13 Jul
2006 - Gland, Switzerland – More frequent and
damaging droughts are expected to plague the Mediterranean
region, warns a new WWF report. These droughts
are worsened by irrigated agriculture, the most
important water user in the Mediterranean.
The global conservation organization
wants a major shift in European and national policies
that govern the way water is used, saying that
without these, communities and livelihoods will
suffer more than before.
The WWF report, Drought in the
Mediterranean, shows that the irrigated area in
the region has doubled since the 1960s. Using
65 per cent of total water consumption, irrigated
agriculture now constitutes the biggest water
consumer in the Mediterranean.
Subsidies from the EU and national
governments have encouraged the demise of traditional
rain-fed crops such as olives and citrus, favouring
the irrigated cultivation of maize and sugarbeet.
Irrigation is used to grow these crops faster
and bigger, even in arid areas and at the driest
times of the year. In non-EU countries this phenomenon
is aggravated by inefficient irrigation methods.
“Governments must stop subsidising
irrigation in water scarce areas now,” says Francesca
Antonelli, head of the freshwater programme at
WWF’s Mediterranean Programme Office. “If water
is not managed more wisely, drought will become
chronic and people will suffer more as water for
other basics such as drinking, hygiene and cooking
will become scarce.”
Mediterranean countries have
already experienced a reduction of up to 20 per
cent of rainfall while water demand has doubled
in the last 50 years. The countries experiencing
the greatest growth in water demand are France,
Turkey and Syria. Projections show further decreases
in precipitation as well as a rise of 25 per cent
consumption by 2025 in the eastern and southern
shore of the Mediterranean, particularly in Egypt,
Turkey and Syria.
“The crisis in the Mediterranean
mirrors the world water crisis,” says Jamie Pittock,
Director of WWF's Global Freshwater Programme.
“There is a limited amount of freshwater available,
so governments must manage demand and water consumption
within sustainable limits, safeguarding nature
as the source of water.”
Drought has already wrought
havoc, costing about €11 billion in Europe in
2003. Last summer, Spain’s agricultural sector
lost more than €2 billion as a result of drought.
WWF calls on governments to
address the drought crisis in its entirety to
preserve freshwater ecosystems. They must control
demand for water, balance the allocation of water
to all users, while also improving irrigation
methods and making better choices in the location
of crops.
Lisa Hadeed, Communications Manager / Anne Rémy,
Head of Communications
