Water, water everywhere... - 1 July 2008

Posted by Paul Collins 1 comment

We live in times when there is almost as much concern about the state of the environment as there is about the state of the economy. However, the cruel irony of the situation is that while the rising of the world’s sea levels is a justified and substantial cause for concern among island nations and low-lying regions, one of the Mediterranean’s islands is facing the worst shortage of water in generations.

Two tankers full of fresh water will soon arrive in Cyprus having set off from Athens in order to supplement the supplies of an island that has seen no significant winter rains for four years. The deliveries of fresh drinking water are expected to continue at a rate of two tankers per day for the next six months, delivering supplies only to the southern part of the island. The tankers will make their way to an offshore terminal where they will unload their cargo, via a pipeline, direct to the mainland.

This hugely-expensive operation – reported to be costing the Cypriot government some €38 million – is likely to become a much more frequent notion in the future as we continue to build towns, destroy natural habitats and waste water supplies. Not only is the population of the world increasing, we are moving in greater numbers to areas that traditionally have been less-easy to inhabit due to the lack of naturally-occurring fresh water.

We have already seen Barcelona having to import water in May in order to counteract the effects of a severe drought in the region. Huge tankers arrived in the city in relays to supply the city, and the population had to live with restrictions on filling their swimming pools and watering their gardens.

This shows the effects of growing population in areas of the world that traditionally had a degree of habitation, but have expanded to cater for the migratory whims of people. More of an issue, surely, are those areas of the world where there was never a high level of population, but which are now becoming popular places in which to live. Think of the amount of work that has to go in to providing water for the vast expansion of Dubai, for example. Despite the fact that the Emirate has existed for many years as both village and city, the explosion of the building trade and the influx of people must have put huge pressure on the systems supplying water.

Dubai isn’t even the most serious example, even if it is in the most extreme of environments. The desert heat and topography mean that there really is no other real option but to desalinate seawater, and huge plants have been built. In smaller emerging markets in the overseas property world, there is the potential for serious water shortages if the government is unable to extend the infrastructure of the country to cope with the additional demands placed upon supply.

Take the Cape Verde islands for example – this paradise in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean has a huge amount of goods imported in order for daily life to continue as normal. Think not only of the extra pressure placed upon the water supply, but also how much more in the way of raw materials and consumables that will need to somehow make their way to the islands in order to keep the new homeowners happy.

This might all add extra weight to the environmental concerns associated with buying overseas, but while it is difficult to calculate, surely it is worth considering the added pressure that buying in a particular country is putting on the infrastructure of a destination, as well as the addition to your personal carbon footprint as a property owner.

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