In accordance with the World Wide Fund (WWF) Water Risk Filter, an online tool, co-developed by the WWF for Nature and Germany’s Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (KFW DEG), nearly a third of the 100 cities in the world susceptible to “water risk” are in India means 30 Indian cities are expected to suffer increased water risks by 2050. The list of Indian cities was topped by Jaipur (Rajasthan) which is followed by Indore (Madhya Pradesh) and Thane (Maharashtra).
- Among 100 cities, Jaipur ranked 45th and Indore featured at 75th.
- As per Risk Filter, an urgent action is required to mitigate this risk.
- On the global front, the cities such as Beijing, Jakarta, Johannesburg, Istanbul, Hong Kong, Mecca and Rio de Janeiro are included in this filter. China accounts for almost half the cities.
- Globally, populations in areas of high-water risk could rise from 17% in 2020 to 51% by 2050.
WWF Water Risk Filter evaluates the severity of risk places faced by graphically illustrating various factors that can contribute to water risk. The factor varies from droughts to floods.
30 Indian Cities in the List:
Jaipur (Rajasthan), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), Thane (Maharashtra), Amritsar (Punjab), Pune (Maharashtra), Srinagar (Jammu & Kashmir), Kolkata (West Bengal), Bengaluru (Karnataka), Mumbai (Maharashtra), Kozhikode (Kerala), Visakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh, Thane (Maharashtra), Vadodara (Gujarat), Rajkot (Gujarat), Kota (Rajasthan), Nashik (Maharashtra), Ahmedabad (Gujarat), Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh), Hubli-Dharwad (Karnataka), Nagpur (Maharashtra), Chandigarh, Ludhiana (Punjab), Jalandhar (Punjab), Dhanbad (Jharkhand), Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh), Gwalior (Madhya Pradesh), Surat (Gujarat), Delhi, Aligarh (Uttar Pradesh), Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) and Kannur (Kerala).
Key Points:
–The analysis gave cities a risk score out of five in 2030 and 2050 where anything above 3 is a ‘high risk’ and anything above 4 is a ‘very high risk’.
- Notably, all 30 Indian cities received a score of at least three or above for both 2030 and 2050, and Ludhiana, Chandigarh, Amritsar and Ahmedabad topped the list with an overall score of 4.9, 4.8, 4.7 and 4.6, respectively.
–The 100 global cities that are expected to suffer the greatest rise in water risk by 2050 are home to at least 350 million people.
–Urban planning and wetland conservation need to be integrated to ensure zero loss of freshwater systems in the urban areas.
- In this regard, there is a requirement of scaling up of initiatives where groups can come together and revive wetlands such as Bashettihalli wetland in Bengaluru (Karnataka) and the Sirpur Lake in Indore.
–The scenarios of Water Risk Filter are aligned to the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosure (TCFD) recommendations which can help companies, and cities, in making more effective corporate action on climate and water resilience.
Recent Related News:
i.On September 1, 2020, a report “Enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) for Food Systems” published by WWF, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), non-profit organization EAT & think tank Climate Focus based on strengthening food systems in the age of climate crisis.
ii.According to the WWF for Nature, one third of all food produced in the world goes to waste, which is equal to 1.3 billion tons of fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy, seafood and grains. This would be enough to feed every undernourished person on the planet.
About WWF Water Risk Filter:
Launched– 2012
Led by– Alexis Morgan
Headquarter– Berlin, Germany
About World Wide Fund (WWF):
President & Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Carter Roberts
Headquarter– Gland, Switzerland
