COP29 strengthens water’s position on the global climate agenda

December 2nd, 2024

The 2024 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29) has served to further anchor water in the global climate agenda. “Water is not only a victim of climate change, but also a central element in achieving many of the SDGs. Without water there is no sustainable development,” said COP29 President and Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mukhtar Babayev. “Water must be integrated into all aspects of the global climate agenda.”

Due to its vital role, water is at the heart of climate change, with most climate impacts occurring through disruptions to its cycle, such as floods, droughts, glacial mass loss, landslides, water quality degradation, water scarcity and changes in water availability, as well as other substantial changes to the water cycle at global, regional and local scales.

He said that the Caspian Sea – the world’s largest inland water body and an integral part of Azerbaijan’s national identity and economy – is shrinking, alongside the degradation of biodiversity. “This is an alarming prospect,” he said.

Regarding the above, the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action seeks to provide continuity between the annual UN climate negotiations and promote coherence and collaboration. Its purpose is to ensure a constant focus on water and its interaction with climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution and desertification, with an emphasis on actions at the international, regional, river and basin levels.

Resources go down and down

The WMO (World Meteorological Organization) is one of the founding partners of the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action, and its reports on the state of the world’s water resources show that the water cycle is out of control and is becoming more erratic, more unpredictable and extreme. In addition, they point out that freshwater resources are increasingly low due to increasing social demands, environmental degradation and climate change.

“2023 was the driest for rivers globally in more than three decades of records. Almost half of the planet experienced lower than normal annual river flows. The world’s glaciers experienced their largest mass loss in almost fifty years of record-keeping. This is a worrying omen for future water security for billions of people.” Ko Barrett, WMO Deputy Secretary-General.

LIFE RESEAU activity

In the current context, LIFE RESEAU aims to develop a retrofitting solution to increase the resilience of urban wastewater infrastructures in areas of heavy rainfall. The expected results of the project include:

  • Reduce by up to 100% the discharge of untreated stormwater overflows in heavy precipitation areas.
  • Increase the capacity of Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTP) by up to 600% using the existing area and infrastructures.
  • Develop and validate two novel solutions for the upgrading of WWTP.
  • Develop a tool using artificial intelligence to quantify groundwater infiltration and stormwater inflow to sewer networks.
  • Assess the impact of climate change on urban wastewater infrastructures.
  • Reduce energy consumption and pollutant gas emissions (CO2, N2O).
  • Develop strategies to replicate the solutions in other WWTPs and locations with similar characteristicsIdentify the most beneficial intervention areas to reduce the volume of water to be treated.

 

Picture: High-Level Launch of the Baku Dialogue on Water for Climate Action. Source: Smart Water Magazine