The much-anticipated release of a classified US intelligence report reveals the US is preparing for the threat of a global war over water by 2030.
Drought To Spark Global Unrest
After the US state department issued a press release announcing a plan to private water supplies based on information in a classified intelligence report, the intelligence report has been released to the public.
At the time of the press release, information release to the public revealed that intelligence officials on the expected water shortages to lead to terrorism, political unrest and wars after approximately 10 years.
The actual intelligence report also reveals that US intelligence is preparing for the threat of a global war for water which they believe is likely to occur by 2030.
I previously reported on the plan to privatize water supplies to address the issues outlined in the Intelligence report:
Report: Water Shortages To Spark Global Unrest, US Privatizing Supplies
The US will begin to privatize water supplies following a classified intelligence report that warns water shortages
US will begin to privatize water supplies following a classified intelligence report that warns water shortages will spark global unrest within 10 years or so.An intelligence report based on classified information warns water shortages will soon lead to global unrest and threaten the National Security of the United States.The intelligence reports that wars over water won’t happen over night, but within another 10 years the lack of water is expected to become crucial to the point where it can contribute to conditions that cause the collapse of governments or spark wars in areas of political instability.[…]
Now with the actual release of the intelligence report corporate news outlets have finally picked up on the story.
U.S. media outlets are focusing more on the implications of the report as it applies directly to United States with most organizations running headlines warning that water shortages will soon threaten US National Security.
For example, CNN reports U.S. National Security at risk over water, while the Global Post has run the headline Water shortages are a growing threat to US security: US intelligence.
On air CNN reports, reveals that the water crisis is expected to hit some Middle East nation’s this year
Transcripts:
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RICHARD QUEST, CNN: Abu Dhabi is a desert city and it`s running out of water. Severe shortages are expected as soon as 2012.
Natural water supply is becoming increasingly scarce in Abu Dhabi. In addition, the people who live here are amongst the largest consumers of water in the world. So now you see the problem.
H.E. RAZAN KHALIFA AL MUBARAK: The coastal areas of Abu Dhabi receive not more than 80 millimeter of annual rainfall. This is certainly not enough water to provide for the residents of the city.
QUEST: Like any arid region, Abu Dhabi has no surface water, no river, no fresh lakes.
AL MUBARAK: Natural resources, in terms of water, do not exist here in the UAE, so we need to find ways in order to acquire that.
QUEST: Almost every drop of drinking water in the Emirate comes from desalinization, the removal of salt from sea water.
As it stands, Abu Dhabi has currently just 48 hours of emergency water supply. Out in the desert, workers started on an ambitious project to build an artificial underground aquifer to increase that.
Storing spare desalinated water is only part of the solution. There are other issues that have to be addressed. This is a city that needs to reduce its consumption. Every day, Abu Dhabi resident use more than three times the amount of water recommended by the United Nations.
So the authorities have come up with these, little water-saving devices which reduce the flow of water from your tap buy a third. Thirty thousand of these have been fitted so far across the Emirate, in homes, schools, mosques and hotels.
For Abu Dhabi, this Emirate in the desert, growth and ambition will always be tied to the supply of water.
Richard Quest, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
Source: Transcripts.CNN.com
Russia Today, on the other hand, has focused on the report’s assessment of the global impacts and highlights the fact the report reveals that the US intelligence community is preparing for the threat of a Global war for water by 2030.
RT reports:
Global ‘water war’ threat by 2030 – US intelligence
Nations will cut off rivers to prevent their enemies having access to water downstream, terrorists will blow up dams, and states that cannot provide water for their citizens will collapse. This is the future – as painted by a top US security report.
The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), the organization that oversees US intelligence agencies such as the CIA and FBI, was commissioned by President Barack Obama to examine the impact of water scarcity worldwide on US security.
And while the prospect of “water wars” has been touted for decades, it may start to become reality within a decade. The ODNI predicts that by 2040 water demand will outstrip current supply by 40 per cent.
Impoverished volatile states will be worst off
Water shortages “will hinder the ability of key countries to produce food and generate energy, posing a risk to global food markets and hobbling economic growth.” North Africa, the Middle East and South Asia will be hit the hardest, the report states.
And while the coming shortage is a manageable problem for richer countries, it is a deadly “destabilizing factor” in poorer ones. As a rule, economically disadvantaged countries are already prone to political, social and religious turmoil, and failure to provide water for farmers and city dwellers can be the spark for wider “state failure.”
Among those most vulnerable to this scenario are Sudan, Pakistan and Iraq, which are all locked in debilitating civil conflicts, and Somalia, which has effectively ceased to function as a state. ODNI envisages countries restricting water for its own citizens to “pressure populations and suppress separatist elements.” The report predicts many ordinary citizens will have to resort to the kind of purification tablets currently used by soldiers and hikers to obtain clean water.
Most dangerously, there are whole clusters of unstable countries fighting for the same waterways.
The report lists the Nile, which runs through Uganda, Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt, the Jordan, which runs through Israel and several Arab countries, and the Indus, which is shared by Pakistan and India.
These areas are managed by special commissions, and the report states that “historically, water tensions have led to more water-sharing agreements than violent conflicts.” But once there is not enough water to go around, these fragile pacts may collapse, with “more powerful upstream nations impeding or cutting off downstream flow.”
Even without outright fighting, the ODNI says countries will use water as a tool of political leverage, similar to how gas and oil are used today.
Infrastructure projects will become increasingly politicized: “States will also use their inherent ability to construct and support major water projects to obtain regional influence or preserve their water interests,” the report claims.
Laos’ proposed $3.5 billion Mekong Dam has already been the subject of an international dispute with Cambodia and Vietnam, who say the dam will obliterate their fisheries and agriculture.
Water terrorism threat
And even international compromise is not likely to be enough to ensure water safety.
“Physical infrastructure, including dams, has been used as a convenient and high-publicity target by extremists, terrorists, and rogue states, threatening substantial harm and this will become more likely beyond the next 10 years.”
The report states that an attack on a single point in a water supply, such as a canal or desalinization plant is sufficient to deprive hundreds of thousands of clean water. In return, governments will have to implement costly safety measures that are likely to be of limited use, due to the extensive length of rivers that have to be protected.
The ODNI says there is a decade to tackle the problems before they spiral out of control. It suggests revising international water treaties and investing in superior water purification technologies that will make the increasingly scarce resource plentiful again.
Source: RT