Water scarcity indexes: water availability to satisfy human needs

Abstract

Water scarcity becomes an issue in different parts of the world, and it is predicted to con-tinuously expand over greater territories and to affect a greater share of the world population and environment. Furthermore, water plays a vital role in agriculture and food security in every part of the world. In that context, many researchers and scientists have developed indexes aiming to measure the level of water scarcity. The indexes vary greatly depending on the level of complexity, the amount of data required and the measurement objectives. Each index has advantages and limitations; therefore, it is important to comprehend the applicability of indexes in real life.

This thesis presents the most widely used indexes measuring water scarcity with respect to the water required to satisfy human needs and places additional focus on the index measuring the water required for agricultural use. The thesis also discusses the usability of water scarcity indexes in the decision-making process and is based on a scientific literature review.

Findings suggest that none of the indexes can provide an exclusive solution for water scarcity measurement and be used as a tool in decision-making process. Therefore, in order to get more reliable and usable results combination of indexes have to be used.