AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM DECLINE AND HUNGER
In a few decades, we have drained a large part of our wetlands, felled riparian forests, and changed, narrowed and channelled streams. With tens of thousands of large dams, we have destroyed the stability of river habitats. We have polluted and overexploited aquifers and rivers, which sometimes do not even reach the sea.
In the name of "progress," we have broken the water cycle, so that continental water ecosystems have the highest proportion of extinct or endangered species.
This devastation not only affects biodiversity but also exacerbates two major human crises: access to drinking water and hunger. Most of the protein in the diet of poor communities comes from fishing.
Today, we are witnessing human disasters, and even more serious ones are announced each day. This is happening through the destruction of fisheries. The Amazon, Aral Sea, Lake Chad, Sinú, Paraná, Mekong ... all are examples of how the degradation of rivers and lakes may aggravate problems of hunger in the world.
© Fundación Nueva Cultura del Agua 2009