Global Water Summit in Berlin: Climate change adaptation and mitigation (9)

Behare Bajraktari, Berlin

Journalist & Publicist/ Specialized in Climate Change and Environmental Journalism

Water management and infrastructure is a challenge for urgent addressing and permanent implementation. Experts in the field of water say that: “No one tells how much adaptation to climate change will cost, there is no business model for adaptation, neither for electric cars nor for other sectors”.

As long as there is still no working model for adaptation to climate change, then there is a need for public financing of adaptation and, as governments do not have the budgets to manage the water crisis.

During the various discussion panels during the World Water Summit, it was said that the World Bank is very important and that it is the one that supports the countries, since it is an important player for the governments and reforms of the countries that are facing climate change, especially in the private sector.

Initially, they said that 4 billion dollars are needed to develop countries and to deal with adaptation to climate change.

Billion water purity

Clean water and decarbonization are issues that need to be done faster and a budget of 7 trillion dollars is needed for investments until 2030 for the water sector – the water industry.

Also, special emphasis was given to the management of water losses, which must be managed with new plans.  In this summit they said that there is not enough talk about the quality of water, this is as important as the quantity of water, the same for underground water.

Climate change is bringing changes to the economy and that adaptation is essential for cooperation in public-private partnership including governments in co-financing, convinced that this should be the direction.

The water sector in the public-private partnership will increase the quality of water, but also increase the price, because according to experts the price reflects the quality and that the public water sector must be convinced to cooperate with the private sector and without which nothing can be done.

The companies gathered at the worried summit said that drinking water is being over-consumed, and we may not have the same water balance for a long time.

Underestimating water

All participants agree that water is being underestimated and is not capitalized properly and sufficiently compared to other products.  For example, the way water is used by the agricultural sector, who have bad behavior with water.  We must not give messages that water is free for agricultural use, therefore there must be a price.

Among the main speakers of the summit, the Swedish scientist who leads the Potsdam Institute Johan Rockström said that: “We need more investments in the public sector, because due to the lack of water we will have population movements, with migrations that will bring crises  and that no one knows for sure how much water is underground and that we need to run pipes underground to understand how much groundwater we have.

Tomorrow: Water Dialogue and upcoming summit in London