Today, the annual abstracted quantity of surface w'ater is 8 km3, so there is still a great potential for increased use of water even if dry seasons and water shortages in some regions create certain limitations. The same scenarios show an effect on precipitation ranging from an increase of 10 per cent to 40 per cent (see box 4.5 in chapter 4). In the short term, it is expected that the annual w'ater flows will continue to increase due to increased melting of permanent snowfields and glaciers.