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Tuesday, October 17th, 2023

‘The Overwhelming Majority of Disasters Are Water Related’: WMO Report Finds Human Activity Disrupting Water Cycle

Author:     Cristen Hemingway Jaynes
Source:     EcoWatch
Publication Date:     12 October 2023
 Link: ‘The Overwhelming Majority of Disasters Are Water Related’: WMO Report Finds Human Activity Disrupting Water Cycle
Stephan:  

Day after day I see these stories, each making it clear that water is destiny. Either too much or too little. And yet no national policies to address this crisis have emerged. And so it will go on.

Flooding in the village of Palamas, Greece after Cyclone Daniel, on Sept. 8, 2023. Credit: Yorgos Karahalis / picture alliance / Getty 

According to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the planet’s hydrological cycle is “spinning out of balance” due to human activity and climate change.

Extreme rainfall and droughts, seemingly two opposites on a spectrum of extreme weather, are bringing unprecedented and frequent damage to communities. Flooding from melting ice, snow and glaciers has increased as water security is threatened for millions.

WMO says not enough is known about the real state of the planet’s freshwater resources.

“We cannot manage what we do not measure,” the agency’s State of Global Water Resources 2022 report said in a plea for elemental policy change.

The report says investments must be increased to facilitate cross-border collaboration and water resources assessments, improved monitoring and data sharing, a press release from WMO said.

“This WMO report offers a comprehensive, and consistent overview of water resources worldwide, highlighting the influence of climate, environmental, and societal changes,” said WMO Secretary-General Petteri Taalas, according to UN News.

The new WMO report expands […]

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