The story of water in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) is a bit like the element itself: flexible, fast moving, intensely valuable yet sometimes viciously destructive; perhaps a little slippery to pin down and draw hard and fast conclusions. Across an important number of indicators the management of water in the region over the last few decades appears to have improved – for example, a greater proportion of the population now has access to clean drinking water. On the other hand there have been setbacks and the region faces big challenges. Past improvements will not necessarily continue in linear fashion. Climate change is an increasingly important issue, posing big challenges for water management. The trend towards more extreme weather means that the water problem is paradoxical. At the same time there is too much of it – floods – and too little – drought. Sometimes both happen in the same country in the same year.
The Global Picture
According to the United Nations, due to population growth and economic development, global demand for water has been growing at around 1% a year, and is expected to continue doing so over the next two decades. Agriculture will continue to dominate demand, although industrial and domestic water use will grow at faster annual rates. Demand will grow most in developing and emerging economies. The water cycle is intensifying with wet regions becoming wetter, and dry regions dryer. Some 3.6bn people (about half the world’s population) live in areas that are potentially water-scarce at least one month a year, and this population could grow to as much as 5.7bn by 2050. At the same time around 1.2bn are at risk of floods, and this could grow to 1.6bn by 2050. River water pollution has intensified in Asia, Africa and Latin America, and is a threat to human health.