New Delhi:
Some areas in India’s Indo-Gangetic basin have already passed the tipping point of groundwater depletion and the entire northwestern region is expected to experience critically low groundwater availability by 2025, according to a new United Nations report.
The report, titled ‘Interconnected Disaster Risks Report 2023’ and published by the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS), highlights that the world is approaching six ecological tipping points: accelerated extinction, groundwater depletion and melting of mountain glaciers. space debris, unbearable heat and an uninsurable future.
Environmental tipping points are critical thresholds in Earth’s systems, above which abrupt and often irreversible changes occur, leading to profound and sometimes catastrophic shifts in ecosystems, climate patterns, and the overall environment.
About 70 percent of groundwater withdrawals are used for agriculture, often when above-ground water sources are insufficient. Aquifers play a crucial role in limiting agricultural losses due to drought, a problem that is expected to worsen due to climate change.
However, the report warns that the aquifers themselves are approaching a tipping point. More than half of the world’s most important aquifers are being depleted faster than they can be naturally replenished. When groundwater levels drop below levels accessible from existing wells, farmers may lose access to water, posing a risk to entire food production systems.
Some countries, such as Saudi Arabia, have already passed the tipping point for groundwater risk, while others, including India, are not far away.
“India is the world’s largest user of groundwater, surpassing the use of the United States and China combined. India’s northwestern region serves as the breadbasket for the country’s growing 1.4 billion people, with the states of Punjab and Haryana producing 50 percent. of the country’s rice supplies and 85 percent of its wheat supplies.
“However, 78 percent of wells in Punjab are considered overexploited and the northwest region as a whole is expected to experience critically low groundwater availability by 2025,” the report says.
Jack O’Connor, the lead author and senior expert at UNU-EHS, said: “As we approach these tipping points, we will already start to experience the consequences. Once we cross them, it will be difficult to go back. Our report can help us see risks ahead, the causes behind them and the urgent changes needed to avoid them.”
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