Water Scarcity in Conakry, Guinea: Challenges and Proposed Strategies for a Way Forward

The capital of Guinea, Conakry, faces a notable difficulty due to a water shortage, which is worsened by the rapid increase in population and urban development. The Guinean Water Company (SEG) faces challenges in supplying water to the entire city due to its limited area of approximately 420 km2 and a population of 2 million. Moreover, the population growth rate is anticipated to increase dramatically, exacerbating the difficulty of fulfilling future water requirements. As a result, this study employs data from the Knoema website and the Institute of National Statistics of Guinea (INS) to examine the water production and distribution process by the SEG. The study examines the challenges related to water scarcity in Conakry and suggests strategies to assist the city in managing the present circumstances and planning for the future. The primary objective is to get a long-lasting water supply and uphold water quality to advance public health.

The Impact of Water Scarcity on Food Security in Iraq

Iraq is part of the Fertile Crescent with the two large rivers:Tigris and Euphrates and their tributaries that secure the required quantity and quality of water to the Iraqi population for their different uses;including agriculture,industry,and other domestic requirements.During the last decades,however,the quantity and quality of water in these rivers decreased causing water scarcity in the country.This scarcity is having severe impacts on food security in Iraq since large cultivated areas in different parts of the country that grow different agricultural products have been abandoned due to lack of water.The worsening situation is attributed mainly to global climate changes including decreasing rainfall amounts,increase in air temperature,and insufficient water inflows in the two main rivers and their tributaries.This last issue is exasperated by the unfair water sharing policies of the riparian countries namely Turkey and Iran.In writing this article relevant data from different sources were used.Numerous published reports and papers dealing with this important issue were consulted,while at the same time,the long experience of the authors in these very important issues was also drawn upon to elucidate the difficulties that are current today and those expected in the future in this field.

Analysis on Systematic Water Scarcity Based on Establishment of Water Scarcity Classification System

It would be very helpful for making countermeasures against complex water scarcity by analysis on systematic water scarcity.Based on the previous researches on water scarcity classification,a classification system of water scarcity was established according to contributing factors,which comprises three water scarcity categories caused by anthropic factors,natural factors and mixed factors respectively.Accordingly,the concept of systematic water scarcity was proposed,which can be defined as one type of water scarcity category caused by the discordance between water demand pattern determined by anthropic factors and water supply pattern controlled by natural factors in an evaluation region during a period.Systematic water scarcity has four features,namely space-time characteristic,scale property,externality and integrity,and can be divided into four developing phases including critical phase,early phase,middle phase and late phase according to various degrees of water scarcity.

Exploring the Cornerstone Factors That Cause Water Scarcity in Some Parts of Africa, Possible Adaptation Strategies and Quest for Food Security

Water scarcity is significantly increasing water stress in Africa and some parts of the world. This is due to human-induced factors such as climate change, human population increase that raises demand for food availability, and put great changes on land use which results in changes of hydrological mechanics and water availability as a whole. The investigation of this paper was based on a literature review and the examination of water scarcity in different African regions, and the major factors that result in this menace. Some possible strategies that can be employed to manage water scarcity at the domestic and national levels in the agricultural sector were described in this paper.

Incremental adaptation strategies for agricultural water management under water scarcity condition in Northeast Iran

Population growth and climate changes as two synergistic phenomena have damaged water resources nationwide and worldwide.The water resources available for agriculture is one of the most critical limiting factors in food production enhancement in Iran.Agriculture must tackle the challenge of supplying the increasing demands for food due to population growth.For this purpose,we must get acquainted with how farmers make decisions and their adaptations to water scarcity conditions by studying their adaptation strategies.In this case,we can predict the farmers’behaviors by recognizing the optimal adaptation strategies under water scarcity crisis.This study aims to provide a model to examine and analyze the farmers’behaviors in the realm of water scarcity and the contributing factors to it,facilitating a better understanding of the potential implications of such scarcity,introducing the adaptation changeability procedures for agricultural water management and assistance to farmers to adapt,and developing the actions for mitigating the vulnerability of agriculture sector in Iran.In this study,175 farmers in Northeast Iran were interviewed to conduct an applied research by questionnaire survey.The research tool was a researcher-made questionnaire designed based on the theoretical literature and designed model.According to the research,the model of incremental adaptation strategies could determine the effects of a set of psychological and socioeconomic factors and the formation of adaptation decisions in water resources management under water scarcity conditions.The results indicated that the concern and attitude,farmers’knowledge and technical skill,self-efficiency and risk-taking level,social capital and information availability for farmers,and the internal norm are significantly and positively correlated in this model.The results provide a proper understanding of farmers’sustainable decision-making and a perspective on contributing factors to the strategy framework and improved policies in the form of incremental adaptation strategies when facing water scarcity in agricultural water resources management.Thus,this study will respond to deal with water scarcity by changing farmers’behaviors in dry lands and water scarce regions.

Remote Sensing-Based Accounting of Reservoir’s Water Storage for Water Scarcity Mitigation: A Case Study for Small and Medium Irrigation Dams in Vietnam

Integrated water resources management requires consistent and accurate data on available water storage in reservoirs as well as water stress level. Vietnam is enduring a significant deficit in collecting necessary information to manage its water resources in that manner. While reservoirs are abundant, the majority of them were constructed a long ago and often lack of regular and adequate measurement on storage volume. Furthermore, the condition of water stress is often missing or remains bias leading to certain risks in reservoir operation, e.g. during water scarcity period. This paper presents how remote sensing data can be used to acquire needed information that is fundamental to understand water resources conditions. The results indicated that Sentinel-1 and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) can be applied to determine water surface area and water stress, through vegetation health index (VHI). This information is deemed necessary to improve water resources monitoring and management and hence, ensure long-term drought resilience and water and food security.

An empirical analysis of effective factors on farmers adaptation behavior in water scarcity conditions in rural communities

This paper investigates the effect of factors on Farmers Adaptation Behavior in Water Scarcity Conditions in Rural Communities of Sabzevar,Iran.A survey questionnaire was used for collecting data,the study population was 120 farmers in rural Sabzevar County selected based on the Cochran formula.A questionnaire was designed for the target group for the measurement of on farm adaptation behavior in water scarcity conditions.Research models were drawn using structural equation modeling and the relationships between latent variables and indicators.The findings indicate that there is a significant relationship between awareness and adaptation behavior.Meanwhile,there is a significant relationship among network and media on farmer's perception about water scarcity and their activities toward better management of water in the critical condition.There are also significant relationships among perception and awareness with intention however,intention do not effect on adaptation behavior strongly.In other words,even the that means farmers had information about crisis,they are not able to have not operational plans to confront the water scarcity conditions.

The Impact of Inoculum Preparation Media on Pollutant Removal through Phycoremediation of Agricultural Drainage Water by Desmodesmus sp.

Water is the most essential natural resource for the future development.Agriculture production is extensively water-dependent and a significant polluter of water resources.So,this work investigated the effect of two different preparation media[Bold’s Basal Medium(BBM)and Domiati cheese whey(DCW)]for agricultural drainage water(ADW)remediation.All treatments were incubated for 6 days.According to the results of biomass productivity,specific growth rate,photosynthetic pigments,and biochemical composition,Desmodesmus sp.can grow in drainage water without dilution.The two treatments significantly reduced the concentration of nitrate,phosphate,chemical oxygen demand,and sodium in ADW.Finally,using cheese whey with BBM as inoculum preparation media enhanced the lipid accumulation in the algal biomass(25.4%w/w)and gave the best biodiesel properties among treatments.Therefore,combining remediation of drainage water with microalgae mass production can achieve the sustainability of agriculture.

Study of the Optimization and Adjustment ofthe IndustrialStructure Subjected to Water Resource in the Drainage Area of the Yellow River

Since the 1990s, the Yellow River stream has been temporarily interrupted for several years, which affects the development of society, the economy and human life, limits the economic potential of the drainage areas, and especially causes great harm to regions on the lower reaches. Based on the analysis of the relationship between the development of society and economy and water scarcity, the author thinks it is necessary to optimize and adjust the industrial structure that has extravagantly consumed enormous amounts of water, and to develop ecological agriculture, industry and tourism which are balanced with the ecological environment. Finally, the author puts forward several pieces of advice and countermeasures about how to build the economic systems by which water can be used economically.

The driving force of water resource stress change based on the STIRPAT model:take Zhangye City as a case study

A prominent contradiction between supply and demand of water resources has restricted local development in social and economic aspects of Zhangye City,located in a typical arid region of China.Our study quantified the Water Resource Stress Index(WRSI)from 2003 to 2017 and examined the factors of population,urbanization level,GDP per capita,Engel coefficient,and water consumption per unit of GDP by using the extended stochastic impact by regression on population,affluence and technology(STIRPAT)model to find the key factors that impact WRSI of Zhangye City to relieve the pressure on water resources.The ridge regression method is applied to improve this model to eliminate multicollinearity problems.The WRSI system was developed from the following three aspects:water resources utilization(WR),regional economic development water use(WU),and water environment stress(WE).Results show that the WRSI index has fallen from 0.81(2003)to 0.17(2017),with an average annual decreased rate of 9.8%.Moreover,the absolute values of normalized coefficients demonstrate that the Engel coefficient has the largest positive contribution to increase WRSI with an elastic coefficient of 0.2709,followed by water consumption per unit of GDP and population with elastic coefficients of 0.0971 and 0.0387,respectively.In contrast,the urbanization level and GDP per capita can decrease WRSI by−0.2449 and−0.089,respectively.The decline of WRSI was attributed to water-saving society construction which included the improvement of water saving technology and the adjustment of agricultural planting structures.Furthermore,this study demonstrated the feasibility of evaluating the driving forces affecting WRSI by using the STIRPAT model and ridge regression analysis.

Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Green Total-factor Water-use Efficiency and Its Influencing Factors in China

In this study,we developed an evaluation index system for green total-factor water-use efficiency(GTFWUE)which reflected both economic and green efficiencies of water resource utilization.Then we measured the GTFWUE of 30 provinces/municipalities/autonomous regions(hereafter provinces)in China(not including Tibet,Hong Kong,Macao,Taiwan as no data)from 2000 to 2018 using a minimum distance to the strong frontier model that contained an undesirable output.We further analyzed the regional differences and spatial correlations of GTFWUE using these values based on Global and Local Moran’s I statistics,and empirically determined the factors affecting GTFWUE using a spatial econometric model.The evaluation results revealed that the GTFWUE differed substantially between the regions.The provinces with high and low GTFWUE values were located in the coastal and inland areas of China,respectively.The eastern region had a significantly higher GTFWUE than the central and western regions.The GTFWUEs for all three regions(eastern,central,and western regions)decreased slowly from 2000 to 2011(except 2005),remained stable from 2012 to 2016,and rapidly increased in 2017 before decreasing again in 2018.We found significant spatial correlations between the provincial GTFWUEs.The GTFWUE for most provinces belonged to the high-high or low-low cluster region,revealing a significant spatial clustering effect of provincial GTFWUEs.We also found that China’s GTFWUE was highly promoted by economic growth,population size,opening-up level,and urbanization level,and was evidently hindered by water endowment,technological progress,and government influence.However,the water-use structure had little impact on GTFWUE.This study fully demonstrated that the water use mode would be improved,and water resources needed to be used more efficiently and green in China.Moreover,based on the findings of this study,several policy recommendations were proposed from the aspects of cross-regional cooperation,economy,society,and institution.

Water conservation in the Arab region: a must for survival

The Arab region covers an area over 13 million square kilometers in size, with almost 90% of its area classified as arid or ex- tremely arid with very little precipitation, extremely high evaporation and almost no vegetation cover. The region is classified in many international reports as the poorest region in the world in the context of renewable water resources and critical water scarcity which hinders the socio-economfic development of many countries in this region. The rapidly increasing population has reduced the per capita share of renewable water to less than the poverty line of 1,000 m3/（capita＇a） and, in some Arab countries, to less than the extreme poverty line of 500 m3/（capita＇a）. This has led to over-exploitation of non-renewable groundwater and desalination of salty water in many countries with considerable costs and contamination of many renewable sources. Atmospheric processes re- sponsible for aridity in the Arab region are projected to intensify due to climate change, resulting in an alarming decrease in pre- cipitation and increase in evaporation rates. Many concerned entities in the region consider water security as a key element for food security and ultimately political stability. Hence, various efforts have been exerted to identify key problems and suggested solutions. The Arab Water Ministers Council of the Arab League, as well as Reports of the Arab Forum for the Environment and Development （AFED） and the recommendations of the 13th Regional Meeting of the Arab National Committees of the Interna- tional Hydrological Programme of UNESCO （niP）, have all made similar recommendations on the need to address the issues of water scarcity in the Arab region which will be further discussed in this paper. However, none of these reports focused on ＂Water Conservation＂ as an equally important action for coping with water scarcity in the region. There are many definitions for ＂Water Conservation＂ in the scientific literature, including huge water savings from irrigation, industrial use, and domestic use as well as methods and approaches for augmenting water supply through non-conventional practices such as water harvesting and waste water reuse. In this paper, a review is provided for definitions, methods and impacts of water conservation and its role in alleviat- ing water scarcity in the Arab region.

Sustainability and virtual water:The lessons of history

This article aims to show that virtual water has historically been an adaptation strategy that enabled some arid regions to develop a prosperous economy without putting pressure on their scarce water resources.Virtual water is referred to as the total amount of water that is consumed to produce goods and services.As an example,in arid central Iran,the deficiency in agricultural revenues was offset by more investment in local industries that enjoyed a perennial capacity to employ more workers.The revenues of local industries weaned the population from irrigated agriculture,since most of their raw materials and also food stuff were imported from other regions,bringing a remarkable amount of virtual water.This virtual water not only sustained the region’s inhabitants,but also set the stage for a powerful polity in the face of a rapid population growth between the 13th and 15th centuries AD.The resultant surplus products entailed a vast and safe network of roads,provided by both entrepreneurs and government.Therefore,it became possible to import more feedstock such as cocoons from water-abundant regions and then export silk textiles with considerable value-added.This article concludes that a similar model of virtual water can remedy the ongoing water crisis in central Iran,where groundwater reserves are overexploited,and many rural and urban centers are teetering on the edge of socio-ecological collapse.History holds an urgent lesson on sustainability for our today’s policy that stubbornly peruses agriculture and other high-water-demand sectors in an arid region whose development has always been dependent on virtual water.

The Need for Agricultural Water Management in Sub-Saharan Africa

This paper discusses the current and future conditions that affect water resources and the constraints of water (agricultural) management in sub-Saharan Africa and suggests remedial measures to be considered by policy makers. The pressure on the quantity and quality of water resources is rising in sub-Saharan Africa due to the increased demand of water for agriculture and other purposes as a result of increase in population and food demand. The availability of water is also under threat from changing climate and as a result, water scarcity is expected in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa. On the other hand, the availability of water for agriculture is expected to further shrink due to the increasing demand of water for other purposes like industry, manufacturing and environmental requirement. The current poor efficiency rate of irrigation systems and massive expansion of irrigated area is expected to further exacerbate the water scarcity. Hence, a water management policy focused on maximization of water use efficiency and water productivity should be prioritized in order to meet the food demand of the growing population and cope with water scarcity problems. Engineering and management intervention integrated with strong society awareness and participation is considered very crucial in enhancing water use efficiency and crop water productivity.

ARTICLE Analyzing Potential Water Harvesting from Atmosphere in Near Coastal Area

Water is a basic need.However there are many near coastal regions which have very limited access to fresh water.The water in area close to coastal is mainly affected by ocean,indirectly by weather/climate conditions and directly from seawater intrusion.While abundant fresh water is actually available in the atmosphere in the form of moisture.Recent technology,such as Atmospheric Water Generator(AWG),is a possible solution to gain water from our atmosphere.However,comprehensive study is need­ed to understand the potential water harvesting in our atmosphere.Here,we examine the water availability in the atmosphere based on several parameters like temperature and humidity.The data are collected from observation using WS1040 Automatic Weather Station in a year of 2020 with a half-hour interval.Then,we calculate the availability of water con­tent during each season,especially in dry conditions.We also simulate the water harvesting to fulfil daily basic need of fresh water.The atmospheric parameters have shown a monsoonal pattern.Water content decrease in atmosphere during the dry season but the water deficit occurs after the dry season.Although water harvesting able to supply daily freshwater need,it is not recommended to be a single source as it requires massive water storage and high-efficient AWG.

Improved drought tolerance in Festuca ovina L.using plant growth promoting bacteria

Numerous ecological factors influence a plant’s ability to live and grow,in which dryness is a substantial constraint on plant growth in arid and semi-arid areas.In response to a specific environmental stress,plants can use the most effective bacteria to support and facilitate their growth and development.Today,plant growth promoting rhizobacteria(PGPR)is widely used to reduce drought stress on plant growth.In this study,the effects of drought on Festuca ovina L.germination,growth,and nutrient absorption were investigated using PGPR in a factorial test with a completely random design under four water regimes.Soil water content was kept at 100%FC(field capacity),70%FC(FC),50%FC,and 30%FC.The treatments were inoculated with Azotobacter vinelandii,Pantoea agglomerans+Pseudomonas putida,and a mixture of bio-fertilizers.Results showed that the effects of drought stress were significantly reduced(P<0.05)when A.vinelandii and P.agglomerans+P.putida were used separately,however,the combined treatment of bio-fertilizers had a greater influence on seed germination than the single application.P.agglomerans+P.putida under 30%FC condition resulted in higher increases in stem,root length,and plant dry biomass.The highest uptake of nutrients was observed for the combined treatment of bio-fertilizers under 30%FC condition.Therefore,the use of A.vinelandii and P.agglomerans+P.putida,applied separately or combined,increased tolerance to drought stress in F.ovina by increased germination indices,dry weight,stem length,and root length.Because of the beneficial effects of PGPR on the growth characteristics of plants under drought conditions and the reduction of negative effects of drought stress,inoculating F.ovina seeds with Azotobacter and Pseudomonas is recommended to improve their growth and development characteristics under drought conditions.PGPR,as an affordable and environmentally friendly method,can improve the production of forage in water-stress rangelands.

Modeling and simulation of industrial water demand of Beijing municipality in China

Statistic and econometric regression models were established in this study to analyze and predict industrial water demand,water deficits,and their future uncertainty in Beijing—a Chinese city with a severe water stress problem.A forecasting model was selected based on a modeling evaluation by comparing predictions with observations.Four scenarios were designed to simulate and analyze the future uncertainty of industrial water demand and the water deficit of Beijing.The modeling results for industrial water demand suggested that Beijing industry would face a water deficit between 3.06
×10^(8)m^(3)in 2008 and 2.77×10^(8)m^(3)in 2015,though its industrial water demand would decrease from 6.31×10^(8)m^(3)to 4.84×10^(8)m^(3)during this period of time.Results from simulated scenario illustrated that,due to the extreme water scarcity situation,industry in Beijing would still face a serious water deficit problem even with a very optimistic scenario for the future.

Spatiotemporal variation in water footprint of grain production in China

Water shortage has become a significant constraint to grain production in China.A more holistic approach is needed to understand the links between grain production and water consumption.Water footprint provides a framework to assess water utilization in agriculture production.This paper analyzes the spatiotemporal variation in water footprint of grain production(WFGP)in China from 1951 to 2010.The results show that,jointly motivated by the improvement of agricultural production and water use efficiency,WFGP in all areas showed a decreasing trend.National average WFGP has decreased from 3.38 to 1.31 m^(3)·kg^(–1).Due to regional differences in agricultural production and water use efficiency,spatial distribution of WFGP varies significantly and its pattern has changed through time.Moreover,WFGP may show significant differences within areas of similar climatic conditions and agricultural practices,indicating that there is a strong need to improve the management of water use technology.Statistical analysis revealed that regional differences in grain yield are the main cause for variations in spatiotemporal WFGP.However,the scope for further increases in grain yield is limited,and thus,the future goal of reducing WFGP is to decrease the water use per unit area.

Occurrence of pharmaceuticals and perfluorinated compounds and evaluation of the availability of reclaimed water in Kinmen

Emerging contaminants have commonly been observed in environmental waters but have not been included in water quality assessments at many locations around the world.To evaluate the availability of reclaimed water in Kinmen,Taiwan,this study provides the first survey of the distribution of thirty-three pharmaceuticals and five perfluorinated chemicals in lake waters and water from local wastewater treatment plants(WWTPs).The results showed that the target emerging contaminants in Kinmen lakes were at trace ng/L concentrations.In addition,most of the target compounds were present in the Jincheng and Taihu WWTP influents at ng/L concentrations levels,of which 5 compounds(erythromycin-H2O(1340 ng/L),ibuprofen(1763 ng/L),atenolol(1634 ng/L),acetaminophen(2143 ng/L),and caffeine(3113 ng/L))reached mg/L concentrations.The overall treatment efficiencies of the Jincheng and Taihu WWTPs with respect to these pharmaceuticals and perfluorinated chemicals were poor;half of the compounds were less than 50%removed.Five compounds(sulfamethoxazole,erythromycin-H2O,clarithromycin,ciprofloxacin and ofloxacin)with risk quotient(RQ)values>1 in the effluent should be further investigated to understand their effects on the aquatic environment.Additional and advanced treatment units are found necessary to provide high-quality recycled water and sustainable water resources.

Small dams/reservoirs site location analysis in a semi-arid region of Mozambique

The water crisis is one of the biggest human problems in developing countries,especially in semi-arid regions where it can form an obstacle to irrigation and cultivation,cattle raising and people's survival.The construction of small dams/reservoirs are a possible solution to remediate this problem.These infrastructures must be located in suitable areas to be successful.This study aimed to find the most suitable locations for small dams/reservoirs in the Tete province region,Mozambique,which has a pronounced water deficit A Geographical Information System(GIS)based approach was used to implement a multicriteria evaluation(MCE)analysis through an Analytic Hierarchical Process(AHP),which included local experts’consultation.Three main categories of suitability were identified:"Not suitable”(15%of total area),"Modestly suitable"(78%),and“Suitable"(7%).We found that 35 of the 38(92%)abandoned small dams/reservoirs were in areas classified as“Modestly suitable”confirming the robustness of our model.We also found that most of the dams/reservoirs currently operating(78%)and planned(73%)are in modestly suitable areas.This finding suggests that the decision to construct dams/reservoirs may not have considered the most critical suitability factors identified in this study.More data and/or additional criteria are required for the full understanding of finding out why so many dams/reservoirs failed before building new ones to address the population’s water needs in the region.