This city is on track to run out of water by 2030. For many residents, that day is already here
Shazia knows what life will be like in a major city that’s run out of water because she’s already living that reality — and it’s unbearable. The 34-year-old lives in the Khair Khana neighborhood of Afghanistan’s capital Kabul with her three children and her husband, who ekes out a living as a street vendor. They … The post This city is on track to run out of water by 2030. For many residents,…
In the Afghan capital Kabul, the water crisis has reached a critical point, with the city on track to run out of water by 2030, according to a recent report. For many residents, this day has already arrived, forcing them to endure unbearable hardships. Shazia, a 34-year-old mother of three, lives in the Khair Khana neighborhood with her family and has no access to running water.
They rely on hand pumps at local mosques, waiting in long lines to fill buckets, causing physical strain and emotional distress. Kabul is not alone in facing this crisis; cities worldwide, including Corpus Christi, Texas, and Tehran, Iran, are also teetering on the edge of severe water shortages, with residents bracing for the dreaded "day zero," when taps run dry.
The root causes of these water crises are similar: population growth outpacing water infrastructure, and the exacerbating effects of climate change. Afghanistan, already grappling with decades of conflict, now faces the additional challenge of a rapidly growing population with its water supply dwindling. Mohd Faizee, a professor at the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health, warns that Kabul is facing a "human catastrophe" and that time is running out.
The search for solutions lies beneath the city's streets, as residents like Mirza Jan dig deeper wells to access dwindling groundwater resources. However, these methods prove unsustainable in the long term, as groundwater reserves continue to deplete. The invisible catastrophe of Kabul's water crisis serves as a stark reminder of the future of water in our changing world, urging us to prioritize sustainable solutions before it's too late.
Written by urgent.news from Egypt Independent's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
