ISLAMABAD: The surface water pollution could effect more than half of the world’s population by 2100, a new study said.
A team of international researchers found that poor surface water quality could hit 5.5 billion people by the end of this century, and people living in developing nations would be disproportionately affected, according to a study published in the Nature Water journal on Tuesday.
Surface water pollution refers to the contamination of water bodies like rivers, oceans, and lakes by pollutants and harmful substances from human activities or natural sources.
Climate change and socio-economic development are likely to affect water in the coming decades, said the study, which analysed their impacts on water temperature and salinity, as well as organic and pathogen pollution, Radio Free Asia reported.
The scientists found that Sub-Saharan Africa is expectedly to become a international hotspot of surface water pollution by 2100, irrespective of future socio-economic and climate scenarios.
People exposed to pollutant concentrations
According to the study, the number of people exposed to pollutant concentrations could increase by more than double under the most optimistic assumptions future scenario and rise up to 5 times under pessimistic scenario.
Such scenarios range from a world characterized by sustainability and equality to resurging nationalism and widening inequality to strong but fossil-fueled economic development.
The study said the proportion of the world’s population exposed to salinity, pathogen, and organic pollution by 2100 ranges between 17-27 per cent, 20-37 per cent and 22-44 per cent, respectively.
According to the UN, the world population is likely to reach 10.4 billion by the end of the century.
According to UNESCO, more than a quarter of the world’s population currently relies on unsafe drinking water, with around 80 per cent of people living under water stress in Asia, especially in northeast China, as well as Pakistan and India.
It says that over 800,000 people die from ailments directly attributable to unsafe water, poor hygiene practices, and inadequate sanitation.
