WATER RESOURCES OF EUROPEAN COUNTRIES: CHARACTERISTICS BASED ON THE FAO-AQUASTAT DATABASE

Abstract

The purpose of the study is to assess the quantitative state of water resources in 50 European countries based on the FAO-Aquastat database on average annual indicators, to rank them, to assess the external dependence of water resources of countries, to identify countries with water deficit. According to the Falkenmark water stress indicator (m3/year/person), European countries are ranked as follows: a) the state of water resources is stable (>2500 m3/year per person) – Iceland, Norway, Russia, Croatia, Finland, Serbia, Latvia, Sweden, Georgia, Slovenia, Ireland, Romania, Hungary, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Estonia, Slovakia, Austria, Lithuania, Portugal, Switzerland, Greece, Belarus, Luxembourg, Kazakhstan, Netherlands, Andorra, Ukraine, Azerbaijan, France, Italy, North Macedonia , Moldova, Bulgaria, Armenia, Turkey; b) existing water vulnerability (1700-2500 m3/year per person) – Spain, Great Britain, Germany; c) existing water stress (<1700 m3/year per person) – Belgium, Poland, Czech Republic, Denmark; d) existing water deficit (<1000 m3/year per person) – Cyprus; e) current absolute water deficit (< 500 m3/year per person) – Malta. The countries of Europe, the formation of water resources of which is more than 50% outside their borders, include Portugal, Latvia, Croatia, Ukraine, Luxembourg, Slovakia, Azerbaijan, Romania, Moldova, the Netherlands, Hungary, Serbia. The range of KZ for the list of these countries is from 50.9% (Portugal) to 94.8% (Serbia). The total water withdrawal in the EU is about 353 km3/year, which means that 10% of the total fresh water is withdrawn. In Europe, the majority of water is used from surface water bodies – 74% of total water withdrawals are from rivers and reservoirs, and 24.5% from groundwater. Water withdrawal rates are highest during the growing season. Water is used in agriculture (44%), industry (40%) and household purposes (16%). Increased droughts due to climate change exacerbate seasonal water scarcity. Abnormal heat in Europe was observed in 2003, 2018, 2019, 2022.