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Virtual Water Debate

Engage in a thought-provoking debate on virtual water trade to understand its impact on sustainability and development. Explore contrasting arguments, benefits, and challenges associated with virtual water trade to enhance your understanding of global water dynamics.

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Virtual Water Debate

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Presentation Transcript

  1. Virtual Water Debate • One half of the class will argue in support of the following: More of the world should rely on virtual water trade • The other half will argue against this statement.

  2. Virtual Water Debate How this will go… • Affirmative side will make one argument • Negative side will make a counter argument • Repeat until we are out of distinct arguments • Rebuttals? • Weighing the pros and cons

  3. Virtual Water Debate • Let’s take a vote • How many of you have changed your mind on this question? • How difficult was it to weigh the pros and cons? • How does virtual water trade highlight the ideological differences between sustainable development and sustainability?

  4. What are the Benefits of Virtual Water Trade? International trade theory says… • Regions can gain from trade if they specialize in producing goods and services for which they have a comparative advantage. • The export of water-intensive commodities from water-abundant to water-scarce regions can allow the latter to forgo high water-intensity activities with a low economic return, and reallocate water to other high value uses

  5. What are the Benefits of Virtual Water Trade? • Virtual water trade has been shown to conserve water in the production of crops by shifting production to areas where less water is needed per unit of output. • This can reduce ecological damage, and preserve ecosystem services, in water-scarce regions, where water withdrawals may have greater impacts than in water-abundant regions.

  6. Virtual water import and food security: a vicious circle? • The large export subsidies for agriculture of the European Union countries and the United States make the price of their products very cheap. • What are the ramifications of this? • Impetus to export commodities for economic gain, increasing use of water in exporting country. • So?

  7. Virtual Water – Accelerating our Approach to Water Limits • 1/15 of the water available in the United States is used for producing crops for export – in Thailand, this rate reaches one quarter • This contributes to the mining of aquifers, emptying of rivers, and increased evaporation. • The case of the Ogallala aquifer, in the United States, is particularly striking: • > 90% of its water irrigates at least one fifth of all U.S. cropland • The rate of withdrawal has now greatly surpassed the aquifer's rate of natural recharge.

  8. Virtual water import and food security: a vicious circle? • Local products cannot compete with these imported products, which do not reflect the real cost of production. • Abandoning their own food production forces, some countries become more and more dependent on external food products… • What are the ramifications of this?

  9. Virtual water import and food security: a vicious circle? • Importing country’s farmers can’t compete • Stop producing. Increase need for imports. • Former farmers lose means of making income. • Leave rural areas, move to cities. Or cross borders. • Greater need to transfer water to cities. • What happens if the grain-producing countries… • Cut subsidies to their farmers? • Experience drought… or some other natural disaster? • Have a political conflict with importing country? • Can you think of another “What if” threat?

  10. Virtual water import and food security: a vicious circle? • Discuss the case of Venezuela in 2013-2016 • See Shortages in Venezuela https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shortages_in_Venezuela

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