SOME FACTS ABOUT POPULATION & GROUND WATER

• Egypt

  with the area of about one million square kilometers and population of some 60 million increasing at a demographic annual growth rate of 2.5%, will have a minimum of about 129 million population by the year 2030. The available renewable water per capita is forecasted to decrease from 1123 m3 in 1990 to 681 m3 in 2030. The demand is expected to grow from 55 billion cubic meters in 1985 to an estimated 75 billions by the year 2030.

• The Sudan

  has an area of 2.5 million square kilometers and a population of 26 million with an annual demographic growth rate of about 3%. The population is expected to reach 55.5 million by the year 2030.

• Libya

  (The Great Socialistic People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya) has an area of about 1.75 million square kilometers and a population of slightly less than 5 millions increasing at an annual demographic growth rate of 4.1% in 1990-95. It is expected that Libya's population would reach 13.8 millions by the year 2025. With the exception of the coastal strip where the average annual rainfall hardly exceeds 90 mm, the ground water remains the only reliable and perennial source of water in the country. Due to the demographic growth, the annual availability of water epr capita is expected to decrease from about 1017 m3 in 1990 to 377 m3 by the year 2025.

• The United Nations specifies that the 1000 m3/yr/capita rate is the "water scarcity" threshold.

• Jordan

  with the area of about 90,000 square kilometers and population of some 4 million increasing at a demographic annual growth rate of 3.6%, will have a minimum of about 8 million population by the year 2015. The available renewable water per capita is forecasted to decrease from about 3,000 m3 in 1946 to 180 m3 in 1996. The demand is expected to grow from 1000 million cubic meters in 1995 to an estimated 1400 millions by the year 2015 without any agricultural expansion. Jordan has very limited water resources. The country heavily depends on ground water. Development of limited ground water resources is not balanced with modern recharge from rainfall. Jordan pumps about 500 million cubic meters (MCM) each year from its wells.

• Dubai (one of United Arab Emirates)

  In 1995 the total water supply equal to about 30,000 million gallons per year came from sea water desalination (27.7 million gallons), while from ground water wells only about 2.1 million gallons were used. It appears that the water supply is about 92.3% coming from sea water desalination. (Source: Dubai Electricity & Water Authority.)