scholarly journals Water Scarcity and Water Wars in the Middle East?

Water ◽  
2016 ◽  
pp. 435-450
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Water Wars

Evaluation of water shortage crisis in the Middle East and possible remedies

2019 ◽  
Vol 69 (1) ◽  
pp. 85-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Omid Bozorg-Haddad ◽  
Babak Zolghadr-Asli ◽  
Parisa Sarzaeim ◽  
Mahyar Aboutalebi ◽  
Xuefeng Chu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Water Use ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Water Storage ◽  
Water Shortage ◽  
East Region ◽  
Middle East Region ◽  
Regional Water

Abstract Water resources in the Middle East region are becoming scarce, while millions of people already do not have access to adequate water for drinking and sanitary purposes. Water resources depletion has become a significant problem in this region that is likely to worsen. Current research by remote sensing analysis indicates a descending trend of water storage in the Middle East region, where agriculture plays a crucial role in socio-economic life. This study introduces an approach quantifying water depletion in the Middle Eastern countries, which are being challenged in the management of their water resources. Furthermore, this paper presents results of a survey assessing the status of water use and supply in Middle Eastern countries and outlines some potential remedies. Specifically, Iran's water use is evaluated and compared with its neighbors'. The water equivalent anomaly (WEA) and total water storage (TWS) depletion are two indexes of water scarcity calculated for Middle Eastern countries surveyed herein. Our analysis reveals that Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran are countries with very negative water scarcity indexes. These estimates prove that international cooperation is needed to manage available regional water resources and reverse depletion of natural water sources. It is demonstrated herein that virtual water trade can help remediate regional water shortage in Middle Eastern countries.

Water wars in the Middle East: a looming threat

2002 ◽  
Vol 168 (4) ◽  
pp. 313-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hussein A. Amery
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Water Wars

The politics of water scarcity in the Middle East

2000 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 65-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mostafa Dolatyar ◽  
Tim S. Gray
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Water Scarcity

scholarly journals Evaluation of Water Scarcity in Selected Countries of the Middle East

Water ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 1482 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Procházka ◽  
Vladimír Hönig ◽  
Mansoor Maitah ◽  
Ivana Pljučarská ◽  
Jakub Kleindienst
Keyword(s):  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Agricultural Production ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Agricultural Sector ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
High Water ◽  
Economic Effects ◽  
The Impact

The primary goal of this article is to evaluate water scarcity in selected countries of the Middle-East and assess the impact on agricultural production. To begin with, the Weighted Anomaly Standardized Precipitation (WASP) Index from 1979 to 2017 was spatially computed for Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. In order to demonstrate the effect of reduced levels of water, the water shortage situation in cities with the population higher than one million was examined. This was accomplished by utilizing the Composite Index approach to make water related statistics more intelligible. A projection for the years of 2020 to 2030 was created in order to demonstrate possible changes in the supply and demand for water in selected countries of the Middle-East. In regards to evaluating the economic effects of water shortages on agricultural sector, effects of lower precipitation on agricultural production in Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia were estimated. With ever-increasing urbanization, all countries are currently experiencing a moderate to high water risk. Our research points to excessively high water stress for most analyzed cities through the year 2030. Also, it is demonstrated how much precipitation decreases influence agricultural production in Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. From the analyzed countries, some evidence is found that precipitation negatively influences crop production, primarily for Iran.

Navigating Uncertain Waters : Geographies of Water and Conflict, Shifting Terms and Debates

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leila M. Harris
Keyword(s):  
Water Resources ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Critical Assessment ◽  
War And Peace ◽  
The Past ◽  
Water Wars ◽  
The Common ◽  
International Water ◽  
Critical Resources

The debate over whether or not future water scarcities will contribute to heightened conflict and violent war is far from over. In the past decade, there has been a proliferation of books with titles such as Water Wars: Coming Conflicts in the Middle East, Rivers of Discord: International Water Disputes in the Middle East, and Rivers of Fire: The Conflict over Water in the Middle East, with many more undoubtedly planned or in press. This chapter serves as a critical assessment of some of the major themes of this literature and also contributes several concepts and case study examples in order to shift and reframe some of the common bases and assumptions of ongoing discussions. In particular, the concept of scale is used to argue for a broadened notion of “sociopolitical conflict” associated with water resources to overcome weaknesses inherent to dichotomous state-centered understandings of “war” and “peace.” Given the changing nature of contemporary conflicts, “peace” cannot justifiably be understood as the absence of war. Many people, livelihoods, places, and economies are marked by diffuse and persistent conflict. Whether disruptions take the form of gang warfare in cities, the frequency of preventable deaths caused by lack of access to basic needs, or conflict over access to and sharing of critical resources, times of “peace” are notably marked by political instability, death, vulnerability, and other features commonly associated with warfare. Further, given interconnections between environments, people, and places, conflicts at specific sites cannot be abstracted from situations and conditions at other locations and scales. Even if a state is not at “war,” situations of resource use or access may still be marked in important ways by sociopolitical conflict, either past conflicts or ongoing conflicts across other sites and scales. In short, narrow attention to stateto- state warfare detracts from the complexity of relationships between the changing geographies of water resources and sociopolitical conflicts. A multiscalar perspective that highlights manifold and interrelated geographies of “water and conflict” across historical and geographical scales and among multiple sites and actors brings this into relief.

Mideast water scarcity risks urban and rural strains

2021 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Water Scarcity ◽  
Content Type

Headline MIDDLE EAST: Water lack risks urban and rural strains

scholarly journals Present and future water scarcity challenges Middle East governments

Eos ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 85 (20) ◽  
pp. 198-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randy Showstack
Keyword(s):  
Middle East ◽  
Water Scarcity
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