  From extinctions to heat, six dangers for the future according to the UN  https://www.ansa.it/sito/notizie/topnews/2023/10/25/da-estinzioni-al-caldo-sei-pericoli-per-il-futuro-secondo-lonu_d599e676-2715-4a1d-9d3a-239b49ccf440.html

Anadolu Agency Turkey 7,166,031BM Üniversitesi, felaket riskleri raporunda “6 kritik nokta” uyarısı verdi UN University gave a “6 critical point” warning in the disaster risks report  https://www.aa.com.tr/tr/gundem/bm-universitesi-felaket-riskleri-raporunda-6-kritik-nokta-uyarisi-verdi/3032304

SAPO Portugal 7,327,485ONU alerta sobre seis riscos catastróficos para o planet UN warns about six catastrophic risks to the planet  https://viagens.sapo.pt/viajar/noticias-viajar/artigos/onu-alerta-sobre-seis-riscos-catastroficos-para-o-planeta

Belga newswire, via Le Soir, Belgium (3,381,380) Débris spatiaux, menaces sur les systèmes d’assurances… un rapport de l’ONU alerte sur des risques peu connus pour la planète Space debris, threats to insurance systems … a UN alert report on risks little known for the planet https://share.belga.press/news/f1fb03fd-93af-4f7e-85ce-e30cbe02d7a7

New Scientist, United Kingdom (3,499,332) These 6 tipping points could be catastrophic for humanity, says the UN  https://www.newscientist.com/article/2399226-these-6-tipping-points-could-be-catastrophic-for-humanity-says-the-un/

ABC, Spain (19,741,888) Las seis inquietudes del Informe de la Universidad de Naciones Unidas sobre el futuro del planeta The six concerns of the United Nations University report on the future of the planet  https://www.abc.es/antropia/seis-inquietudes-informe-universidad-naciones-unidas-sobre-20231025110006-nt.html

FAZ, Germany (15,807,368)Artensterben, Weltraummüll, Hitze Species death, space waste, heat https://www.faz.net/aktuell/wissen/interconnected-disaster-risks-report-zeigt-risiko-kipppunkte-19267107.html

ABC Online, Australia (14,445,211) UN warns humanity facing threats from space, climate change, but it’s not too late to act https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-10-25/un-report-warns-tipping-points-crisis-humanity-must-take-action/103014684

ORF Online, Austria (7,020,339) Sechs Risiken drohen zu kippen Six risks threaten to tip over https://science.orf.at/stories/3221849/

Coverage summary in full, click here

News release in full: click here

The rapidly-growing bottled water industry can undermine progress towards a key sustainable development goal: safe water for all, says a new United Nations report.  

Based on an analysis of literature and data from 109 countries, the report says that in just five decades bottled water has developed into “a major and essentially standalone economic sector,” experiencing 73% growth from 2010 to 2020. And sales are expected to almost double by 2030, from US$ 270 billion to $500 billion.

Released a few days prior to World Water Day (March 22), the report by UN University’s Canadian-based Institute for Water, Environment and Health concludes that the unrestricted expansion of the bottled water industry “is not aligned strategically with the goal of providing universal access to drinking water or at least slows global progress in this regard, distracting development efforts and redirecting attention to a less reliable and less affordable option for many, while remaining highly profitable for producers.”

Says Kaveh Madani, UNU-INWEH’s new Director: “The rise in bottled water consumption reflects decades of limited progress in and many failures of public water supply systems.”

When the Sustainable Development Goals were agreed in 2015, he notes, experts elsewhere estimated an annual investment of US$ 114 billion was needed from 2015 to 2030 to achieve a key target: universal safe drinking water. 

The report says providing safe water to the roughly 2 billion people without it woulds require an annual investment of less than half the US$ 270 billion now spent every year on bottled water.

“This points to a global case of extreme social injustice, whereby billions of people worldwide do not have access to reliable water services while others enjoy water luxury.”

Tap water perceptions

The study quotes surveys showing bottled water is often perceived in the Global North as a healthier and tastier product than tap water – more a luxury good than a necessity. In the Global South, sales are driven by the lack or absence of reliable public water supplies and water delivery infrastructure limitations due to rapid urbanization.

In mid- and low-income countries, bottled water consumption is linked to poor tap water quality and often unreliable public water supply systems – problems often caused by corruption and chronic underinvestment in piped water infrastructure.

Beverage corporations are adept at marketing bottled water as a safe alternative to tap water by drawing attention to isolated public water system failures, says UNU-INWEH researcher and lead author Zeineb Bouhlel, adding that “even if in certain countries piped water is or can be of good quality, restoring public trust in tap water is likely to require substantial marketing and advocacy efforts.”

Not necessarily safe

Dr. Bouhlel notes that the source of bottled water (municipal system, surface, etc.) the treatment processes used (e.g. chlorination, ultraviolet disinfection, ozonation, reverse osmosis), the storage conditions (duration, light exposure, temperature), and packaging (plastic, glass), can all potentially alter water quality. This may be inorganic (e.g. heavy metals, pH, turbidity etc.), organic (benzene, pesticides, microplastics, etc.) and microbiological (pathogenic bacteria, viruses, fungus and parasitic protozoa).

According to the report, “the mineral composition of bottled water can vary significantly between different brands, within the same brand in different countries, and even between different bottles of the same batch.”

The report lists examples from over 40 countries in every world region of contamination of hundreds of bottled water brands and all bottled water types.

“This review constitutes strong evidence against the misleading perception that bottled water is an unquestionably safe drinking water source,” says Dr. Bouhlel.

Water bottlers generally face less scrutiny than public water utilities

Co-author Vladimir Smakhtin, past Director of UNU-INWEH, underscores the report’s finding that “bottled water is generally not nearly as well-regulated and is tested less frequently and for fewer parameters. Strict water quality standards for tap water are rarely applied to bottled water, and even if such analyses are carried out, the results seldom make it to the public domain.”

Bottled water producers, he says, have largely avoided the scrutiny governments impose on public water utilities, and amid the market’s rapid growth, it is “probably more important than ever to strengthen legislation that regulates the industry overall, and its water quality standards in particular.”

With respect to the industry’s environmental impacts, the report says there is “little data available on water volumes extracted,” largely due to the lack of transparency and legal foundation that would have forced bottling companies to disclose that information publicly and assess the environmental consequences.”

“Local impacts on water resources may be significant,” the report says. 

In the USA, for example, Nestlé Waters extracts 3 million litres a day from Florida Springs; in France, Danone extracts up to 10 million litres a day from Evian-les-Bains in the French Alps; and in China, the Hangzhou Wahaha Group extracts up to 12 million litres daily from Changbai Mountains springs. 

Regarding plastic pollution, the researchers cite estimates that the industry produced around 600 billion plastic bottles and containers in 2021, which converts to some 25 million tonnes of PET waste – most of it not recycled and destined for landfills – a mass of plastic equal to the weight of 625,000 40-ton trucks, enough to form a bumper-to-bumper line from New York to Bangkok.

According to the report, the bottled water sector used 35% of the PET bottles produced globally in 2019; 85% wind up in landfills or unregulated waste.

By the numbers 

Among the report’s many insights, derived from data analysis and other information assembled from global studies and literature:

• Over 1 million bottles of water are sold worldwide every minute
• Annual spending per capita worldwide is US$ 34
• Worldwide annual consumption of the three main bottled water types – treated, mineral, and natural – is estimated at 350 billion litres
• The estimated US $1.225 trillion in bottled water revenues represent 17 to 24% of the global market for non-alcoholic packaged beverages
• The biggest market segment (with 47% of global sales) is treated bottled water, which could originate from public water systems or surface water, and that undergoes a disinfection treatment such as chlorination
• Citizens of Asia-Pacific are the biggest bottled water consumers, followed by North Americans and Europeans 
• 60% of global sales are in the “Global South” (Asia-Pacific, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean)
• By country, the USA is the largest market, with around US$ 64 billion in sales, followed by China (almost US$ 45 billion) and Indonesia (US$ 22 billion). Together, these three countries constitute almost half of the world market. Other top countries by sales: Canada, Australia, Singapore, Germany, Thailand, Mexico, Thailand, Italy, Japan
• The average cost of a bottle of water in North America and Europe is around US$ 2.50, more than double the price in Asia, Africa and LAC ($0.80, $0.90 and $1, respectively). Australia, the fifth largest market, has the highest average price: $3.57 per unit.
• Bottled water per litre can cost 150 to 1,000 times more than the price a municipality charges for tap water.
• Biggest per capita consumers: Singapore and Australia. Citizens of Singapore spent $1,348 per capita on bottled water in 2021, Australians $386
• According to previous studies, about 31% of Canadians, 38% of Americans, and 60% of Italians use bottled water as their primary drinking source. In the Dominican Republic, 60% of households use bottled water as their primary water source, with a strong correlation between income and bottled water consumption. About 80% of Mexicans use bottled water, and 10% use home-purified water as their primary drinking water source; roughly 90% cite health concerns for doing so
• Egypt is the fastest-growing market for treated bottled water (40% per year). Seven other countries from the Global South are among the top 10 fastest-growing markets: Algeria, Brazil, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, India, Morocco, and Saudi Arabia.
• In Europe, Germany is the biggest bottled water market; in Latin America and the Caribbean, Mexico is the biggest market; in Africa, it’s South Africa.
• Treated water appears to be the market’s largest component by volume, while natural waters appear to generate the most profit.
• Five companies – PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, Nestlé S.A., Danone S.A, and Primo Corporation have combined sales of $65 billion, over 25% of the global total
• Earlier studies of water withdrawals declared in India, Pakistan, Mexico and Nepal showed total estimated withdrawals by Coca-Cola and Nestlé in 2021 at 300 and 100 billion litres, respectively

* * * * * 

UNU-INWEH

http://bit.ly/1vjfKAS

The UNU Institute for Water, Environment and Health is a member of the United Nations University family of organizations. It is the UN Think Tank on Water created by the UNU Governing Council in 1996. Its mission is to help resolve pressing water challenges of concern to the UN, its Member States and their people, through knowledge- based synthesis of existing bodies of scientific discovery; cutting edge targeted research that identifies emerging policy issues; application of on-the-ground scalable solutions based on credible research; and relevant and targeted public outreach.  UNU-INWEH is hosted by the Government of Canada and McMaster University.

******

News release in full, click here

CNN, United States (134,312,034) The plastic water bottle industry is booming. Here’s why that’s a huge problem  https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/16/world/plastic-water-bottles-un-report-climate

Reuters, via Daily Mail, United Kingdom (76,772,682) Rising bottled water consumption signals safe drinking water goal is under threat, says U.N. think tank https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-11868165/Rising-bottled-water-consumption-signals-safe-drinking-water-goal-threat-says-U-N-think-thank.html

Agence France Presse, France, a) French, via La Croix, France (2,705,128) La moitié des ventes d’eau en bouteille suffirait à fournir de l’eau potable à tous, selon l’ONU https://www.la-croix.com/environnement/moitie-ventes-deau-bouteille-suffirait-fournir-leau-potable-tous-selon-lONU-2023-03-16-1201259394

b) English via Radio France International (6,120,000) Half of bottled water sales would be enough to give universal access to drinking water (UN)
https://www.rfi.fr/es/m%C3%A1s-noticias/20230316-mitad-de-ventas-de-agua-embotellada-alcanzar%C3%ADa-para-dar-acceso-universal-al-agua-potable-onu

c) Spanish, via La Nación, Argentina (21,474,486)
Mitad de ventas de agua embotellada alcanzaría para dar acceso universal al agua potable (ONU) https://www.lanacion.com.ar/agencias/mitad-de-ventas-de-agua-embotellada-alcanzaria-para-dar-acceso-universal-al-agua-potable-onu-nid16032023/

Bloomberg, United States (30,080,279) Bottled Water Sales Exceed Cost of Providing Safe Water for All, UN Says  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-03-16/bottled-water-boom-detracts-from-safe-drinking-water-focus-un-warns

Agencia EFE, via MSN.com, United States (185,235,630) Hay millones de personas sin agua potable. La ONU acusa a las embotelladoras  https://www.msn.com/es-us/noticias/others/hay-millones-de-personas-sin-agua-potable-la-onu-acusa-a-las-embotelladoras/ar-AA18IbbX

Australian Associated Press, Australia, via Daily Mail, United Kingdom (76,772,682) a) Unquenched Aussie thirst for world’s most costly water https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/aap/article-11868183/Unquenched-Aussie-thirst-worlds-costly-water.html
b) Australians are thirsty for pricey bottled water: UN https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/aap/article-11868181/Australians-thirsty-pricey-bottled-water-UN.html

Belga, Belgium, from AFP, via Sudinfo (3,804,253)
La moitié des ventes d’eau en bouteille suffirait à fournir de l’eau potable à tous, affirme l’ONU https://www.sudinfo.be/id634776/article/2023-03-16/la-moitie-des-ventes-deau-en-bouteille-suffirait-fournir-de-leau-potable-tous

Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau (ANP), Netherlands, via Noordhollands Dagblad, (1,036,049)  Instituut: fleswater zit ontwikkeling leidingwater in de weg  https://www.noordhollandsdagblad.nl/cnt/dmf20230316_54723590

News sites, original stories (different reporters)

La Nación, Argentina (21,474,486)
Aumento de consumo de agua embotellada hace peligrar objetivo de agua potable de onu: expertos https://www.lanacion.com.ar/agencias/aumento-de-consumo-de-agua-embotellada-hace-peligrar-objetivo-de-agua-potable-de-onu-expertos-nid16032023/

El Español, Spain (33,831,415) El negocio del agua o cómo el ‘boom’ de la embotellada disfraza el fracaso de proveerla de forma segura https://www.elespanol.com/enclave-ods/historias/20230316/negocio-embotellada-disfraza-fracaso-proveerla-forma-segura/748925300_0.html

El Confidencial, Spain (28,465,479)
El desastre global del agua embotellada: más cara y contaminante (y no es más saludable) https://www.elconfidencial.com/tecnologia/ciencia/2023-03-16/desastre-agua-embotellada-cara-saludable_3593902/

L’Obs, France (5,784,242) L’eau en bouteille est-elle un obstacle au développement durable?  https://www.nouvelobs.com/sciences/20230316.OBS70921/l-eau-en-bouteille-est-elle-un-obstacle-au-developpement-durable.html

Les Echos, France (5,297,982) La charge des Nations Unies contre l’eau vendue en bouteille https://www.lesechos.fr/monde/enjeux-internationaux/la-charge-des-nations-unies-contre-leau-vendue-en-bouteille-1916470

Público, Portugal (2,865,936)
Água engarrafada não é mais segura que a da torneira, diz relatório da ONU https://www.publico.pt/2023/03/16/azul/noticia/agua-engarrafada-nao-segura-torneira-relatorio-onu-2042389

Investing, Spain (2,221,188)

Aumento de consumo de agua embotellada hace peligrar objetivo de agua potable de ONU: expertos https://es.investing.com/news/commodities-news/aumento-de-consumo-de-agua-embotellada-hace-peligrar-objetivo-de-agua-potable-de-onu-expertos-2372980

MeteoWeb, Italy (1,340,114)

Uno studio svela il lato oscuro dell’industria dell’acqua in bottiglia  https://www.meteoweb.eu/2023/03/acqua-potabile-acqua-imbottigliata-industria-ambiente-inquinamento/1001215591/

The New Daily, Australia (1,017,563) ‘One of the biggest scams’: Study uncovers the downsides of bottled water fad  https://thenewdaily.com.au/life/health/2023/03/17/bottled-water-environmental-toll/

ABC National Radio, Australia

Full coverage summary, click here

Trapped sediment has robbed roughly 50,000 large dams worldwide of an estimated 13% to 19% of their combined original storage capacity, and total losses will reach 23% to 28% by 2050, UN research warns.

The global loss from original dam capacity foreseen by mid-century – from ~6,300 billion to ~4,650 billion m3 in 2050, a difference of ~1,650 billion m3 – roughly equals the annual water use of India, China, Indonesia, France and Canada combined.

UN University’s Canadian-based Institute for Water, Environment and Health applied previously-determined storage loss rates in various areas worldwide to large dams in 150 countries to forecast cumulative reservoir storage losses by country, region, and globally. 

The United Kingdom, Panama, Ireland, Japan and Seychelles will experience the highest water storage losses by 2050 – between 35% and 50% of their original capacities – the study shows. By contrast, Bhutan, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Guinea, and Niger will be the five least affected countries, losing less than 15% by mid-century.

“The decrease in available storage by 2050 in all countries and regions will challenge many aspects of national economies, including irrigation, power generation, and water supply,” says Dr. Duminda Perera, who co-authored the study with UNU-INWEH Director Vladimir Smakhtin and Spencer Williams of McGill University in Montreal. It is published by the journal Sustainability.

“The new dams under construction or planned will not offset storage losses to sedimentation. This paper sounds an alarm on a creeping global water challenge with potentially significant development implications.”

The researchers applied previously-established storage loss rates worldwide to a subset of nearly 60,000 dams in a database maintained by the International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD). The subset comprises 47,403 large dams for which original storage capacity and year of construction are known: 28,045 in Asia-Pacific, 2,349 in Africa, 6,651 in Europe, and 10,358 in North, Central and South America.

Large dams and reservoirs – defined as higher than 15 m, or between 5 and 15 m high impounding over 3 million m3 – are essential in many places for hydroelectricity, flood control, irrigation, and drinking water.

River sediment accumulates behind a dam’s barrier. The problem, often ignored, has now become a significant challenge to global water storage infrastructure that must be addressed with a long-term sediment management strategy.

“Sedimentation is a serious issue that endangers the sustainability of future water supplies for many,” says Dr. Smakhtin.

“It stimulates downstream flooding causing erosion, impacting wildlife habitats and coastal populations. And abrasive sediments can damage hydroelectric turbines and other dam components and mechanisms, decreasing their efficiency and increasing maintenance costs.”

Global average annual storage losses amount to approximately 0.36% of initial capacity, the UNU-INWEH study says, noting that figure may err on the conservative side. Previous attempts to estimate a global annual rate of loss from initial reservoir capacity generally agree on a range between 0.5% and 1%. 

Many other studies suggest, however, that reservoir sedimentation rates and associated storage losses are site-specific and vary significantly between regions.

For example, other researchers have estimated the loss from 190 California reservoirs at more than 50% from their original capacities, with 120 reservoirs having lost over 75%. A similar study predicted Japan’s Sakuma reservoir will lose around 44% of its initial capacity by 2040. 

* * * * *

The Americas

The Americas’ 19 countries contain 10,358 large dams with an initial storage capacity of 2,810 billion m3 foreseen falling 28% to 2,014 billion m3 by 2050. And Panama’s 21 dams appear to be facing the highest storage loss: 38%, from an initial 9.5 billion m3 to 5.9 billion m3 by 2050.

Brazil, second after the USA in the Americas in number of large dams, will lose an estimated 23% of its initial storage of 600 billion m3 by 2050.

* * * * *

Europe

Europe’s 6,651 large dams across 42 countries had a total initial storage capacity of 895 billion m3.  The region has already lost 19% of that volume, will lose up to 21% by 2030 and 28% by 2050, the study found.

Among the 42 countries, 33 (~78%) will likely lose over 25% of initial storage by 2050 in part because of the dams’ age. Ireland can anticipate the greatest loss of storage by 2050 (39%), Denmark the least loss (20%). Turkey, Iceland, Hungary, and Cyprus appear to be Europe’s other least-impacted countries.

* * * * *

Africa

Already, the 2,349 dams across Africa’s 44 countries have lost about 702 billion m3 or 15% of their original storage capacity. By 2030 and 2050, cumulative storage losses are estimated at 17% and 24%, respectively.

The Seychelles’ two dams have to date lost about 30% of their original 1 million m3 capacity and are projected to lose 50% by 2050 – the greatest loss of any country. Madagascar, DR Congo, Chad, and Zambia are projected to lose 30% by 2050, while another 11 countries will lose an estimated 25% to 30% by mid-century. 

The lowest storage loss by 2050 is estimated for Niger (11%).  Losses of less than 15% are foreseen for Sierra Leone, Congo, Ethiopia, and Guinea, mostly attributable to their relatively young dams.

A previous study noted that the Aswan Dam on the Nile River, with 99% of estimated trapping efficiency, has almost completely blocked sediment flow to the Nile River Delta. 

The new UNU-INWEH study estimates Aswan dam storage losses at 18%, 21%, and 28% in 2022, 2030, and 2050 respectively.

* * * * *

Asia-Pacific

Combined with those in Australia, and New Zealand, Asia’s 43 countries are home to 35,252 large dams, making it the world’s most heavily dammed region. The region is home to 60% of the world’s population and water storage is crucial for sustaining water and food security. 

In 2022, the region is estimated to have lost 13% of its initial dam storage capacity. It will have lost nearly a quarter (23%) of initial storage capacity by mid-century. 

The loss of storage capacity of Japan’s 3,052 dams (average age: over 100 years) is the most acute in the region.  Having already lost 39% of their total initial storage capacity, they will have lost nearly 50% by 2050 on average, and 67% in some cases.

In 2015, India’s Central Water Commission reported that among 141 large reservoirs over 50 years old, one-quarter had already lost at least 30% of their initial storage capacity. UNU-INWEH estimates that India’s 3,700 large dams will have lost on average 26% of their initial total storage by 2050.

China, meanwhile, the world’s most heavily dammed nation, has lost about 10% of its storage and will lose a further 10% by 2050.

* * * * *

Authors of the new paper note that their rough estimates could be greatly improved through consistent basin-wide monitoring of sediment transport and frequent bathymetry surveys of individual reservoirs.

Dredging can be costly, they add, and only temporary. Sediment flushing is more financially attractive but may have significant adverse impacts downstream. 

Solutions such as bypass (or diversion) are gaining traction due to the growing public quest to minimize dams’ adverse environmental impacts. Bypassing is a technique that diverts the flow downstream via a separate channel to manage high-flow events during which sediment concentration is particularly high.

At their optimum operational levels, bypass tunnels can reduce sedimentation by 80%–90% as mentioned in a previous study. 

Enhancement of the dam height is another alternative to recover the storage loss due to sedimentation. However, this should be executed only after a careful assessment of the dam’s structural strength. 

Such an increase in height will also expand the reservoir area, potentially displacing communities and many species’ habitat. 

Complete dam removal, including those filled with sediments, is a slowly emerging practice, returning rivers to their natural state and reestablishing natural river sediment transport. Treatment and disposal of accumulated sediments may be needed as they may contain heavy metals and other toxins.

“Clearly, this study’s results need to be interpreted by local authorities with consideration given to local specifics and factors,” says Dr. Perera.

“What is most important to underline is the disturbing overall magnitude of water storage losses due to sedimentation.  This adds to the list of world water development issues we need to address with resolve.”

* * * * * 

UNU-INWEH (http://bit.ly/1vjfKAS)

The UNU Institute for Water, Environment and Health is a member of the United Nations University family of organizations. It is the UN Think Tank on Water created by the UNU Governing Council in 1996.

Its mission is to help resolve pressing water challenges of concern to the UN, its Member States and their people, through knowledge- based synthesis of existing bodies of scientific discovery; cutting edge targeted research that identifies emerging policy issues; application of on-the-ground scalable solutions based on credible research; and relevant and targeted public outreach. 

UNU-INWEH is hosted by the Government of Canada and McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario.

Coverage highlights;

Newswires

Reuters, UK “World’s dams to lose a quarter of storage capacity by 2050 – UN research World’s dams to lose a quarter of storage capacity by 2050 – UN research” https://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/reuters/article-11624173/Worlds-dams-lose-quarter-storage-capacity-2050–UN-research.html

Agence France Presse, “Trapped sediment in dams ‘endangers’ water supplies: UN” https://news.yahoo.com/trapped-sediment-dams-endangers-water-193052837.html

Agencia EFE, Spain “ONU advierte de amenaza oculta que afecta a los embalses en todo el mundo” (UN warns of hidden threat that affects reservoirs worldwide) https://www.infobae.com/america/agencias/2023/01/11/onu-advierte-de-amenaza-oculta-que-afecta-a-los-embalses-en-todo-el-mundo/

Deutsche Presse Agentur, Germany “Sedimente lassen Speicherkapazität von Staudämmen sinken” (Sediments let the storage capacity of dams decrease) https://www.welt.de/newsticker/dpa_nt/infoline_nt/wissenschaft_nt/article243160207/Sedimente-lassen-Speicherkapazitaet-von-Staudaemmen-sinken.html

SAPO, Portugal “Maiores barragens do mundo podem perder 26% da capacidade de armazenamento até 2050” (Largest dams in the world can lose 26% of the storage capacity by 2050) https://greensavers.sapo.pt/maiores-barragens-do-mundo-podem-perder-26-da-capacidade-de-armazenamento-ate-2050/

Press Trust of India, “3,700 dams in India will lose 26% storage capacity due to sedimentation by 2050: UN study” https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/india/3700-dams-in-india-will-lose-26-storage-capacity-due-to-sedimentation-by-2050-un-study-9835031.html

Ars Technica, United States “Sedimentation threatens to steal capacity from nearly 50,000 dams” https://arstechnica.com/science/2023/01/sedimentation-threatens-to-steal-capacity-from-nearly-50000-dams/

Berita Harian, Malaysia “Empangan seluruh dunia hilang 25 peratus simpanan menjelang 2050” (Worldwide dams lost 25 percent savings by 2050) https://origin.bharian.com.my/dunia/asia/2023/01/1050865/empangan-seluruh-dunia-hilang-25-peratus-simpanan-menjelang-2050

Dawn, Pakistan “Sediment robbing dams of storage capacity Sediment robbing dams of storage capacity” https://www.dawn.com/news/1731221/sediment-robbing-dams-of-storage-capacity

Kompas, Indonesia “PBB: Bendungan Besar Dunia Bisa Kehilangan Seperempat Kapasitasnya pada 2050” (UN: The world’s large dam can lose a quarter of its capacity in 2050) https://www.kompas.com/global/read/2023/01/12/143000170/pbb–bendungan-besar-dunia-bisa-kehilangan-seperempat-kapasitasnya-pada

Le Temps, Switzerland “La capacité de stockage des lacs de barrage se réduit dangereusement” (The storage capacity of dam lakes is dangerously reduced) https://www.letemps.ch/sciences/capacite-stockage-lacs-barrage-se-reduit-dangereusement

Naver, Korea “잦은 가뭄·홍수에 댐 바닥 침전물까지…전세계 물 부족 경고” (Frequent droughts and floods to dam floor sediment… Water shortage warning around the world) https://n.news.naver.com/article/028/0002623070

Coverage summary in full, click here

News release in full, click here

Tapping a fraction can help meet fast-growing global freshwater needs

UN and partner water experts say it is time to increase the tapping of Earth’s diverse and abundant unconventional water sources – the millions of cubic kilometres of water in deep land-based and seabed aquifers, in fog and icebergs, in the ballast holds of thousands of ships, and elsewhere. 

A new book, Unconventional Water Resources, published by Springer and compiled by experts at UN University’s Institute for Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), the UNU Institute for Integrated Management of Material Fluxes and of Resources (UNU-FLORES), and the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), says these potential supplies can help many of the 1 in 4 people on Earth who face shortages of water for drinking, sanitation, agriculture and economic development.

Based on the most up to date information and data, and with contributions from renowned scientists, experts and practitioners worldwide, the book showcases the potential of different types of unconventional water resources – tapping offshore and onshore deep groundwater, for example, reusing water, moving water physically to water-scarce areas, and more.

Says UNU-INWEH Director Vladimir Smakhtin: “As climate change worsens and with population rising worldwide, water shortages are a top threat to human development and security, making this authoritative analysis of unconventional water resources both timely and important.”

“Harnessing the potential of unconventional water sources could benefit billions of people,” says UNU-INWEH Deputy Director Manzoor Qadir, the book’s lead editor. “These sources will be essential to building a future in arid areas.”

The book identifies six broad categories of unconventional water sources: 

1) Harvesting water from the air with cloud seeding and fog collectors

The atmosphere contains an estimated 13,000 km³ of water vapour, some of which can be captured through cloud seeding and the collection of water from fog and mist.  (A cubic kilometre of water equals the volume of 400,000 Olympic swimming pools, and annual global freshwater demand today is estimated at roughly 4,600 km³ – comparable to the volume of North America’s Lake Michigan, or 1.7 times that of Africa’s Lake Victoria.)

Cloud Seeding or Rain Enhancement 

Cloud seeding can enhance rainfall by up to 15% under the right conditions, and studies show that rain enhancement can work with reasonable cost-benefit ratios. An increasing number of countries plan to carry out rain enhancement in response to water shortages and other societal needs.

Fog Harvesting

Remote communities in Chile, Morocco, and South Africa have used vertical mesh nets to harvest fog for over 100 years, and there are viable sites for fog harvesting on every continent. Advancements in materials and indigenous knowledge have helped develop highly productive, relatively low cost, environmentally-friendly designs to collect potable water – more than 20 litres on a dense fog day for every square metre of mesh.  At an overall cost of less than $250 per square metre of mesh lasting more than a decade, some 75,000 litres per square metre is produced at a cost of just 33 cents a litre.

2) Desalination

Every day desalination contributes over 100 million cubic metres of water, supporting approximately 5% of the world’s population. This volume is projected to double by 2030 while costs will fall by 50%.  New developments in desalination will likely make it the lowest-cost unconventional water supply resource worldwide, particularly in low-income countries where production of desalinated remains far from reality.

While desalination is energy intensive today, innovative technologies such as nanoparticle enhanced membranes and forward osmosis are reducing energy inputs by 20 to 35%. Meanwhile, desalination produces enormous quantities of brine, a pollutant of increasing concern where it is discharged. New technologies that can extract salts, magnesium and other metals from brine to yield commercially-viable products could offset the cost of desalinated water production in the next decade.

3) Reusing water 

Municipal wastewater

Advanced municipal wastewater treatment systems offer a water source while protecting high-quality freshwater surface and groundwater. 

Today around 70% of municipal wastewater in high-income countries is treated, but this falls to only 8% in low-income countries. The annual volume of untreated municipal wastewater is estimated at 171 km³, much of it dumped into the environment, reducing the quality of water in many parts of the world.

Treated wastewater is increasingly used to recharge underground aquifers that supply drinking water in a number of countries. Treated wastewater provides 25% of Windhoek, Namibia’s potable water supply and meets 40% of Singapore’s demand. San Diego, California and other US cities likewise obtain some of their drinking water this way, while Israel and other places use treated wastewater to supply close to a quarter of its agricultural water needs. 

Acceptance of reused wastewater by people and policymakers remains a challenge.

Agricultural drainage water 

Just 1/5th of all cultivated lands are irrigated but they produce 40 percent of the world’s food. Compared to rainfed agriculture, irrigated agriculture is, on average, at least twice as productive per unit of land as it enables production intensification and crop diversification.  And even more food can be grown using the same amount of water through better conservation and reuse of irrigated agricultural drainage water. The latter requires extra care and management as drainage water will always be more saline than the irrigation water from which it is generated. 

Salt-tolerant crops along with new varieties make it increasingly possible to grow crops in saline water. Cyclic and blending are key management options where one field uses the irrigated drainage water from another and then a third uses that drainage water mixed with freshwater. Water and salt from super-saline drainage can be harvested using solar evaporation. 

4) Tapping fresh and brackish groundwater offshore and onshore

The volume of renewable groundwater may be as great as 5 million km³, though much of it tends to be brackish (salty). The seabed near shorelines has considerable volumes of water that is fresh to brackish. 

Offshore 

There are vast quantities (estimated 300,000-500,000 km³) of water in aquifers at shallow depths in continental shelves around the world. These aquifers are less than 100 km offshore, created millions of years ago when sea levels were much lower. 

Some 3,000 years ago, ancient Syrians placed an inverted funnel over a submarine spring offshore to provide about 1,500 litres per second to the city of Tyre. In the 1970s, exploratory drilling offshore of the US eastern seaboard found little oil or gas but did identify vast quantities of fresh to brackish water. Today new marine electromagnetic exploration methods provide detailed images of offshore freshwater. These images, combined with horizontal drilling technologies, can make production of economically significant volumes of freshwater available to be pumped to shore for at least 30 years. To date, no offshore freshwater resources have been developed. 

Inshore Continental Brackish Groundwater Resources 

Deep inland aquifers with brackish or salty water in volumes estimated to total millions of cubic kilometres. As shallow freshwater sources have diminished there has been an exponential growth in brackish water reverse-osmosis desalination plants for drinking water across the United States. In Israel and Spain desalinated water produced from brackish water is also used for production of high value crops. 

Reducing the high costs involved can be accomplished by using electromagnetic surveys to find relatively abundant fresh / brackish water sources and locating desalination facilities there. Improving the efficiency of such facilities will enable broader use of desalinated water in agriculture. Notably, deep underground aquifers can contain hot brackish water that can first be used for geothermal heating in greenhouses and aquaculture facilities and then desalinated, reducing overall costs. 

5) Micro-scale capture of rainwater that would otherwise evaporate

In dry environments over 90% of rainwater is typically lost to evaporation and surface runoff. Micro-catchment rainwater harvesting provides a unique opportunity to capture water for crop production and local needs. It is an ancient practice that employs a wide range of techniques from rooftop and cistern collection to farm and landscape systems including contour ridges, bunds, small runoff basins and strips.  

Even in very dry areas, collecting rainwater from three quarters of the land and using it on the remaining quarter can often provide plenty of water for livestock watering and shrub production.

6) Moving water physically to water-scarce areas in ships’ ballast holds, or towing icebergs

Ballast water 

Ships transport around 90 percent of the goods traded worldwide and discharge some 10 billion tons of ballast water (10 km³) every year. Under the International Convention on the Control and Management of Ships’ Ballast Water and Sediments, all ships of 400 gross tonnage and above must have onboard treatment options to desalinate ballast water, remove invasive aquatic organisms and unhealthy chemical compounds, and is usable for other economic activities such as irrigation. This water could be sold to port cities in arid regions. 

One study estimated that oil tankers and liquefied natural gas (LNG) ships docking in the port city of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates could transfer their ballast water to an onshore water treatment plant. Ports with onshore desalination facilities could also sell treated ballast water.

Icebergs

The more than 100,000 Arctic and Antarctic icebergs that melt into the ocean each year contain more freshwater than the world consumes. Iceberg-harvesting for freshwater has long been discussed but not seen as practical. However icebergs are towed to supply water to 700 residents of Qaanaaq, Greenland.  Iceberg towing is done in Newfoundland and Labrador to prevent collisions with offshore oil and gas platforms as well as for freshwater and other uses.

Long distance iceberg-towing has never been attempted due to significant loss of water volume and potential breakup of the ice while towing. However a financial feasibility analysis of towing icebergs to Cape Town, South Africa suggests it is an economically attractive option if the icebergs to be towed are big enough, i.e. 125 million tons. Wrapping icebergs in a net and then a mega-bag would likely prevent breakup and reduce melting, studies suggest. Other challenges, however, include turning an iceberg into potable water at its destination and the environmental impacts.

* * * * *

Additional comments

Vladimir Smakhtin, Director, UNU-INWEH (inweh.unu.edu)

“The stark fact is that conventional water provisioning approaches relying on snowfall, rainfall and river runoff are not enough to meet growing freshwater demand in water-scarce areas.  Water scarcity is expected to intensify in regions like the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), which has 6% of the global population but only 1% of the world’s freshwater resources. Climate change adds to this complexity, creating uncertainty and extended droughts, mostly in arid areas.”

“Water-scarce countries need a radical rethink of water resource planning and management that includes the creative exploitation of a growing set of viable but unconventional water resources for food production, livelihoods, ecosystems, climate change adaptation, and sustainable development.”

Manzoor Qadir, Deputy Director, UNU-INWEH

“Water scarcity is ranked among the top 5 in terms of impacts on livelihoods and human wellbeing. By 2030, humanity’s annual global water requirements will exceed current sustainable supplies by 40%, according to one analysis, and almost half of all countries (87 out of 180) are projected to become water-scarce by 2050.”

“The time has come for humanity to tap into the vastly under-used unconventional water sources.  Our book stresses, however, that national water policies and action plans to tap these sources will first require local assessments of the environmental trade offs.  And a prerequisite for that in many places will be greater institutional and human capacity to evaluate potential unconventional water source uses, including comprehensive cost analyses.  Innovative financing mechanisms will also be needed.” 

Edeltraud Guenther, book co-Editor and Director, UNU-FLORES (flores.unu.edu)

“Increasing water scarcity is now recognized as a major cause of conflict, social unrest and migration and at the same time water is increasingly considered as an instrument for international cooperation to achieve sustainable development. When exploiting unconventional water resources, we often focus on the costs of actions only. But we have to calculate the costs of inaction as well, and we have to explore opportunities to transfer or shift costs to other stakeholders, consumers or the government. Tapping and assessing sustainably every available option in water-scarce areas is needed as pressure continues to build on limited water resources.”

Sasha Koo-Oshima, book co-Editor and Deputy Director, UN FAO (fao.org) 

“The increasing pressures on water resources requires a new era of water management, one that addresses barriers to efficient water management and ensures that water in all its forms is monitored and accounted for, including its value to food, ecosystems and health, and its role in supporting food security and basic needs of humanity and economic development.”

* * * * * 

Media coverage highlights:

The Hill, via Yahoo! News, United States (62,797,142), UN experts call upon nations to tap ‘unconventional water resources’

Deutsche Presse Agentur via DIE WELT, Germany (16,239,674)
Wasserknappheit: Experten wollen andere Quellen Nutzen (Water scarcity: experts want to use other sources) 

Agencia EFE, Spain, De la atmósfera a los icebergs: Las nuevas fuentes para buscar agua (From the atmosphere to icebergs: The new sources to search for water) 

Libération, France (6,275,441), Icebergs, nuages, eaux usées… les 6 solutions «non conventionnelles» de l’ONU pour pallier au manque d’eau potable (Icebergs, clouds, waste water… the 6 “unconventional” solutions of the UN to overcome the lack of drinking water)

Público, Portugal (3,029,407)
Chegou a hora de aproveitar as fontes de água menos convencionais. Porque cada gota conta (The time has come to take advantage of less conventional water sources. ‘Cause every drop counts)

Interesting Engineering, Canada (2,501,776)
United Nations: Harvesting new water sources can benefit ‘billions of people’

Down To Earth, India (1,046,015) Icebergs and fog: These unconventional sources can help beat global water scarcity 

MeteoWeb, Italy (1,074,200) Le proposte dell’Onu: “prendere acqua da nebbia e iceberg contro la crisi idrica” The UN proposes “take water from fog and icebergs against the water crisis” 

CCTV 央视网, Mainland China (22,026,184) 淡水缺了 “非常规水源”来补 (“Unconventional water sources” to make up fresh water shortages 

China News Network, Mainland China (5,659,775) 非常规水源”，潜在水供应或可助全球四分之一人口 (Potential water supply from ‘unconventional sources’ could help a quarter of the world’s population)

Coverage summary in full, click here

News release in full, click here

1st assessment of water security in Africa is based on 10 indicators

Despite global Sustainable Development Goals and commitments made in 2015, just 29 African nations have made some progress over the past three to five years, 25 have made none, according to the UN’s first-ever assessment of water security in Africa.

Published on the eve of World Water Day (March 22) by UN University’s Canadian-based Institute for Water Environment and Health, the assessment employed 10 indicators to quantify water security in Africa’s 54 countries.  Water security is elaborated below.

UNU-INWEH authors Grace Oluwasanya, Duminda Perera, Manzoor Qadir and Vladimir Smakhtin, the Institute’s Director, say the assessment is limited by “very poor” data on water security-related issues such as access to drinking water or sanitation, but it nevertheless offers some “preliminary but obvious conclusions.”

“Data limitations do not change the main outcome of this assessment, which is strong and clear,” says lead author Grace Oluwasanya.  “Overall levels of water security in Africa are low. Not a single country let alone a subregion have at present achieved a state that can be seen as ‘model’ or even ‘effective’ stage of water security.”

Says co-author Duminda Perera: “This assessment for African countries aimed to create a quantitative starting point and a platform for subsequent discussions with national, regional and international agents; it is neither a prescription nor a guide.”

“As this quantitative tool develops, it will help generate targeted policy recommendations and inform decision-making and public-private investments toward achieving water security in Africa.”

Results in brief

Overall

Except for Egypt, all country scores are below 70 (on a scale of 100). Only 13 of 54 countries reached a modest level of water security in recent years, and over a third are deemed to have levels of water security below the threshold of 45.  

Together, the 19 countries below the threshold are home to half a billion people.

Egypt, Botswana, Gabon, Mauritius and Tunisia are Africa’s top five most water-secure countries in Africa, yet with only modest absolute levels of water security achieved. 

Somalia, Chad and Niger appear to be the least water-secure countries in Africa. 

There has been little progress in national water security of most African states over the past three to five years, the report finds. The number of countries that made some progress (29) is close to the number of those that made none (25).

Indicator 1 

Access to drinking water ranged from 99% in Egypt to 37% in the Central African Republic, and between subregions from 92% in North Africa to 62% in Central Africa. Africa’s average basic drinking water service is 71%, “leaving behind some 29% of the total population” or more than 353 million people. 

Indicator 2 

Access to sanitation is broadly similar at the subregional level, but a few countries — Seychelles and most countries in North Africa countries — have reached or nearly reached 100%. The most challenged countries are Chad and Ethiopia (under 20% access), with 60% average access to even limited sanitation; thus at least 40% of the total population (483 million people) are left behind. 

Indicator 3

Access to hygiene facilities and practices (e.g. hand washing) are greatest in North Africa (67%), worst in West Africa (with Rwanda, Liberia lowest among eight countries with less than 10% access; Chad and the Central African Republic suffer the highest number of deaths from diarrhea).

Indicator 4

Per capita water availability is highest in Central Africa (with the Republic of Congo considered Africa’s most water-rich country — over 31,000 cubic meters per capita), while half of North African countries appear to be absolutely water scarce — less than 500 cubic meters of water per capita per annum. Due to their population growth, water availability has recently declined in West, Central and Southern Africa sub-region, and, on a country scale, in Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Somalia, Mozambique, and Malawi.

Indicator 5

Water use efficiency appears to be lowest in North Africa (with Somalia lowest at the national level) highest in Central Africa (with Angola highest at a national level). In general, agriculture-dominant countries score lower.  An improvement seen in water use efficiency in Africa as a whole is primarily due to efforts in Tunisia, Gambia, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, and Uganda, but poor data quality makes assessment difficult.

Indicator 6

Water infrastructure is deemed best in the Southern Africa sub-region, worst in East Africa. South Africa, with over 25% of all large dams in Africa, is outscored by Ghana, Zimbabwe, and Zambia, likely due to just one mega reservoir in those countries. Half of all countries score very low, reflecting the continent’s low level of water storage development. Only Ethiopia and Namibia have increased their storage over recent years, while Ivory Coast and Gabon have shown a decline, partly explained by rising populations with no or minimal increase in storage. Africa-average per capita storage capacity increased by only 3% over five recent years. 

Indicator 7

Wastewater treatment scores are highest in North African countries, lowest in East and West Africa, where 12 countries in each region treat less than 5% of wastewater. No country treats more than 75%, only Tunisia, Egypt and Lesotho treat over 50% and 67% of African countries treat less than 5%. The issue is poorly tracked in Africa overall. 

Indicator 8

Water governance appears to be most advanced in North and Southern Africa sub-regions, while Central Africa the least advanced. Nationally, Ghana reported reaching 86% of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) implementation, a significant improvement in just two years. Liberia, Guinea-Bissau, and Comoros are the lowest-performing countries, but again the assessment may be affected by the quality of national reporting. 

Indicator 9

Disaster risk has either remained unchanged (North and Southern Africa sub-regions) or increased. North Africa appears to be the least risky subregion, West Africa the riskiest. Egypt appears to be the least risky country, while Cape Verde is the most, followed by Djibouti and Comoros. Some 49 of 54 African countries have seen increased disaster risk scores over five recent years, explained by the impacts of changing climate worsening countries’ exposure to natural disasters and outpacing their ability to adapt. 

Indicator 10

Water dependency on neighboring nations and water resources variability:  Egypt stands out as Africa’s most water-dependent country; the Southern Africa sub-region has the most variable water resources. Naturally existing physiographic conditions may, to an extent, determine how much effort is needed for a country to achieve higher levels of water security. 

Call for global standards

To compare Africa’s situation globally, the authors call for global standards for water security measurement data and assessment. 

“Some critical components of water security simply cannot be assessed without introducing surrogates or proxies,” as used in the report in the case of drinking water and sanitation, for example. 

“With such poor data availability, progress toward water security is difficult to assess accurately.” 

For example, it is not possible to estimate the percentage of the African population that will have access to safely managed drinking water services or safely managed sanitation by 2030, a key UN Sustainable Development Goal globally agreed in 2015. 

“Data availability – or the lack of it – in itself may be an excellent indicator of water security,” says Dr. Oluwasanya. “Action needs to be taken immediately by national governments with support from international agents to radically improve data collection efforts for Africa.”

What is water security?

The UN’s concept of water security encompasses various needs and conditions — water for drinking, economic activity, ecosystems, hazard resilience, governance, transboundary cooperation, financing, and political stability.

See https://bit.ly/3hUzIh4

Hence water security is not just about how much natural water a country has but also how well the resource is managed.  It is defined as “The capacity of a population to safeguard sustainable access to adequate quantities of acceptable quality water for sustaining livelihoods, human well-being, and socio-economic development, for ensuring protection against water-borne pollution and water-related disasters, and for preserving ecosystems in a climate of peace and political stability.”

UNU-INWEH led the UN’s development and definition of water security and its related tools are now the most widely-accepted in the world.  This was a fundamental milestone, contributing to conceptualization of the SDGs and to on-going efforts to assess national water security in a quantifiable way.

The assessment tool is still a work in progress, Dr. Smakhtin notes, adding that UNU-INWEH’s goal is to have by 2025 — five years before the deadline for meeting the UN’s Agenda 2030 — “an improved, influential and nationally-owned tool” for assessing water security in all African countries. 

* * * * *

About UNU and UNU-INWEH 

The United Nations University (UNU), an academic arm of the UN, includes 13 institutes and programmes located in 12 countries around the world, and dealing with various issues of development.

UNU-INWEH was established as a public service agency and a subsidiary body of the UNU, in 1996. Its operations are secured through long-term host-country and core-funding agreements with the Government of Canada.

The Institute is located in Hamilton, Canada, and its facilities are supported by McMaster University. 

UNU-INWEH’s mission is to help resolve pressing water challenges that are of concern to the United Nations, its Member States, and their people, through critical analysis and synthesis of existing bodies of scientific discovery; targeted research that identifies emerging policy issues; application of on-the-ground scalable science-based solutions to water issues; and global outreach. 

UNU-INWEH carries out its work in cooperation with the network of other research institutions, international organisations and individual scholars throughout the world. 

* * * * *

Media coverage highlights:

New York Times, United States (181,487,873): Climate change is making armed conflict worse. Here’s how. Click here

Reuters, United Kingdom, Africa’s water security perilous – but data reveals surprises, click here

Agencia EFE, Spain (via e.g. Infobae, Argentina, 49,192,499)
1) Some 500 million people live in Africa without water security, click here
2) Spanish: Unos 500 millones de personas viven en África sin seguridad del agua, click here
3) Russian, click here

The Hill, United States (15,808,772): 500 million people in Africa remain ‘water insecure’: UN report, click here (also distributed via MSN, United States (198,375,148) and Yahoo News, United States (61,261,480)

ORF Online, Austria (7,871,539), Jedes dritte Land ohne Wassersicherheit, click here

Deutsche Press Agentur, via e.g. Handelsblatt, Germany (6,134,345), UN: Mehr als ein Drittel der Länder in Afrika ohne Wassersicherheit, click here

Xinhua (新华网), Mainland China (4,312,277), UN report says Africa’s fragile water security a threat to sustainability agenda, click here

IndoAsian News Service, India (via ProKerala, 10,631,550)25 African nations ‘least’ water-secure, click here

Agenzia Giornalistica Italia, Italy (4,066,652)Rischio acqua per oltre mezzo miliardo di persone in Africa, click here

France 24 (EN) France (2,853,455), Eye on Africa video program – Water security in Africa ‘unacceptably low’ (UN), click here

Spektrum der Wissenschaft, Germany (4,274,603), click here

Diario de Sevilla, Spain: Alrededor de 500 millones de personas viven en África sin seguridad del agua, click here

* * * * *

Mainstream media coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

1st Latin American e-waste report covers 13 countries: Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela

Electronic waste in 13 Latin American countries rose by 49% between 2010 and 2019, roughly the world average, but just 3% was collected and safely managed, a fraction of the 17.4% global average, according to the UN’s first assessment of Latin America’s e-waste volume, legislation, and management infrastructure.

In 2019, e-waste generated by 206 million citizens in the 13 countries reached 1,300,000 tonnes (1.3 megatonnes, of which almost 30% was plastic) – equal in weight to a 670 km line of fully-loaded 40-ton trucks.  The comparable figure in 2010 was 900,000 tonnes, generated by about 185 million citizens.

While informal recyclers “cherry pick” some valuable elements from waste electronics and electrical equipment, some 97% is improperly managed; just 3% is known to be collected and treated in facilities using environmentally sound methods.

The findings are published in the “Regional E-waste Monitor for Latin America, Results for the 13 Countries Participating,” produced by the Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programme, co-hosted by the UN University (UNU) and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR).  

It was developed under the ‘Strengthening of National Initiatives and Enhancement of Regional Cooperation for the Environmentally Sound Management of POPs

in Waste of Electronic or Electrical Equipment (WEEE)’ project (in Spanish: PREAL – Proyecto Residuos Electrónicos America Latina), funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and coordinated by the UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

(The full “Regional E-waste Monitor for Latin America” is available in English at https://bit.ly/REM-EN, and Spanish at https://bit.ly/REM-ES)

“E-waste constitutes one of the fastest-growing streams of physical waste in today’s global environment and is a threat to sustainable development,” the report says.

However, few countries collect internationally-comparable e-waste statistics.  This report was created with the cooperation of 13 countries to support and facilitate environmentally-sound management of e-waste in the region, says co-author Ruediger Kuehr, the Senior Manager of UNITAR SCYCLE (previously hosted by United Nations University).

The hazardous substances in the region’s e-waste comprises at least 2200 kg of mercury, 600 kg of cadmium, 4.4 million kg of lead, 4 million kg of brominated flame retardants, and 5.6 megatonnes of greenhouse gas-equivalents (due to refrigerants).

These substances “are poorly managed within the region and are likely to be untreated, generating various risks to the stability of a healthy environment,” according to the report.

Meanwhile, “managing e-waste could be an economic opportunity,” says co-author Kees Baldé, Senior Scientific Specialist at UNITAR SCYCLE.  “The e-waste generated regionally in 2019 contained 7000 kg of gold, 310 kg of rare earth metals, 591 million kg of iron, 54 million kg of copper, and 91 million kg of aluminum, representing a total value of roughly US $1.7 billion of secondary raw materials.”

Key statistical findings: 

• On an average annual per capita basis, e-waste generation rose from 4.7 kilograms in 2010 to 6.7 kilograms in 2019, ranging from 13.2 kg in Costa Rica to 2.5 kg in Nicaragua. 
• The volume of electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) placed on the market fluctuated between 2010 and 2019, from 1.7 Mt (1.7 million tonnes, or 8.9 kg per inhabitant) in 2010, to 1.9 Mt in 2017, and 1.7 Mt (8.1 kg per inhabitant) in 2019.
• One-third (33%) of the region’s e-waste consists of small equipment (e.g. microwaves, grills and toasters, speakers, cameras).  The next largest categories: large equipment (e.g. dishwashers, washing machines, ovens, central heating systems) and temperature exchange equipment (e.g. fridges, freezers, air conditioners, heat pumps), each with 21%. One or two appliances in the latter categories are found in typical households – bulky, heavy appliances with long lifespans compared with small equipment, sold in higher numbers and more frequently discarded. The region’s smallest category in terms of e-waste generation is lamps (3% of the region’s e-waste weight).
• The volume of EEE plastic placed on the market decreased over the years, from 470,000 tonnes (2.49 kg/inh) in 2010 to 460,000 tonnes (2.22 kg/inh) in 2019 due to changes in technology, for example, from cathode ray tube (CRT) screens in computers and televisions to flat-panel displays, as well as material substitutions by manufacturers and shifting demand in some EEE categories.
• 380,000 tonnes of e-waste plastic was generated in the 13 countries in 2019, of which 31,000 tonnes contained toxic brominated flame retardants (BRF), suspected of causing neurobehavioral effects and endocrine disruption. Almost all of the plastics containing BRF are contained in just three e-waste categories: small equipment (16,000 tonnes), small IT (10,000 tonnes), and screens (5,000 tonnes)  
• Data is unavailable on the volume of Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) in e-waste plastic managed in an environmentally-sound way.
• The countries in the study collected and managed a total of 36,000 tonnes (0.21 kg per inhabitant) of e-waste in 2019. (Guatemala data is being assessed but unavailable as the report went to press). 
• Costa Rica has the highest e-waste collection of 8.0 percent (1.0 kg per inhabitant) of its total e-waste generated, followed by Chile with 5.0 percent (0.4 kg per inhabitant). 
• Annual EEE growth rates are slowing but still positive in all categories except screens and monitors, the mass of which is dropping as heavy cathode ray tube (CRT) screens in computers and televisions are replaced on the market by substantially lighter flat-panel displays.
• Argentina, Costa Rica, and Chile manufacture EEE and their components domestically; all 10 other countries rely entirely on imports. 

All 13 participating countries 

• have some legal and regulatory frameworks for waste management but only Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and Peru have instituted specific legislation for e-waste and Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems focusing on e-waste regulation. 
• have hazardous waste regulation that includes POPs, but none has legislation specifically for POPs from e-waste.
• have ratified the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, which controls the transboundary movement of e-waste, and enacted national bans on e-waste imports.  

However, “the enforcement of these measures remains a significant challenge,” the report says, adding that many of the 13 countries do not submit transboundary movement reports to the Basel Convention, making monitoring and mapping difficult.  

“Low quality of data and control of transboundary movement of e-waste through the Basel Convention poses a threat to the environmentally sound management of e-waste and illegal movements.”

The report calls on all countries in the region to introduce and enforce either: 

a) a robust legal and policy framework focused on ESM of e-waste and POPs contained in e-waste, or 

b) monitor and reinforce existing systems to make them more efficient and effective. 

It adds that adequate financing and monitoring of the systems, and the cooperation of all stakeholders, are essential elements for setting up and sustaining successful policies. 

The report concludes with detailed individual country profiles and elaborates on seven recommendations, headlined: 

• Prevent more
• Be more aware
• Collect more
• Pollute less
• Pay adequately
• Work more safely, and 
• Train more

* * * * * 

About 

Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) encompasses all products powered by a battery or plug, including laptops, mobile phones, servers, fridges, washing machines, dishwashers, cooking and other kitchen appliances, many toys, and musical instruments. EEE is increasing rapidly, and spreading quickly in emerging sectors such as electric transport, clean energy production, and smart cities, which base their services on EEE and sensors. 

The Regional E-waste Monitor for Latin America is produced by the Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programme and co-hosted by the United Nations University (UNU) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). 

This Regional E-waste Monitor was funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) within the framework of the ‘Strengthening of National Initiatives and Enhancement of Regional Cooperation for the Environmentally Sound Management of POPs in Waste of Electronic or Electrical Equipment (WEEE)’ project activities, known primarily as the PREAL (Proyecto Residuos Electrónicos América Latina Project) which is implemented by the United

Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

United Nations University (UNU) 

UNU is an autonomous component of the UN General Assembly dedicated to generating and transferring knowledge and strengthening capacities relevant to global issues of human security, development, and welfare. The University

operates through a worldwide network of research and training centres and programmes, coordinated by the UNU Centre in Tokyo. 

www.unu.edu 

The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR)

UNITAR is a dedicated training arm of the United Nations, with a mission of developing the individual, institutional, and organisational capacity of countries and other United Nations stakeholders through high quality learning solutions and related knowledge products and services as a means for enhancing global decision-making and providing support at the country level in overcoming global challenges. 

www.unitar.org 

The SCYCLE Programme, recently transitioned from UNU to UNITAR, envisions enabling societies to reduce the environmental load from production, use, and disposal of ubiquitous goods, especially EEE, to sustainable levels by means of independent, comprehensive, and practical research and training, providing more thorough fact bases for policy development and decision making. SCYCLE leads the global e-waste research and related trainings, and advances sustainable e-waste management strategies based on life-cycle thinking. 

www.scycle.info 

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)

UNIDO has over 50 years’ experience of promoting and accelerating inclusive and sustainable industrial development (ISID) in Member States across the world. The Organization’s programmatic focus is mainly on creating shared prosperity, advancing economic competitiveness, safeguarding the environment and strengthening knowledge and institutions. 

www.unido.org 

The Global Environment Facility (GEF)

The GEF has over 27 years of experience and focuses on helping tackle our planet’s most pressing environmental problems. GEF is an international partnership of 183 countries, international institutions, civil society organizations and the private sector that addresses global environmental issues in protected areas, promotes sustainable landscape and seascape, sustainable forest management and land management, GHG emission reduction, integrated water resources management, safe disposal of hazardous chemicals and the adaptation to climate change.

www.thegef.org 

******

Media coverage highlights

Agencia EFE, via Infobae, Argentina, La basura electrónica es un problema creciente en Latinoamérica, según la ONU, click here

Agencia Reforma, via La Opinion, United States, América Latina es un vertedero de basura electrónica sin control, click here

IndoAsian News Service (IANS) via ProKerala, India: 97 pc of Latin America’s e-waste improperly managed: UN, click here

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here

Of the 18 science news releases produced in 2021, 16 were environment-themed: food waste, e-waste, oceans, biodiversity, dams, and floods. And one announced 14 living male relatives of Leonardo da Vinci, advancing a project investigating his DNA. 

2 minute slideshow: Click here

These releases generated over 9,200 news articles, published at thousands of online news sites in scores of countries and dozens of languages, ~33 billion potential public impressions in all, according to the Meltwater news search engine, which estimates actual impressions via online news sites at 825 million. Millions of additional impressions were also generated via print newspapers, magazines, radio, TV and social media.

With thanks to the researchers and collaborators behind these stories, and to the many journalists who covered them, the following releases were the most noted last year.

Electronic waste generated in the Commonwealth of Independent States + Georgia rose by 50% between 2010 and 2019, roughly the world average, but overall just 3.2% was collected and safely managed, well below the 17.4% average worldwide, according to the UN’s first report dedicated to the e-waste issue in the 12 former Soviet Union countries.

The regional e-waste total jumped from 1.7 Mt to 2.5 Mt (an average 8.7 kg per citizen), with Russia generating the most e-waste in both absolute and per inhabitant terms.

The findings are published in the first-ever “Regional E-waste Monitor, CIS + Georgia,” produced by the Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programme, co-hosted by the UN University (UNU) and the UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), in partnership with the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).

According to the study, the region’s e-waste spans a variety of products but three categories dominate: temperature exchange equipment (e.g. heating, air conditioning, and refrigeration units), and large equipment (e.g. washing machines or ovens) and small equipment (e.g. kitchen equipment or vacuum cleaners) account for 77%.

The annual growth rate in the region has slowed in nearly all categories but remains positive. Only screens and monitors, and small IT equipment, show negative growth rates.

“E-waste constitutes one of the fastest growing waste streams in today’s global environment and poses a significant threat to both health and sustainable development,” says Ruediger Kuehr, Director of the Sustainable Cycles Programme (SCYCLE).

“However, few countries collect internationally comparable e-waste statistics, and many countries lack the capacity to collect e-waste data at both the regional and national level. We need this data to track changes over time, establish national and international policies, limit e-waste generation, prevent illegal dumping, and promote recycling.”

This Regional E-waste Monitor for the CIS + Georgia is the first of its kind, reviewing e-waste statistics, legislation, and management, created with the aim of enhancing understanding and interpretation of the problem and facilitating the environmentally sound management of e-waste.”

“Such a summary allows for international comparisons and contributes to the development of more effective regional e-waste management systems,” he adds.

10 tonnes of gold

Co-author Kees Balde of the United Nations University underlines that managing e-waste could be an economic opportunity in the region by creating enterprises and thus jobs in the recycling sector.

E-waste generated in the CIS + Georgia in 2019 alone contained 10 tonnes of gold, half a tonne of rare earth metals, 1 million tonnes of iron, 85,000 tonnes of copper, 136,000 tonnes of aluminum, and 700 tonnes of cobalt – representing a total value of US $2.6 billion in secondary raw materials.

Meanwhile, hazardous substances in the region’s 2019 e-waste included at least 2.4 tonnes of mercury, 1.1 tonnes of cadmium, 8,100 tonnes of lead, and 4,000 tonnes of brominated flame retardants — threats to human and environmental health.

“E-waste collection rates need to increase across countries in the region, just as they need to increase elsewhere across the world,” says Dr. Balde. “This improvement can be realised through mandatory handover of e-waste to licenced facilities. Also needed are mandatory reporting obligations for all actors collecting e-waste.”

UBA president Dirk Messner emphasizes that “E-waste is one of the most challenging waste streams all over the world. The amount of electrical and electronic equipment put on the market is rising constantly and thus e-waste does. In Germany we, too, are facing the challenge to boost our collection rates to treat e-waste in the proper way. Policy makers worldwide need a comprehensive analysis of the e-waste situation – both regionally and on a national level. We are happy that through the Advisory Assistance Programme (APP) we have supported this important project. It has been a fruitful exchange and knowledge transfer for both sides.”

Other key findings in the report:

• Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) placed on the market in the region increased by 10% — from 2.9 Mt (10.4 kg/inh) in 2010 to 3.2 Mt (11.0 kg/inh) in 2019.
• The CIS+ countries collected and managed 79 kt (0.3 kg/inh) of e-waste in 2019 – 3.2% of the e-waste generated — and most of the rest ends up in landfills, with informal recyclers cherry picking some valuable components.
• Belarus and Russia have large domestic EEE production industries; the other countries mostly import the EEE placed on the market.
• E-waste collection for environmentally sound management takes place in Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Ukraine.
• Belarus has the highest e-waste collection per inhabitant and a collection rate: 33.6% (2.7 kg/inh), followed by Kazakhstan (8.8%; 0.6 kg/inh).
• Some countries (e.g. Georgia, Kyrgyzstan) have no e-waste collection due to a lack of organised, separate collection infrastructure for e-waste (and/or lack official data).
• All 12 countries in the region have well-developed legal and regulatory waste management frameworks, but 6 have no specific legislation nor Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) systems
• Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine have adopted e-waste-specific legislation or regulation
• Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Russia regulate e-waste through bylaws in national legislation (i.e. specifically mentioning e-waste in their general waste law)
• Armenia and Ukraine are drafting Extended Producer Responsibility systems for e-waste, and Uzbekistan has drafted e-waste legislation
• In most countries, the Ministry of Environment is the responsible government entity. Municipalities and other waste management authorities, as well as state-owned private companies, collect e-waste for further management, mostly landfilling
• Producers/importers also collect e-waste under the EPR, but informal operators also exist in the region and focus on valuable e-waste fractions

The report notes several initiatives and campaign strategies created in the region to create awareness of e-waste collection and recycling with active participation from both the public and private sectors. In some of the 12 countries, the projects and initiatives are conceived and driven by NGOs’ foreign donor funds. These projects that were mapped do not comprise a complete overview in the region, but nonetheless focus on:

• Establishing legal measures
• National studies to map the e-waste situation
• Initiatives to increase e-waste collection points
• Initiatives to export e-waste for environmentally sound management
• Awareness raising campaigns

The report calls on the 12 countries in the region to:

• Introduce and enforce a robust legal and policy framework focused on environmentally sound management of e-waste, or
• Monitor and reinforce existing systems to make them more efficient and effective

Also called for:

• Adequate financing of the systems, monitoring, and cooperation of all stakeholders — essential for ensuring that the policies setup for e-waste management is sustained.
• Strengthened transnational cooperation to reduce the burden of large investments

The report concludes with detailed individual country profiles and elaborates on seven recommendations, headlined:

• Prevent more
• Be more aware
• Collect more
• Pollute less
• Pay adequately
• Work more safely, and
• Train more

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About

Electrical and Electronic Equipment (EEE) encompasses all products powered by a battery or plug, including laptops, mobile phones, servers, fridges, washing machines, dishwashers, cooking and other kitchen appliances, many toys, and musical instruments. EEE is increasing rapidly, and spreading quickly in emerging sectors such as electric transport, clean energy production, and smart cities, which base their services on EEE and sensors.

The Regional E-waste Monitor for the CIS + Georgia is produced by the Sustainable Cycles (SCYCLE) Programmeco-hosted by the United Nations University (UNU) and the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The project was funded by the German Federal Environment Ministry’s Advisory Assistance Programme (AAP) for environmental protection in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia and other countries neighbouring the European Union. It was supervised by the German Environment Agency (UBA). Workshops during the project were co-funded by the International Telecommunication Union and the International Solid Waste Association and were co-organised by UNEP.

The German Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt, UBA) is Germany’s central environmental authority. It employs more than 1,400 people at 13 locations. In addition to ‘purely scientific work’, the enforcement of environmental law – for example the Chemicals Act or the Plant Protection Act – and providing information to the general public about environmental protection issues are key areas of the agency‘s daily work. UBA is a partner and point of contact in Germany for a number of international institutions, for instance the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Environment Agency.
www.umweltbundesamt.de/en

UBA supports the development of human resources and institutional capacities in the environmental sector in its partner countries in a variety of ways. The purpose of the Advisory Assistance Programme (AAP) is the exchange and transfer of knowledge and experience to the target region in order to strengthen environmental administration bodies, raise environmental standards and prepare for environmental investments. UNU’s and UNITAR’s project that provides the 1st regional e-waste report for Commonwealth of Independent States + Georgia fits ideally into these goals.
www.umweltbundesamt.de/en/advisory-assistance-programme

United Nations University (UNU) is an autonomous component of the UN General Assembly dedicated to generating and transferring knowledge and strengthening capacities relevant to global issues of human security, development, and welfare. The University
operates through a worldwide network of research and training centres and programmes, coordinated by the UNU Centre in Tokyo.
www.unu.edu

The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) is a dedicated training arm of the United Nations, with a mission of developing the individual, institutional, and organisational capacity of countries and other United Nations stakeholders through high quality learning solutions and related knowledge products and services as a means for enhancing global decision-making and providing support at the country level in overcoming global challenges.
www.unitar.org

The SCYCLE Programme, in transition from UNU to UNITAR, envisions enabling societies to reduce the environmental load from production, use, and disposal of ubiquitous goods, especially EEE, to sustainable levels by means of independent, comprehensive, and practical research and training, providing more thorough fact bases for policy development and decision making. SCYCLE leads the global e-waste research and related trainings, and advances sustainable e-waste management strategies based on life-cycle thinking.
www.scycle.info

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Coverage highlights:

ТАSS, Russia, Количество электронных отходов на свалках СНГ за 10 лет выросло в полтора раза (The amount of e-waste in landfills in the CIS has grown by one and a half times over 10 years), click here

National Geographic Россия, Russia (1,061,937)
Объем электронных отходов на свалках СНГ стремительно растет, (The volume of e-waste in landfills in the CIS is growing rapidly), click here

IndoAsian News Service, India, (via ProKerala), E-waste in Commonwealth of Independent States rises 50% in decade, click here

腾讯网 (TenCent News), Mainland China, 年将10吨黄金当垃圾扔掉，这些国家正在造成巨大浪费 (Throwing away 10 tons of gold as garbage every year, these countries are causing huge waste), click here

Central Asia Media, Russia, Узбекистан среди лидеров в СНГ по количеству электронных отходов на свалках – исследование ООН, (Uzbekistan among CIS leaders in terms of the amount of e-waste in landfills – UN study), click here

Фергана, Russia, Казахстан и Узбекистан — в лидерах СНГ по объему электронных отходов на свалках (Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are among the leaders of the CIS in terms of the volume of electronic waste in landfills), click here

Караван, Kazakhstan, ООН обратила внимание на проблему электронных отходов на свалках в Казахстане, (UN drew attention to the problem of e-waste in landfills in Kazakhstan), click here

Repost, Uzbekistan, За 10 лет количество электронных отходов на свалках СНГ выросло в 1,5 раза: большая их часть приходится на Россию, Украину, Казахстан и Узбекистан, (Over the past 10 years, the amount of electronic waste in landfills in the CIS has grown by 1.5 times: most of it comes from Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan), click here

Tashkent Times, Uzbekistan, Uzbekistan among leaders in e-waste in landfills in CIS, click here

Kant KG, Kyrgyzstan, ООН назвал Узбекистан одним из лидеров в СНГ по количеству электронных отходов на свалках (UN names Uzbekistan one of the leaders in the CIS in terms of the amount of electronic waste in landfills), click here

El Ágora, Spain, Asia central y el este de Europa, puntos negros de los desechos electrónicos (Central Asia and Eastern Europe, e-waste hot spots), click here

Full coverage summary, click here

News release in full, click here