Threats to Global Water Security

The UN designated the decade 2005–2015 as the International Decade for Action – Water for Life. The move was initiated at the third World Water Forum in Kyoto, 2003, and it could prove the most significant and effective outcome of the triennial series of World Water For a yet. Its major aims are: (1) to promote efforts to fulfil recent international commitments, especially in the Millennium Goals, (2) to advance towards a truly integrated, int- national approach to sustainable water management, and (3) to put special emphasis on the role of women in these efforts. Even so, it faces tremendous and, as I write, increasing obstacles. The intense season of hurricanes and tropical storms in 2008 illustrated yet again not only the power of nature, but also the vulnerability of the poorer nations, like Haiti and Jamaica. New Orleans and Texas fared better, not because of the efforts of the International Decade for Natural Disasters (1990–2000) to increase preparedness, but more because the USA had learnt from its own experiences in Hurricane Katrina. The biggest obstacle of all is the burgeoning world population. It took off last century, but it is predicted to reach unimaginable heights this century: at least 10 billion by 2050, maybe 20 billion by 2100. Governments are powerless to halt it, even the Chinese. Achieving water security globally against this backdrop will be a Herculean task.

Overview: The Major Issues.- Threats to Global Water Security: Population Growth, Terrorism, Climate Change, or Commercialisation?.- Less is More: Approaching Water Security and Sustainability from the Demand Side.- Water Security of Nations: How International Trade Affects National Water Scarcity and Dependency.- Reducing the Risk: Drought Mitigation and the Economy of Irrigation.- Working Group I: Risk Assessment and Water Governance.- Water Quality and Terrorism.- Drinking Water Security in Crisis Situations From a Medical Perspective.- Biosensors In a System of Instrumental Tools to Prevent Effects of Bioterrorism and Automotive Control of Water Process Purification.- A High Sensitivity Nuclear Method for Real-Time Detection of Elements and Compounds in Drinking Water and Soil.- Natural Disasters and Surface and Subsurface Water Pollution Risk Assessment for Some Regions of Georgia.- Storm Surges on the Southern Coast of Gulf of Riga: Case Study of the Lielupe River.- Ground Water Vulnerability Assessment of the Aparan Aquifer, Republic of Armenia, and Its Representation in A 3-D Model.- Wastewater Modeling to Reduce Disaster Risk From Groundwater Contamination.- Survival in Groundwater and Ft—ir Characterization of Some Pathogenic and Indicator Bacteria.- Working Group II: The Threat from Armed Conflict and Terrorism.- Managing Extreme Events and Climate Change.- Climate Change, Glacier Retreat, and Water Availability in the Caucasus Region.- Risk Management and Mitigation in Highly Urbanized River Basins.- Spatial Data Integration for Emergency Services of Flood Management.- The Use of Remote Sensing and Gis Techniques in Flood Monitoring and Damage Assessment: A Study Case in Romania.- Flooding in Afghanistan: A Crisis.- Human Factors in the Floods of Romania.-Development of Dangerous Geodynamic Processes in the South Caucasus and the Problem of Mitigating Their Consequences.- Threats in the Tienshan-Pamir Region of Kyrgyzstan.- Long-Term Prognosis of High Flows in the Mountain Rivers of Georgia.- Water Disasters in the Territory of Armenia.- The Floods on the River Danube in 2006: Social Impact and Remedial Processes.- The Analysis of Dangerous Hydrological Processes for The Terek River Basin.- Floods and Their Risk Assessment in East Siberia.- Removing Chlorine-Containing Organic Compounds in the Environment After Floods.- Calibration of an Atmospheric/Hydrological Model System for Flood Forecasting in the Odra Watershed.- The Role of Meteorological Models in the Prediction of Weather Hazards — the European Approach.- Extending the Danube Flood Forecasting System With the Use of Meteorological Ensembles.- Working Group III: Threats Due to Climate Change — Global Problems in A Regional Context.- Protecting Aquatic Ecosystems.- Assessment of Risks and Possible Ecological and Economic Damage from Large-Scale Natural and Man-Induced Catastrophes in Ecologically Vulnerable Regions of Central Asia and the Caucasus.- Environmental Management of Intentional or Accidental Environmental Threats to Water Security in the Danube Delta.- Preventing Disaster on French Creek, One of the Most Biologically Diverse Rivers in North America.- Appraisal of Methodology of Ecological Risks Assessment Arising From Pollution of The Rivers of the Ukraine.- Emergency Response and Water Security of the Btc Pipeline In Ecologically Sensitive Areas of Georgia.- Infrastructure – Technical Innovations and Failures.- Effects of Reservoirs on Streamflow in the Boreal Region.- Hydrogeological Factors and the Safe Operation of Hydraulic Structures.-Evaluation of The Effect of A Water Hammer on the Failure of A Corroded Water Pipeline.- Sewer System Condition, Type of Sewers and Their Impacts on Environmental Management.- Restoring The Water Resources of the Aral Sea Basin.- The Aral Sea: A Matter of Mutual Trust.- Extreme and Average Glacier Runoff in the Amudarya River Basin.- Future of the Aral Sea and the Aral Sea Coast.- Natural Disaster: Prevention of Drinking Water Scarcity.- Estimation of Ecological Risk of Transboundary Pollution of the Amu River.- On Tthe Development of A Strategy for The Optimal Use of The Upstream Water Resources of the Amudary Basin In The National Interests Of The Tajik Republic.- Integrated Management Strategy for Transboundary Water Resources in Central Asia.