Water crisis & Water Stressing - Part I: Greece

By Joseph Kaniadakis

If we want to support a forthcoming situation of water crisis theoretically, then everyone could very easily stand up to an argument in favor of it, without the need for deep indulgence. This is due to how obvious a problem is, making it impossible to give birth to agrarianology.

Water Stressing (negative water balance)

Under the term "Stressing" is meant the pressure exerted on water reserves (mostly underground) during the pumping phase where the use rates exceed the filling rates of aquifers. Such a phenomenon can be seen as the first step of the crisis. Stressing situations today are facing countries like India, Brazil, the US, China and the Mediterranean countries. The common feature of these countries is one and of course this is their abundance in water but also their overpopulation, in the exception of the latter. Indeed, these countries are among the world's richest in aquatic resources, but their management of water resources is totally absent.

The problem with over-pumping groundwater is that literal savings of nature itself are being overconsumed, which to form took tens, maybe hundreds of years. Yet, even so man can take advantage of rainfall and surface reservoirs. However, there is a problem in this case. According to the hydrological cycle the water will never be lost and will not add or reduce its quantity within the biosphere called the planet Earth. So, good news! Perhaps not, if we think that water is lost from its accessible forms and is not re-used or cannot be redeemed it is eventually lost. On a country scale, this is a problem if we consider that we owe the wealth of groundwater to a large extent to low barometric alpine. But even so the stocks are big, but not "clean".

Underground Over-pumping and the Greek negligence

If we think that even the part of the reservoirs of water resources may somehow be overlooked, it is also worrying about underground aquifers. It is now known that in Greece the greatest consumption is due to the irrigation networks and even higher than that of the surrounding rural countries.

According to IGME, of the 236 underground aquifers in the whole country, the 110 of them are now identified as endangered which means they are at risk of not meeting the quantitative and qualitative targets set by the European Water Directive 2000/60. It is obvious that the only solution on tackling the problem is a rational water management. This is already applied to the water supply of the population. In irrigation, which consumes 86% of our country's total water resources (above the global average of 70%, no rational management is applied) (Xanthakis et al., 2009)

A large proportion of this pumping is from boreholes which, although illegal, they are an environmental ring-bell of emergency for the future of crops as they dry up fresh water, and the entry of brackish waters allows the creation of saltwater salt flocculants on the surface soils leading to the killing of microorganisms important for biological processes and a in slow desertification.

Figure 1. (a) and (b) different boreholes where (b) is a not expected to fill / refresh the aquifer borehole while  (a) is a partial fill/refresh. If the annual pumped quantity is consistently higher than the total annual renewal, then the annual level falls below that of the previous year. Event that occurs in 70% of cases in Greece according to the Ministry of Environment and Energy for vulnerable areas with groundwater. Example of over-pumping drilling in Gytroni (Larissa). (Diamantis & Plakias, 1996.)

Over-pumping, and even an ongoing one, creates a significant, permanent, increasing decline in the level of pumped aquifers. This recession has many direct and indirect consequences.

Finally, if we overlook the recent issue of Acheloos diversion (which was rejected by CET No. 26/2014), which was intended to cover the needs of the Thessalian plain in irrigated water due to the depletion of underground reserves, it really means that the Greek state and the Greek civilians does not understand the seriousness of the water management and considering the upcoming change of climate, Greece is a station of the global water crisis in the next 20 years(Institute of Geological and Mineral Research, Manolis Xanthakis et al. 2009). Given the reduced precipitation and the absence of collectors, the water reserves in our country, summarizing, are facing or will face two problems:

• Poor water quality.

• Absence of projects and technology for water purification and re-use.

 Figure 2. The world map with the countries of high risk for 2040 according to the current data. Greece -Extremely High (> 80%). (Tianyi et. Al., 2017)

Conclusion

Water reserves can be rich and stored in a number of potential forms to be pumped; on the other hand, it is not perceived, nor has their quality and vulnerability been clarified. Already much more water is being consumed than it should be especially  in water supply and irrigation , while the cost of consumption theoretically does not reflect the current situation. The questions that arise relate to solutions to the problem. It is the duty of the Greek citizens to act and get informed, which requires the existence of culture, to understand their position and responsibility as the crises are not created by themselves. In Greece, a sustainable and eco-friendly design for the consumption and use of natural resources is required(eco-engineering) , which will be governed by the legislation and the state economy in order to apply the European standards that we so much rely on.

REFERENCES

·         Charles Iceland (2017) Water Stress is Helping Drive Conflict and Migration ,accessed on 25/10/2017 by:  http://www.wri.org/news/commentary-water-stress-helping-drive-conflict-and-migration

·          Dasenakis.  (accessed on 25/10/2017 by): http://www.medsos.gr/medsos/ElefsinaDOCS/elefsina_dasenakis.pdf Slide 9 (in Greek)

·         Hanoch Lavee, Anton Imeson, P. Sarah, (1998) The impact of climate change on geomorphology and desertification along a Mediterranean-arid transect, Journal of Land Degredation and Development, p: 407-422, accessed on  25/10/2017 by: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/240331108_The_impact_of_climate_change_on_geomorphology_and_desertification_along_a_Mediterranean-arid_transect

·         Leah Schleifer (2017) Reasons We're Facing a Global Water Crisis, accessed on 29/10/2017 by: http://www.wri.org/blog/2017/08/7-reasons-were-facing-global-water-crisis

·         Xanthakis Manolis , Nikos Vassilakos,  Yannis Boukis, Giannis Tsiforos, Michalis Smyris, Nikos Vassilakos, Yannis Boukis, Haris Sofianos, Giorgos Kontopoulos, Giorgos Kamaras, Aristotle Botsi, (2015) STUDY FOR THE APPLICATION OF A SINGLE MODEL OF REDEWATER MANAGEMENT IN HELLENIC FARMING. Assessed on 30/10/2017 by: https://www.ypethe.gr/sites/default/files/archivefiles/2009_06_prologos_xanthaki_meletis_inaso_gia_to_nero.pdf ,  slide 2. (In Greek)

·         Ministry of Energy and Environment, Nitrates. http://www.ypeka.gr/?tabid=250  as Directive 91/676 / EEC http://www.ypeka.gr/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=IL2uv6sc2wo%3d&tabid=250&language=en-GR  and harmonization with Government Gazette B '519 / 25-6-1997                             http://www.ypeka.gr/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=ZFOPGhAgGio%3d&tabid=250&language=el-GR (in Greek)

·          Tianyi Luo, Andrew Maddocks, Charles Iceland, Philip Ward and Hessel Winsemius (2015)  World’s 15 Countries with the Most People Exposed to River Floods (accessed on 25/10/2017 by): http://www.wri.org/blog/2015/03/world’s-15-countries-most-people-exposed-river-floods

·         ΔΙΑΜΑΝΤΗΣ, Ι.-ΠΛΙΑΚΑΣ, Φ. (1996) Impacts from overexploitation of underground waters - Correction - Artificial enrichment, Proceedings of the International Conference of TEE, p. 432-440 (in Greek)

·         ΕΥΑΓΓΕΛΟΠΟΥΛΟΣ, Α. (2004) Quantitative and qualitative condition of groundwater potential of basin of eastern Thessaly, Announcement at the 3rd Congress of Development of Thessaly, p.38 (in Greek)