East Asia: Widespread, intense water deficits forecast for Mongolia & Inner Mongolia

East Asia: Widespread, intense water deficits forecast for Mongolia & Inner Mongolia

Exceptional water deficits will increase in Mongolia and China through April, creating a vast stretch from Xinjiang through Inner Mongolia. Exceptional deficits will emerge in Liaoning and extreme deficits in Hunan. Deficits are forecast to spread on the Korean Peninsula and may be intense near Seoul. Conditions of intense surplus remain in the forecast from Shanghai west through the Han River (Hanjiang) watershed, and exceptional surpluses will continue to emerge in northern Sichuan and Qinghai. Moderate to severe surpluses will continue to emerge around the Gulf of Tonkin and in Hainan.

Africa: Extreme water deficits forecast for Zambia & Malawi

Africa: Extreme water deficits forecast for Zambia & Malawi

A notable improvement is forecast for southern Africa and the Horn of Africa where conditions will transition from intense to mild water deficit. Intense deficits are, however, forecast scattered across the southern Sahara and the Sahel, and in a stretch from southern Democratic Republic of the Congo through eastern Zambia into Malawi. Deficits of varying severity remain dominant in many other regions, but surpluses are forecast for northeastern South Sudan and Tanzania, and will be exceptional in Tanzania. After April, severe deficits will emerge across northern Africa and will persist in Zambia.

Middle East: Water deficits moderate overall; severe deficits in SE Iran

Middle East: Water deficits moderate overall; severe deficits in SE Iran

Widespread exceptional water deficits are expected to moderate considerably through April, though deficits reaching extreme intensity are forecast in southeastern Iran. After April, deficits will increase overall in extent and severity, and are expected to be especially intense in Iran from the Persian Gulf to the Afghan border, and in southern Iraq near Basrah. Moderate deficits will emerge in Azerbaijan.

Europe: Water deficits persist in Portugal; surpluses in Central, Eastern Europe

Europe: Water deficits persist in Portugal; surpluses in Central, Eastern Europe

Exceptional water surpluses will retreat but widespread surpluses will persist in European Russia and in parts of Central and Eastern Europe. Surpluses will emerge in southern Norway and northern Sweden. Intense deficits will persist in Estonia, Latvia, central Finland, and central Sweden. Deficits in southern France and the Mediterranean are expected to moderate but severe deficits will continue in Portugal, and deficits will emerge in Albania and eastern Greece. After April, much of Central and Eastern Europe will transition away from surplus to moderate deficit, joining southern Europe.

ISciences Worldwide Water Watch List February 2018

ISciences Worldwide Water Watch List February 2018

Regions forecast to have significant water deficits for the 12-month period from November 2017 through October 2018 include: California, Nevada, Arizona, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Venezuela, French Guiana, Gabon, Mongolia, and Tasmania. Areas with a forecast of significant water surplus include: Ireland, Poland, European Russia, Tanzania, and Philippines. This Watch List is based on ISciences Water Security Indicator Model (WSIM) run on 6 February 2018.