Turkey Approaching the Threshold of Water Scarcity

World Water Day, celebrated on 22 March with various activities across the globe, is marking its 23rd year. As declared by the United Nations to emphasize the importance of water in our lives and to protect and increase sources of drinking water, water scarcity on Earth has now reached alarming levels. Waternet, which aims to provide consumers with healthy water in the most reliable and convenient way, presents the dangers facing the world due to the disappearance of clean water sources in research compiled from official data. Turkey is among the countries expected to face water scarcity by 2030.

World Water Day, declared by the United Nations to emphasize the importance of water in our lives and to protect and increase sources of drinking water, is marking its 23rd year. On this special day, celebrated on 22 March with various activities worldwide, water scarcity on Earth has now reached alarming levels. Waternet, which adopts the principle of "The Easiest Way to Access Clean and Fresh Drinking Water," presents the dangers facing the world due to the disappearance of clean water sources in research compiled from official data.

One in every ten people worldwide cannot access safe water

- While global water consumption has increased tenfold over the last 100 years, the amount of water per capita has halved.

- As access to clean water becomes increasingly difficult due to industrialization, unplanned urbanization, population growth and wastewater problems, 20% of the world's population lacks access to safe drinking water.

- 748 million people worldwide, or one in every ten people, cannot access safe water.

- One-third of schools worldwide lack access to safe water.

- In low and middle-income countries, one-third of health facilities cannot use safe water.

- While over 470 million people worldwide live in water-scarce regions, 10 million people, particularly children, die each year from water-borne epidemic diseases.

- A 55% increase in global water demand is expected by 2030, and at that time current water resources will be able to meet only 60% of total water demand.

- Due to climate change, irregular precipitation and declining groundwater resources are among the main causes of future water scarcity, and by 2030 the world will face water scarcity of 40%.

Water resources in Turkey are insufficient

- Turkey, surrounded by seas on three sides, is not actually one of the water-rich countries as commonly believed.

- Turkey's usable water potential is 112 billion cubic meters. Approximately 7 billion cubic meters of this figure is used as drinking and household water, 5 billion cubic meters in industry, and 32 billion cubic meters in agriculture.

- While the annual usable water per capita in Turkey is around 1,519 cubic meters, this figure is expected to decline to 1,120 cubic meters by 2030 due to increasing population in the country.

- Infrastructure deficiencies in small settlements and both infrastructure problems and increasing consumption in large cities are making it increasingly difficult to find clean and fresh water. In this context, the need for water purification systems in the world and Turkey is growing every day. Particularly in large cities such as Istanbul and Ankara, the number of people choosing mains water as drinking water is decreasing, while water purification systems are becoming a rising trend for those who want easy access to healthy water.

- The water purification system market, which reached USD 3.2 billion worldwide last year and is expected to grow by 16% until 2020, has drawn attention with its growth in Turkey, where the water purification sector is worth around USD 80 million.

- Water purification systems, in addition to drinking water, enable tea, coffee or water used in cooking to be obtained from a single source, helping with water conservation.

Gülay Başaran, Deputy General Manager of Waternet, the Turkish distributor of Coway, one of the world's largest water purification system manufacturers with nearly 7,000 subscribers throughout Turkey, comments on the growing interest in water purification systems: "As access to clean water becomes increasingly difficult, developing technology plays an important role in solving the water problem. Waternet's water purification systems operating with reverse osmosis technology make life easier by enabling everyone to produce healthy water at home or at work. As Waternet, we are determined to acquire as many new subscribers in the coming year as we have gained over the past three years. With the growing need for easily accessible healthy water, we will make everyone feel that we are a brand setting the direction in the water world."

Sources:

1-World Health Organization and UNICEF Joint Monitoring Programme (JMP). 2015. Progress on Drinking Water and Sanitation, 2015 Update and MDG Assessment.

2-United States Census Bureau. 2015. United States and World Population Clock

3-The United Nations World Water Development Report. 2015. Water for a Sustainable World

4-Turkey's Water Risks Report. 2014. WWF