Water scarcity has risen sharply up the EU policy agenda and will form a core focus for the Commission’s ‘Blueprint Safeguard Europe’s Waters’ in 2012. This briefing sets out key findings from research funded by the EU’s Research
Framework Programme related to water scarcity which can assist Parliamentarians in identifying important policy conclusions and so contribute to this debate. Water scarcity occurs where there are insufficient water resources available to satisfy long-term average requirements. Population growth, more intensive agriculture, energy and manufacturing needs and significant water scarcity occurs in a number of regions and there is concern that the problem is growing and that
this may be exacerbated by climate change.